A Hearty Dinner

Veggie Chickpea Stew with Parsley Couscous



Veggie Chickpea Stew with Parsley Couscous
This hearty stew will warm you from the inside out.

Serves 6-8

Ingredients

- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 small yellow onion, diced
- 8 celery stocks, diced
- 4 large carrots, diced
- 1 large sweet potato, peeled and diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 twenty eight ounce can diced tomatoes
- salt
- fresh ground pepper
- 1 medium eggplant, diced
- 3 zucchini, diced
- 1 fourteen ounce can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
- 2 tablespoons fresh flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
- 1 recipe Parsley Couscous (recipe follows)


Heat the olive oil in a large heavy bottom pan on medium heat. Add the diced onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the diced celery and carrots and cook over medium to medium/low heat for 5 minutes more. Add the sweet potato and garlic and cook 2 minutes more. Season the vegetables with salt and pepper. Add the can of diced tomatoes and their juices and the diced eggplant. Bring to a simmer, the cover and cook over low heat for 20-25 minutes or until the potato and eggplant are cooked. Stir in the zucchini and cook for 5 minutes more. Finally, add the garbanzo beans; season with salt and pepper and cook over medium/low heat until all of the veggies are tender, about 5 minutes more.
To finish the stew, season with more salt and pepper and stir in the parsley. Serve the hot stew over the couscous in individual bowls.

Parsley Couscous


Serves 6-8

Ingredients

- 3 cups water
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups couscous
- fresh ground pepper
- 1/4 cup pine nuts
- 1/4 cup fresh flat leaf parsley, finely chopped

To make the couscous, bring the water to a boil in a medium-size saucepan. Add the salt and the couscous. Stir once, cover with a lid, and remove the pan off the heat and let sit with the lid for 10 minutes. Fluff the couscous with a fork; season with salt and pepper and add the pine nuts and parsley.

Banana Cream Tart with Banana Caramel

I thought I would share what I had for my Valentine's Day treat.




Banana Cream Tart with Banana Caramel
This tart is banana cream pie brought to the next level – instead of traditional pie dough I use an extremely tender and light sweet tart dough, and I also add a sweet sticky banana caramel to the bottom layer of the tart for additional depth of banana flavor. The custard used here is quite traditional and perfect for this tart – not too runny yet not too thick, and it is all topped off with hand whipped cream and dark chocolate curls. I used a 70% Valrhona chocolate, which I though stood up well to the other flavors in the dessert. The bitterness of the dark chocolate did not get lost with the sweetness of the dessert and contrasted well with the caramel. Overall, this tart had a perfect balance of flavors and textures and was truly a decadent treat.

Makes 1 tart

Ingredients

- 2 large medium ripe bananas
- 1 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract or vanilla bean extract
- 1/4 cup confectioner’s sugar
- block or bar dark chocolate for curls
Tart Dough
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1/2 cup plus 1 1/2 tablespoons confectioner’s sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
- 1 egg yolk, room temperature
- 1 cup plus 1 tablespoon all purpose flour
Banana Caramel
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup water
- 3 oz banana puree (about 1 banana pureed in a food processor)
- 2 tablespoon cream
- pinch of salt
Custard
- 2 cups whole milk
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 2 eggs
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter

To make the tart dough, combine the butter, sugar and vanilla extract in a medium bowl fitted for an electric mixer. Cream together on medium/high speed until light and fluffy, about 5-6 minutes. Add the yolk and mix until combined. Add the flour and gently mix together on low speed until just combined. Scrape the dough out of the bowl and form into a round disk, cover in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 2 hours and up to overnight.
To bake the tart, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 9 inch tart pan with butter or use an ungreased nonstick tart pan (preferably one with a removable bottom).
On a lightly floured cold work surface use a rolling pin to roll the dough out about 1/2 – 3/4 inch thick. Start rolling from the center working your way outward, constantly moving the dough around the work surface, making sure that it doesn’t stick. Use more flour as needed, but try to use the flour sparingly. To transfer the dough to the tart pan, lightly roll the dough around the rolling pin; then unroll the dough out, over the pan. Working quickly, press the dough evenly into the tart shell. Freeze the tart shell until the dough is chilled and firm, about 30 minutes; then bake until light golden brown, about 30 minutes. Let the tart shell cool in its pan for 2 minutes; then carefully, using hot pad holders, place your hand on the bottom of the tart to release the sides of the tart pan; then use a spatula to transfer the tart off of the bottom of the pan and onto a wire rack to cool completely.
Meanwhile to make the banana caramel, combine the water and sugar in a medium heavy-bottom saucepan over low heat, without stirring until the sugar dissolves, about 5 minutes. Increase the heat to medium and bring to a boil without a lid. Do not stir the caramel. The sauce should continue to boil until it turns a golden chestnut brown; then turn off the heat. Careful the caramel will go from golden to burnt in a matter of seconds.
Being extremely careful, slowly, without splattering, pour the cream into the hot mixture. The mixture will violently bubble. Stir in the banana puree and return back to low heat. Stir until the sauce is smooth and creamy; then strain through a sieve. Transfer the caramel to a heatproof bowl and stir in the salt. Allow the sauce cool at room temperature for 1 hour. This caramel can be made up to a day ahead of time and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
To make the custard, whisk together the cornstarch, half of the sugar, and the salt in a medium-size bowl. In a separate bowl whisk together the two eggs. Set both aside.
Over medium heat, bring the milk, remaining sugar, and vanilla bean paste just to a simmer, being careful not to scorch the milk. When the milk is simmering, add the eggs to the cornstarch mixture and whisk together. While whisking, slowly pour a few tablespoons of the hot milk into the egg/cornstarch mixture. Continue to whisk and pour in a few more tablespoons of the hot milk. Return the pot with remaining milk back to the stove and slowly pour the egg/cornstarch mixture into the milk, while whisking.
Use a wood spoon to stir the mixture over low/medium heat until thickened, about 3-4 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and add the butter. Transfer the pudding into a heat proof container, cover and chill in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour and up to overnight. (If the custard is lumpy, strain though a sieve.)
When you are ready to assemble the tart pour the cold heavy cream into a large bowl. Stir in the vanilla bean and confectioner’s sugar until dissolved. Use a large balloon whisk to whip the cream until soft peaks form. Place the whipped cream in the refrigerator until you are ready to use.



To assemble the tart, place the tart shell on a large plate. Spread out the banana caramel evenly on the bottom of the tart shell. Slice the banana into 1/3 inch thick slices and arrange on top of the caramel. Use a rubber spatula to evenly spread the custard out over the banana and caramel. (The custard should come up to the top of the tart shell’s edge.) Top the custard with whipped cream, and use an offset spatula to evenly spread the whipped cream atop the tart.
To make the chocolate curls for the top of the tart, place the bar of chocolate on a clean cutting board. Use a vegetable peeler to scrape the chocolate to form curls. Place the chocolate curls (as much as you prefer) on top of the whipped cream. Refrigerate the tart for 1 hour set up. Slice the tart and serve chilled.

Chocolate Candies for Valentine's Day

Okay, one more sweet treat before Valentine's Day - my Milk Chocolate Peanut Butter Patties. A box of these homemade chocolates would make the perfect Valentine's Day gift, don't you think?



Chocolate Peanut Butter Patties
These homemade peanut butter patties are very easy to make, since I skip the step of tempering my chocolate. Of course, you can temper the chocolate properly if you would like (a process that involves melting the chocolate and bringing it to exactly 45 degrees C, then cooling to exactly 25 degrees C, then reheating back up to 30 degrees C), but I am a bit lazy when it comes to tempering chocolate. Instead I am using a method called direct warming, which means that you bring the chocolate to the exact final temperature. In the case of the milk chocolate used here, that temperature is 30 degrees or 86 degrees F. Tempering chocolate properly is essential in chocolate making because it ensures that the chocolate will have a smooth and glossy finish. Untempered chocolate will not set completely and leave you with melty mess, and more than likely it will bloom, (the process in which cocoa butter arises to the surface of the chocolate and re-crystallizes) giving you a white coating all over the surface of the chocolate. Bloomed chocolate certainly won’t hurt you or take away any flavor – it just isn’t all that attractive to have white mold-like spots on your candy.
With that said, I still decide to skip the tempering step since I am not so terribly concerned with these homemade confections looking perfect, and they will likely get gobbled up before they even have the chance to bloom. Plus, I dust them with roasted peanuts, just in case my quick and dirty method doesn’t pull through. So I leave the choice to temper the chocolate up to you.


Makes approximately 15 chocolates

Ingredients

1/3 cup creamy organic peanut butter
1 teaspoon butter, soft
pinch of salt
1 tablespoon cream
scant 1/2 cup confectioner’s sugar, sifted
6 ounces milk chocolate
1/4 cup roasted and salted peanuts, finely chopped

To make the peanut butter filling combine the peanut butter, butter and salt. Add the confectioner’s sugar and stir until combined. Finally, stir in the cream. Scoop out approximately a half-tablespoon of peanut butter filling and roll in the palm of your hands; then press down slightly with your fingertips to create a disk. Place the peanut butter patties on a piece of wax or parchment paper.
Meanwhile, heat the milk chocolate in a small saucepan (or over a bain marie) over low heat, while stirring. When the chocolate is almost melted, remove from the heat and continue to stir, until completely melted. (If using a candy thermometer, bring the chocolate to 30 degrees C or 86 degrees F.)
Dip one peanut butter patty in the milk chocolate. Use a fork to pick up the patty and let the chocolate drip off the bottom of the patty; then place on a clean sheet of wax/parchment paper. Top the chocolate with a pinch of chopped peanuts. Repeat the same process. Let cool completely.

And Vanilla

One of my favorite baking ingredients is vanilla bean paste, a thick gum-like extract saturated with millions of real vanilla bean flecks. I use this fragrant paste in recipes that call for vanilla bean, without the hassle and expense of using a real vanilla bean pod. One tablespoon of vanilla bean paste will provide all of the fragrance and flavor of one vanilla pod, and produce a finished product speckled with those beautiful vanilla bean flecks.
In truth, it really doesn’t take much time or effort to scrape the seeds out of a real pod, but it does come at an expense. Real vanilla pods are quite pricey and can dry out over time if you don’t use them right away. Vanilla bean paste, on the other hand, seems to have quite a long shelf life and a little bit goes a very long way – considering that I thought I needed a gallon of the stuff when I first discovered it a few years ago in pastry school and can’t quite seem to put a dent in it (even though I am quite a habitual baker). I actually use vanilla bean paste in place of regular vanilla extract, given the abundance, except on the rare occasion that I don’t want to see those gorgeous black flecks.
In short, I don’t recommend that you purchase a gallon of this product, as I have, but I do recommend that you purchase a small jar, which you can find at specialty cooking stores, as I believe that you too will find that this convenient product really enhances the flavor and appearance of many of your baked goods.


Vanilla Bean Pudding with Sugar Dusted Strawberries
Vanilla bean paste is especially wonderful when making custards (crème brulee, ice cream, pastry cream, pudding), like this one, Vanilla Bean Pudding. I top the pudding with fresh strawberry slices that are lightly tossed with a bit more vanilla bean paste and some sugar.


Serves 4

Ingredients

2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon cornstarch
1/2 cup granulated sugar
pinch of salt
2 large eggs
2 cups milk
1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
8-10 strawberries
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon vanilla bean paste

In a medium-size bowl whisk together the cornstarch, half of the sugar, and the salt. In a separate bowl whisk together the two eggs. Set both aside.
Over medium heat, bring the milk, remaining sugar, and vanilla bean paste just to a simmer, being careful not to scorch the milk. When the milk is simmering, add the eggs to the cornstarch mixture and whisk together. While whisking, slowly pour a few tablespoons of the hot milk into the egg/cornstarch mixture. Continue to whisk and pour in a few more tablespoons of the hot milk. Return the pot with remaining milk back to the stove and slowly pour the egg/cornstarch mixture into the milk, while whisking.
Use a wood spoon to stir the mixture over low/medium heat until thickened, about 3-4 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and add the butter. Transfer the pudding into 4 individual cups or 1 large serving bowl and cover the top surface of the pudding with plastic wrap to prevent a skin from forming. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour before serving.
Slice the strawberries and toss with sugar and vanilla bean paste.
When ready to serve, top each pudding with a few strawberry slices. This pudding will save, without strawberries, covered in the refrigerator for up 3 days.


Other recipes on my blog where you can use vanilla bean paste:

Warm Creme Anglaise (January 3, 2010)
Pear Crumb Cake (December 29, 2009)
Cherry Sauce (November 3, 2009)
Orange Cream Cheese Frosting (October 6, 2009)
Cream Cheese Frosting (September 26, 2009)
Hand Whipped Cream (September 17, 2009)
Vanilla Bean Shortbread Cookies (September 17, 2009)
Vanilla Bean Scented Yellow Peach Crisp (August 24, 2009)
Salted Caramel (August 2, 2009)

For Valentine's Day

Double Dark Chocolate Chunk Cookies
Chocolate Cookie Blackberry Ice Cream Sandwhiches



When I think of Valentine's Day I think of two things - chocolate and more chocolate.
So, with the upcoming holiday I thought it would be very appropriate to share my recipe for my Double Dark Chocolate Chunk Cookies. These dark chocolate cookies are for serious chocolate lovers only. They are rich and decadent and unlike many drop cookies they are best the day after they are made, not warm out of the oven.
In the summertime I use these cookies as the base for my Chocolate Cookie Blackberry Ice Cream Sandwiches. However the combination of rich dark chocolate and sweet blackberry ice cream would also make a perfect Valentine's Day treat.

Double Chocolate Chunk Cookies


Makes 2 dozen cookies

Ingredients

8 ounces bittersweet chocolate (60-68%), chopped
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, soft
1/2 cup all purpose flour
2 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
8 oz semi sweet chocolate bar, cut into 1/4 inch chunks

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Melt the chocolate and butter in a double boiler or slowly in the microwave, being careful not to burn the chocolate or clarify the butter. Set the chocolate/butter mixture aside to cool.
Meanwhile, sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
In a mixing bowl fitter for an electric mixer with a paddle attachment, beat the eggs and brown sugar on high speed until light and fluffy, about 3-4 minutes. Add the chocolate mixture and the vanilla extract and mix until combined. Gently fold in the dry ingredients. Finally, gently fold in the chocolate chunks. (Note: This cookie dough needs to baked immediately and cannot be made a head of time. It is best to scoop out the cookie dough as soon as possible, since the dough hardens and looses its gloss as it sits.)
Place 2 tablespoons of the cookie dough on the prepared baking sheets about 2 inches apart. Bake the cookies for 12-15, minutes depending on the size of the cookies. The tops should be slightly cracked but not firm to the touch. Remove the cookies form the oven and allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 1 minutes; then transfer to a wire rack to cool. Serve warm or at room temperature. These cookies will keep in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Chocolate Cookie Blackberry Ice Cream Sandwiches
Creamy blackberry ice cream compliments these cookies well, however I have tried many different types of ice cream with these cookies including vanilla, mint, coffee and peanut butter. Personally I have found that the stronger flavors, like mint, coffee and peanut butter overwhelm the dark chocolate flavor of the cookie. My favorites are vanilla and blackberry.


To make ice cream sandwiches freeze the cookies unstacked on a plate for 30 minutes. Take one frozen cookie and place face down. Place a scoop of ice cream on top of the cookie and then place a second cookie on top of the ice cream. Gently press the cookies together. (Tip: I use a small angled spatula to even out the ice cream.) Working quickly, wrap the ice cream sandwich in plastic wrap or parchment paper and return to the freezer for at least 2 hours, until ready to serve.