Chocolate-It's What's for Dinner

So I was going to make fusilli but then got frustrated because it's pretty difficult to get a long rope of pasta even (or at least it is for me). I decided to make this other tubular pasta instead. I used the same recipe as I did for the Capunti - a standard semolina pasta. And then went rogue.  I saw in the book  (same book from Capunti post) that they made a tubular pasta using a skewer then I added a texture design using a standard gnocchi board. First roll pasta into a 1/2" rope (not so important that it's exactly even - which works for me!). Then cut into 2" pieces  Press the skewer into the 2" piece but don't press too hard. Roll away from you. Do not press too hard or the dough will stick. If it does stick, be sure to get all pasta off the skewer. You might also want to dip the skewer in flour. Roll pasta over gnocchi board for grooves.  See you end up with a tube and grooves. The grooves are great to catch the pasta sauce. Now if...

Why is Banana Bread called bread? It really is a cake, but I'll go along with the let's pretend that it's bread so that we think it's healthier idea. Add some additional fruit and some oats and we can kid ourselves some more... Banana Oatmeal Blueberry Bread (very loosely Adapted from Cooking Light) 3/4 c buttermilk 1/2 c rolled oats 1 3/4 c flour 1 t baking powder 1/4 t baking soda 1/2 t salt 3/4 c brown sugar 3 T canola oil 1 1/2 t vanilla 1 1/3 c mashed ripe bananas (about 3) 2 eggs 1 1/2 c frozen blueberries In a bowl mix buttermilk and oats and let soak about 10-15 minutes. In a separate bowl mix together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. To the oat mixture add brown sugar, oil and vanilla. Stir together. Add the bananas. Mix in eggs. Fold in the flour mixture. Gently fold in the blueberries. Pour batter into a 9x5 greased pan and bake at 350 until wooden toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool for 15 minutes on wire rack...

Not a real looker Let's face it this one is not a real looker, but it does taste great. I know potato and parsnips are both root vegetables but they are not something that I would normally think to pair together. They do work quite well. We ate this as a main meal with a salad. I could also see it as a side dish. It comes together pretty quickly if you have a madoline. Potato, Parsnip & Porcini Gratin (Adapted from Nigella Lawson) 1/3 c dried porcini 2/3 c boiling water 4T butter 2 cloves garlic, minced 2 c milk 2 c heavy cream 3 star anise salt/pepper 2lbs potato, sliced 1/8" (skins on) 2lbs parsnips, sliced 1/8" Sort of crush up the porcini with your hands. Soak porcini for 30 minutes in water . In a cast iron skillet (or other oven proof skillet) heat butter and garlic. Cook until fragrant. Add mushrooms (and liquid), milk, and cream to the skillet. Add salt/pepper to taste (more than you think). Add star anise. Bring to a boil. Lower heat and ad...

What is it with a bundt? I like them but sometimes I just struggle with them,  just a bit, OK more than a bit . I must be a glutton for punishment because I keep coming back to them. This time around it was not a stickage issue, it was a runny glaze issue (which let's be honest I've had drizzle issues as well). I followed David Lebovitz's recipe pretty much to the letter. I decided to use milk chocolate instead of bittersweet/semisweet for the glaze. Maybe that was the error of my ways? It didn't really matter because let's face it chocolate cake with chocolate glaze, runny or not, is still pretty darn good. What's up with the weird photo angle too? - just not a good day!

If you don't want to go to all the trouble (believe me it is very simple) of making the capunti , you can use cavatelli for this recipe: Capunti w/ Cream and Peas 4 clove garlic, chopped 1 T butter salt/pepper 10 oz English Peas 1 c heavy cream Parmesan for serving. Add garlic and butter to a skillet over low heat. Add a good pinch of salt. Saute until garlic is fragrant. Add peas and saute for 3-4 minutes. Add cream and heat through still on low heat. Add pasta to skillet and toss to coat. Add pepper. Serve with Parmesan cheese. This recipe is a little similar to this one , but without the pancetta.

Capunti I was so excited to get this new book. It has some really interesting shaped pastas it. Most are really simple to make. The recipe are just beautiful. When I first saw Capunti, they reminded me of pea pods. So when I saw the recipe using them included an ingredient that I didn't have (mushrooms), I decided that the English peas I had would go rather nicely with them (will post that recipe tomorrow). Capunti: 1 c flour 1 c semolina flour 1T salt 2/3 c warm water Mix flours and salt in a bowl. Create a well in the center and add warm water. Gradually gather the flours into the water until a dough ball forms. Turn dough onto counter and knead until smooth. Cover and let rest for at least 30 minutes (If not using right away, place in refrigerator. Remove from refrigerator and let come to room temperature before).  So up to this point it is just a standard semolina pasta recipe. The intersting part comes with forming the capunti. Break off a piece of dough ...

I know I've been delinquent again. We went for a quick trip to the Land Rover/Jaguar Ice Academy in Arjeplog Sweden. It was AWESOME! We drove and drifted on a frozen lake (hence, the name Ice Academy). We drove: Land Rover Velar, Range Rover, Jaguar F-Pace, Jaguar F-Type, Jaguar F-Type V8 550 (which was like a rocket!). We thought we went pretty fast, but then we went on a hot lap with a professional driver. We were Grandma driving to church on a Sunday compared to them! A really fun car to drive! Now it's back to reality... I already posted a t ahini brownie recipe from Milk Street and they were quite good (still don't get the peanut butter thing).  I have a friend who is gluten/dairy free, and when I saw this recipe from BonAppetit , I wanted to try it. I made the recipe straight up. No changes, no additions, substitutions. They came out well, but I felt the coconut oil and the tahini were battling it out a little. They were fudgey and moist as promised. Some...