Category Archives: Valentine’s Day

Chocolate Chestnut Coffee Cake

Posted on by February 12, 2015

‘Tis the season for all things holiday baking, guests popping in and out with little notice, keeping a few extra nice bottles of wine about, and for me this December, all things chestnut, starting with this Chocolate Chestnut Coffeecake. Over the next few weeks, you’re going to see my fall obsession with chestnuts unfold in the form of soup, sticky buns, and perhaps a salad or two, but we start with this dense and delicious Chocolate Chestnut Coffeecake. While of course I have way too many cooking items, pans, utensils and appliances in Dirty Laundry Kitchen proper, I do try very hard to limit carefully specialty items that serve few purposes. One of the specialty pans that I can get behind is a mini-loaf pan. It’s the perfect volume for a 9”x5” coffeecake recipe and it produces four mini loaves that I wrap up tight in foil and keep in the freezer for gifts, impromptu brunches, and pop-in guests. They’re also nice for those Sundays when you don’t have guests, but you want something special none-the-less. The only problem with a Sunday of indulgence is that its supposed to end with Sunday; you really don’t want to indulge all week … Continue reading →

Chili Chocolate Buttercream Cupcakes

Posted on by February 12, 2015

I’m going to be honest, no matter how good Chili Chocolate Buttercream Cupcakes sound, the star of the dessert section of Caribbean Thanksgiving Menu was definitely the Pumpkin Butterscotch Pie with Cashew Crust. I knew it would be, so when it was time to pick the second dessert, I wanted a dessert that would be a very stark contrast to the pie, so it wouldn’t be drowned out and ignored by my guests. It was from that point of view that I tried out these Chili Chocolate Buttercream Cupcakes based closely on a food and wine recipe by Lisa Ritter. Again, honesty. I have to admit, even with all my planning, these Chili Chocolate Buttercream Cupcakes were stuck in the shadow of the pie. Even with all the cayenne and ancho chile powder in the chocolate buttercream. Even with the cinnamon cake. I have plans to make these again someday, when they’re the only thing around. Because Chili Chocolate Buttercream Cupcakes could never be bad. And they weren’t. They were really good. And the mini format was fun for guests. They appreciated the ability to try two desserts without a huge commitment. And the flavors of the Chili Chocolate Buttercream … Continue reading →

Baked Goat Cheese and Homemade Pepper Jelly

Posted on by February 12, 2015

Baked Goat Cheese and Homemade Pepper Jelly is one of those dishes that was absolutely inspired by the hosting skills of others. Some friends of mine have a lovely Christmukkah party annually that often includes the crowd-pleasing cream cheese with pepper jelly appetizer. In fact, they always have lots of fun old school apps and cocktails. Mike is one of those people who is good at guessing which spirit comes next in the trend book. He was mixing 60’s cocktails before Mad Men was all the rage. In fact, I’m still waiting on the rum explosion he swears is coming, because I believe him. Next to their Mad Men style revival cocktails you’ll find lots of appropriately 60’s snacks, including, the aforementioned cream cheese with pepper jelly, which is one of those appetizers that I forget all about in between Christmukkahs. It’s a funny little dish, and not particularly my style; perhaps I am even a little surprised to realize I absolutely love it. Then again, how could you not? Cream cheese and spicy sweet jelly as an excuse to have fresh baguette… Fair point, well made. So last Thanksgiving, when I was perusing magazines for recipes that might fit … Continue reading →

Cherry Almond Gluten Free Muffins

Posted on by February 12, 2015

When you’re visiting two different friends with Celiac disease in a single day, you definitely bake something gluten free, and if you’re going to see them for breakfast, these Cherry Almond Gluten Free Muffins are a great place to start. If you’ve never baked gluten free before, you’re going to love it for a variety of reasons. The best part about baking gluten free, is baking for gluten free friends. Gluten free friends are appreciative of home baked goods in a way that’s hard to explain, especially when your wares are these divine Cherry Almond Gluten Free Muffins. It has something to do with the fact that people rarely do bake gluten free. Once I knew I wanted to make muffins, the rest of the recipe came together easily as I had an extra cup of cherries just waiting for me in the fridge after cherries were defrosted for a sour cherry pie. I assure you that while they’re gluten free, they should really be called “The Bomb Cherry Almond Muffins,” as I fear billing them as gluten free will turn off some bakers who don’t tend to work with different types of flours. But once you start baking with … Continue reading →

Rose and Raspberry Float

Posted on by February 12, 2015

Summer, Summer, Summer, wherefore art thou… Fall? Really? It’s Labor Day weekend already? But it’s not here just yet, so I’m going to squeak in a few more truly Summer recipes, like this Rose and Raspberry Float complete with fresh raspberries and a gorgeous pink color. Added bonus, it looks super fancy and elegant, but all you need is a blender and no one will ever know the ice cream is only sorta homemade. Can you just buy raspberry ice cream pre-made for this Rose and Raspberry Float? Maybe. I set out to buy some and discovered three and a half stores later that I was making it myself… and way too late in the game to start from scratch. But it was a good lesson in impressing your guests with ease. Start with a really good vanilla and add your own special twist, and voila! homemade ice cream. Go nuts with wacky flavors, or pick something that will pair with a special soda like my Rose and Raspberry Float. Check out these gorgeous double pink roses I found for the occasion. I can’t help but think this would be a lovely dessert for a tea party. Sometimes monochromatic flowers … Continue reading →

Chocolate Cherry Almond Cake

Posted on by February 12, 2015

I promised some sour cherry recipes from my Cherry Picking in Philly post, and voila! a Chocolate Cherry Almond Cake. You’ve probably noticed that chocolate desserts aren’t really my vice. Don’t get me wrong, that’s not to say I don’t like chocolate. I do. But I’m kind of a purist about it. As in straight up, deep dark chocolate – chocolate. Maybe a Deep Dark Salted Caramel Truffle now and then, but chocolate cake? Not so much. But, when I set out to make yet another almond cake dessert, I got nervous that I might bore you too much. And that’s when I decided that perhaps a touch, or rather a half pound of deep dark chocolate might not be so bad in a cake, as long as it was a dense almond cake studded with sour cherries. And don’t worry, I was right, the Chocolate Cherry Almond Cake wasn’t bad in the least. In fact, it was down right delicious. Best of all? Chocolate Cherry Almond Cake is a great year round cake because it works well with frozen cherries. And I can assure you, it would be great with raspberries or blackberries too. Just imagine little pockets of … Continue reading →

Fresh Strawberry Pie with Rhubarb Curd

Posted on by February 12, 2015

My Fresh Strawberry Pie with Rhubarb Curd all started with two quarts of gorgeous little local fresh strawberries. You know the ones. They’re really small. And sometimes oddly shaped. And deep dark red. They were at the market, and it was time for a fresh strawberry pie. But I didn’t have the heart to make a Jello-ed, jellied pie with those perfect berries. Even the homemade strawberry puree plus cornstarch versions you see this time of year didn’t seem worthy of those berries. So I started thinking about what else has a consistency that would help fresh strawberries bind together in a pie-like way. Which got me on to lemon curd. Which made me think of the tart neighbor, passion fruit curd, which we had all over our breakfast, all over Australia. Which got me thinking about other fruits that would be a welcome addition to curd. I could reinforce the strawberry, kind of like the original complete with strawberry Jell-o, but after thinking of lemon, tart sounded right to me. And of course, rhubarb and strawberry are such friendly ingredients, and I still had a bag frozen that was calling to me like a siren. So next thing you … Continue reading →

Chocolate Hazelnut Crêpes Cake

Posted on by March 29, 2016

Easter candy is all about chocolate: chocolate bunnies, chocolate eggs, and whatever else you can get your paws on- pun intended. Just because you’re a grown up doesn’t mean you don’t wish to get in on all the chocolate decadence. This Chocolate Hazelnut Crêpes Cake won’t disappoint in that department. It’s really rich and dense and perfect for Easter Brunch since the Chocolate Hazelnut Crêpes Cake is made of a large stack of crêpes. Then they’re layered with a fluffy hazelnut butter cream and piled high. Finally, they’re coated in a deep dark chocolate ganache. To answer your question, yes, it’s seriously rich. And just check out that picture… This Chocolate Hazelnut Crêpes Cake looks amazing once you cut into it because of it’s layered structure. I can’t take all the credit for this recipe; it’s based on a Martha Stewart recipe I found long ago, but I can take credit for simplifying it. The filling is now easy to make (and even more important, easy to find the ingredients), which was not the case in the original. I’ve also upped the impact by using really dark chocolate for my Chocolate Hazelnut Crêpes Cake. All you need is a little sliver … Continue reading →

Rhubarb Coffee Cake with Crumb Topping

Posted on by February 12, 2015

After you’ve got your guests settled in with a Pamplemosa, it’s time to bring out the Rhubarb Coffee Cake with Crumb Topping to keep them happy while the rest of Easter Brunch heats up. This is my go-to coffee cake- sort of. The truth is I’m a kitchen-sinker when it comes to lots of classics, so while this is a good framework for how I make coffeecake, there’s lots of ingredients I substitute in and out based on what’s in the fridge and what’s in season. Yogurt, sour cream, creme fraiche, even ricotta all work for the sour cream and I sub them in whilly nilly. And I have to admit that every since I made it with ricotta last spring… Oh man. So good. And that’s not all that changes. I make it with different fruit throughout the year, and tweak the spices. Sometime I make blueberry with lemon or orange zest and cardamom. I make fresh peach in the summer, or frozen sour cherries in the winter, but I think best of all, is the when rhubarb is in season. There’s something about the Rhubarb Coffee Cake with Crumb Topping that has my guests begging for the recipe. … Continue reading →

Passion Fruit Batida

Posted on by February 12, 2015

This Passion Fruit Batida is a perfect cross-section of a frozen drink, ice cream dessert, and a tart tropical cocktail. The hint of dairy makes it a natural companion for spicy foods and the passion fruit makes me one happy lady. Its bright, tart flavor and intense, yellow color are equally pleasing. I really love fresh passion fruits, but when they’re around and available, they’re usually horribly expensive and I save them for making passion fruit lemon curd or the like and use passion fruit pulp for all other recipes. While passion fruit pulp used to be a bit hard to find, recently, I found the Goya brand in the frozen fruit section of my local Wegmans. I also recommend looking at stores that have larger latin sections generally as they’re more likely to carry such things. Finding it at Wegman’s was a great relief, mostly for my sister; now I don’t have to ship it in on dry ice or force my sister to carry it on from California, where I used to get it from a company called the Perfect Puree. If all else fails and you can’t find the fruit pulp, use passion fruit juice (or nectar), … Continue reading →

The Decoy Cocktail

Posted on by February 12, 2015

Happy St. Patrick’s Day, one and all. For your Monday night Happy Hour pleasure, I give you The Decoy Cocktail a.k.a. Duck, Duck, Drink. So what’s the trick behind The Decoy? Well first of all, it’s about as Irish as I am, which is to say, not at all. But it has whiskey (single malt Scotch) in it. I’m not going to lie, The Decoy Cocktail is going to be both a pain and an expense to assemble, but I’m pretty sure that I’m going to make you want to anyway, once you hear about the, wait for it, Mexican food that inspired it. The Decoy is both really cool, and it’s REALLY delicious. The smoky cocktail served “up” makes it perfect for another SNOW DAY (I just can’t make any more Snowstorm Hot Chocolate– it would break my heart) like the one we had in Philly today. Of course, a drink like this has one helluva back story. I mean, I don’t go out of my way to design the most expensive hard to assemble drinks possible. That said, I do keep a deep liquor cabinet and people buy me unusual ingredients as gifts so I did have everything … Continue reading →

Challah French Toast

Posted on by February 12, 2015

What’s the big deal with Challah French Toast? Why would I be so specific about the bread? There are few breads better suited to French toast than challah. It’s tender and rich and super willing to hold lots and lots of egg batter. To made it extra special, I load my batter with orange zest and even add a little extra sugar to created a brûléed custard effect that is reminiscent of crème brûlée. Then I smother it in fresh berries and maybe even some type of cream. Whipped cream when I’m in the mood to be decadent, yogurt when I’m trying to be a little healthy, or Coeur a la crème for when I’m going all out (or I have some leftover). And this time of year, when it’s cold and hearty breakfast feels justified (or anytime I ask Marc what he’d like me to make, be it breakfast, lunch or dinner) Challah French Toast hits the spot. Sometimes Marc even goes so far as to come home from work with a loaf of fresh challah, and then, I know it’s gonna be a French Toast weekend. Make this fabulous Challah French Toast and I bet you’ll not only … Continue reading →