#make again

[shoku-and-awe]

Smoked eggplant, lemon and olive oil sauce, and the closest thing to ricotta I can get. Delicious but it would make a better bruschetta or maybe a pizza topping!

[saltngarlic]

3 january 2024 - half & half pie - james may's "oh cook!" - needed adjustment to seasoning. store-bought pastry worked fine but baking sheet led to soggy bottom, remove that too

[woodandgrains]

baked tempeh sabroso

[deepfriedluck]

OREOS

[shoku-and-awe]

Also: the traditional Christmas morning cinnamon buns. To remind myself to compile the recipe!

[shoku-and-awe]

It may not look like much but here’s last week’s exciting project: Butternut squash ravioli! For a delicious dinner in the illustrious company of @todayintokyo. Unfortunately the food was so enticing that I forgot to get a shot of the filling, but trust me: OH MY GOD.

Pasta is this recipe, filling is one squash, peeled and chopped, then roasted with olive oil and salt & pepper, then puréed. Sauce is crispy sage in butter and olive oil plus a pinch of brown sugar (honestly? unnecessary*) and bit of pasta water. Could not be more perfect.

*The last time I was requested to make a squash ravioli, I used kabocha because b’nut was out of season, and let me tell you: I absolutely wore myself the fuck out trying to get the filling even half as tender and moist and sweet as this turned out. I was adding butter, cream, milk, broth, any liquid I could find in the not-my-kitchen; I was puréing again and again; I was cursing the unfamiliar oven and my failure to have written down my original recipe or remember my ADHD meds, but guess what? It wasn’t because of any of those things! It wasn’t anyone’s fault. It was just that you can’t sub out butternut squash. It is a vegetable with superpowers. It is not interchangeable with other squashes. You can finesse it to the best of your ability, you can introduce as much moisture and richness as you want, but it’s just not the same thing. It’s like when Fleetwood Mac fired Lindsey Buckingham and then turned around and replaced him with three different guys playing guitar simultaneously. (That’s what happened, right? I think that’s what happened.)

In any case. Wonderful company! Wonderful pasta. Wonderful life lesson for the next time the recipe doesn’t go the way I remembered.

[shoku-and-awe]

More baking! Dark chocolate espresso crinkle cookies. Recipe from my mom's friend behind the cut.

These guys have an AMAZING texture: crunchy outside but with an inside like a nice chewy brownie. They are a little sweet — not as sickeningly sweet as a lot of American cookies — so I added extra salt and next time would add extra or stronger coffee and the darkest chocolate I could get. Or confront the eternal conundrum I always face with cookies: how much can you reduce the sugar without sacrificing the perfect texture?

RECIPE

Makes 64 cookies  2 eggs  1/2 cup butter, melted  1 cup granulated sugar 1/2 cup packed brown sugar  2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (I use Hershey's special dark)  2 t instant espresso powder  1 1⁄2 t baking powder  1 1/2 t vanilla  1/2 t salt  1 1/2 cup flour  1/2 cup dark chocolate (I use dark chocolate morsels) 

Powdered sugar 

In a large bowl, stir together eggs and melted butter until combined. Add granulated sugar, brown sugar, cocoa powder, espresso powder, baking powder, vanilla extract and salt; stir until combined. Stir in flour and chocolate. Cover and chill for 1-2 hours or until dough is easy to handle. 

Preheat the oven to 350. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper; set aside. Place powdered sugar in a small bowl. Shape dough into 1 inch balls and roll balls in powdered sugar to coat. Place balls 2 inches apart on prepared cookie sheets. 

Once all sheets have balls and just before going into the oven, roll a second time into powdered sugar. 

Bake for about 9 minutes or until edges are set and tops are dry. Transfer to a wire rack to cool. They freeze really well!!