Meatballs... and Raspberry Tarts

"These meatballs are really good!"

I never, never thought I'd hear those words come out of his mouth.  And as one who loves a good meatball or meatloaf, I was delighted.  Carsten found this recipe at the ever-trusted smitten kitchen, and it is definitely a keeper.

We've made them twice now, and it seems like spaghetti and meatballs will continue to be our go-to dinner menu when we have a couple over for dinner, and had enough time to cook together.  The boys are in charge of making the pasta - they've got it down to a fine art, so who am I to come in and mess that up?  And the girls are in charge of the meatballs and sauce.  The guys can cover the salad, and the girls are all over the dessert.  Dessert is, after all, my favorite part to make.

This time, we had the Sharps over for dinner, and for dessert we made raspberry tarts.  I finally got to pull out the cute little individual tart pans that Mom got me a while ago.  I'd been waiting and waiting for the perfect opportunity to use them :)  I just threw together a whole wheat pie crust, then Michelle and I filled the tarts with a combination of whipped cream, mascarpone cheese, a couple spoonfuls of an italian sparking wine, a tablespoon of powdered sugar, and some lemon zest.  Then we piled them with fresh raspberries.  Yumm.

But as good as dessert was, the fresh pasta and homemade meatballs were the star of the evening.

Ingredients
serves about 8
1 lb lean ground beef
1 lb italian sausage (unwrapped)
3-4 slices bacon
1 1/4 cup bread crumbs
1/3 onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 egg
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
pinch salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or more to taste
1 teaspoon onion powder

Procedure
In a large skillet, cook the bacon until almost crispy.  Set the bacon aside to cool, leaving the grease in the pan.  Finely chop the bacon, and combine it with the ground beef, italian sausage and breadcrumbs.  Mix with your hands until well combined.  In the bacon grease, sautée the onion and garlic, then add to the meat mixture, again leaving the grease behind in the pan.  Whisk the egg, then add it to the meat, along with the parsley, Parmesan cheese, salt, pepper and onion powder.

Form the meat into 2-inch balls.  Set the pan with the bacon grease over low heat, and add as many meatballs to the pan as you can, without having any touching each other.  Cover, and let them cook for a couple minutes on each side.  You want them to brown, but you also want them to cook fully before they burn on the outside!  When cooked, remove from the pan and let drain on a paper towel.  Continue cooking in batches until all meatballs are cooked.



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Tiramisu Cupcakes

 April seems to be birthday month around here, and I love it.  Last weekend I got to spend all Saturday afternoon baking cupcakes with Clare, and helping Jake (along with Clare, Stewart and Alicia) prepare an amazing gourmet pizza party for Michele.  If you're looking for a good party idea, this one turned out splendidly.  We were expecting twenty guests around 7:30.  So at 4:00 we started 6 recipes of this pizza dough.  It's my absolute favorite pizza dough recipe (although beware, it needs more flour than it calls for).  We let the dough rise while we made a trip to the grocery store for the sauce ingredients, then began the sauce.  About an hour later, I divided the dough into 24 equal personal-pizza-size portions, and began rolling them out while Jake and Stewart fired up the grill.  We grilled each dough for just a couple minutes, until they were about half cooked.  Then all the guests brought different ingredients with them, and everyone got to make their own personal pizza!  Once the toppings were arranged to each person's liking, it was just popped back on the grill for less than 5 minutes, and voilà! delicious, gourmet, piping hot personal pizza!  It was a blast.

And these cupcakes were the perfect way to round off the meal :)  Clare and I discovered the recipe over at the BrownEyedBaker.


Ingredients (makes 18 cupcakes)

For the Cupcakes
1 1/4 cups cake flour, sifted (I didn't have any, so I made my own using this tutorial)
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup milk
1 vanilla bean, halved lengthwise, seeds scraped and reserved
4 Tbs unsalted butter, at room temperature, cut into pieces
3 whole eggs plus 3 egg yolks, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar

For the Coffee-Marsala Syrup
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon freshly brewed espresso
1 ounce sweet marsala wine
1/4 cup granulated sugar

For the Mascarpone Frosting
1 cup heavy cream
8 oz mascarpone cheese, room temperature
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar, sifted
Unsweetened cocoa powder, for dusting

Procedure
For the cupcakes

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Sift together cake flour, baking powder, and salt. Heat milk and vanilla-bean pod and seeds in a small saucepan over medium heat just until bubbles appear around the edge. Remove from heat. Whisk in butter until melted, and let stand 15 minutes. Strain milk mixture through a fine sieve into a bowl, and discard vanilla-bean pod.

With an electric mixer on medium speed, whisk together whole eggs, yolks, and sugar. Set mixing bowl over a pan of simmering water, and whisk by hand just until sugar is dissolved and mixture is warm, up to 6 minutes. Remove bowl from heat. With an electric mixer on high speed, whisk until mixture is fluffy, pale yellow, and thick enough to hold a ribbon on the surface for several seconds when whisk is lifted.

Gently but thoroughly fold flour mixture into the egg mixture in three batches.  Stir 1/2 cup batter into the strained milk mixture to thicken, then fold milk mixture into the remaining batter until just combined.  Don't over mix, or the batter will deflate!

Divide batter evenly among lined cups, filling each three-quarters full (they rise a lot!). Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until centers are completely set and edges are light golden brown, about 20 minutes. Transfer tins to wire racks to cool completely before removing cupcakes.

For the syrup
Stir together hot espresso, marsala, and sugar until sugar is dissolved. Let cool.

Brush tops of cooled cupcakes evenly with coffee-marsala syrup; repeat until all syrup has been used (don't worry, they won't be soggy!). Allow cupcakes to absorb liquid 30 minutes.

For the frosting
With an electric mixer on medium speed, whisk heavy cream until very stiff peaks form (be careful not to overbeat, or cream will be grainy). In another bowl, whisk together mascarpone and confectioners' sugar until smooth. Gently fold whipped cream into mascarpone mixture until completely incorporated.  Do not beat further after the cream and cheese are combined, or the cream will break. Use immediately.

To finish, dollop or pipe frosting onto cupcakes; refrigerate for an hour or up to overnight in airtight containers. Dust generously with cocoa powder just before serving.

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Berry Mascarpone Cream Tart

I've put off posting this for far too long.  Mostly because the task of actually writing out the recipe has just been too daunting.  But it was far to delicious and memorable not to post here, so I'm going to give the most brief recipe possible (sorry!).  I found the recipe over at Apt. 2B Baking Co. and it looked like exactly what I was craving.  Something sweet, but light and fruity.  And beautiful.  Yossy's photographs of her tart are absolutely gorgeous.  Carsten keeps telling me I should take some food photography lessons, or at least read a few books about it.  Maybe I should give it some more thought...

Anyway, I made this tart for Ana's birthday.  I didn't use the crust from the recipe, because I had a left over pie crust in my freezer.  My crust was extremely crispy and flaky, (baked in a buttery flaky crust!), but probably completely different than the shortbread crust in the recipe.  In other words, make this tart in whatever crust you want, and it will be delicious!

So, instead of writing out the entire recipe, I'll just direct you here.

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Pecan Pie Coffe Cake

I'm literally eating the last piece of cake as I write.  I just returned home from Church, Carsten is sleeping after a 30 hour call at the hospital, and I decided to relax in the living room with the last slice.  A perfect Sunday afternoon.  After two bites I remembered I hadn't taken any pictures, so I got out the camera and snapped a few.

I found this recipe over at bake or break about a week ago, and have had it up on my computer screen ever since, just waiting for a good day to bake it.  I love baking anything sweet, but if I don't have people to share it with I'll eat it all by myself - not only dangerous, but less fulfilling.  So when I got a text from friends inviting me over to have a Christmas tree bonfire, I got right to baking :)

Perfectly moist, not too sweet, and the pecan pie topping added just the right amount of interest.  It's always a gamble letting your friends try a first time recipe, but I shouldn't have worried.  The cake was a hit.  And I will forever associate it with an evening around the bonfire, laughing and drinking wine with friends, new and old.

Ingredients
For the Cake:
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3 Tbs unsalted butter, softened
2 oz cream cheese, softened
1 large egg
1 large egg white
1 tsp vanilla extract
3/4 cup buttermilk

For the Topping:
1/3 cup corn syrup (the recipe called for light, but I only had dark, so that's what I used)
1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
2 Tbs unsalted butter
1/3 cup pecans, finely chopped
1 large egg, lightly beaten
pinch of salt

Procedure
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees, and generously grease a 9-inch cake pan.  I used a spring-form pan, which made it just a little easier to serve.
In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.  Set aside.  Using an electric mixer, whip together the sugar, butter, and cream cheese until light and fluffy.  (If your butter and cream cheese aren't quite softened, just wait ten minutes or so, and beat them a little extra, until everything is smooth and fluffy.  DON'T rush the process but putting them in the microwave!  It will ruin the texture of your cake)  Add the whole egg, and then the egg white, whipping between each addition.  Stir in the vanilla.  Reduce the mixer to low and add the flour mixture in three portions, alternating with buttermilk in between (flour - buttermilk - flour - buttermilk - flour).  Mix until just combined.  Pour the batter into your prepared pan, and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Set the pan on a wire rack, and reduce the oven to 325 degrees.
In a small sauce pan, combine the corn syrup, brown sugar, and butter over medium heat.  Stir and heat just until the butter melts.  Remove from heat, and stir in pecans, egg, and salt.  Using a wooden skewer, (a toothpick is too small - I used a chopstick ;) ) poke holes all over your cake.  This will let the gooey topping soak into the cake.  Carefully pour the topping over the cake, making sure to cover every bit of it.  Feel free to spread the pecans around evenly.  Return the cake to the oven for 10 minutes.  Remove from the oven, and let cool completely (on a wire rack) before serving.

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Chocolate Molten Lava Cakes

 
Sometimes things don't go the way you want them to.  You don't feel "good enough," life gets confusing, and everywhere you turn you seem to be faced with obstacles and frustration.  Thankfully, we have family.  And friends.  And... chocolate.  And nothing could beat a combination of all three.

 

 Adapted from a foodnetwork recipe.

Ingredients

8oz semisweet chocolate (I used chocolate chips)
10 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup flour
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
3 large eggs, plus 3 yolks
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 Tbs your favorite liqueur (I used Amarula)

1 pinch of salt

Procedure

Preheat oven to 425 degrees and grease six (6 oz) ramekins. Melt the chocolate and butter slowly in a double boiler.  Remove from heat, and mix in the flour and sugar to chocolate mixture. Stir in the eggs and yolks until smooth. Stir in the vanilla, liqueur, and salt. Divide the batter evenly among the ramekins. Place in the oven and bake for 14 minutes. The edges should be firm but the center will be runny. Run a knife around the edges to loosen and invert onto dessert plates. Serve alone, or with vanilla ice cream :)

 

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Pies: Strawberry Rhubarb and Apple

 
Fall is here.  Or at least the pumpkin lattes have returned to Starbucks and school is starting up again.  Orientation - the same old boring lectures from last year and the year before - began this week, and Carsten and I thought we had better mark the end of (my) summer with something fun.  So Saturday we hosted a bbq, in honor of summer ending.  Friends, good bbq, food brought by all, ice cream sandwiches made by Clare, another good girls vs. boys round of jeopardy, and some all-American pies: the perfect way to end summer with a blast.

I decided to try a new recipe for the pie crust, even though I was really happy with how the last one turned out.  Both pies were absolutely delicious.  I had pie the next morning for breakfast.  And then again later that day for lunch.  If I hadn't sent people home with leftovers, this would have continued for far too long ;)  thanks to smittenkitchen, where I found both wonderful pie crust recipe (which came from America's Test Kitchen), and a delicious apple pie filling recipe.  Having never before made a strawberry rhubarb pie, I searched for recipes until I found one that looked promising at epicurious, which I referred to just for the pie filling.

The only changes I made to the recipes were out of necessity.  As I was putting together the pie crusts, not only did I finally come to the conclusion that I will buy a food processor next time I go to BB&B, but I ran out of flour. Sigh.  I was so close.  In the end, I substituted just 1/4 cup of whole wheat flour into each pie crust, and to my relief, it tasted wonderful.  In fact, I will probably do it again in the future.  The crust was amazing.  It was also necessary to substitute whole wheat flour for normal flour in the filling of the apple pie, and as the grocery store didn't have McIntosh apples in stock, I grabbed Gala instead.

Lattice Pie Crust (non-lattice ingredients in parentheses)
Ingredients
3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (2 1/2 cups, non-lattice)
1 tsp salt
2 Tbs sugar
7 Tbs all-vegetable shortening, chilled (8 tablespoons, non-lattice)
10 Tbs unsalted butter, chilled, cut into 1/4-inch pieces (12 tablespoons, non-lattice)
10 Tbs ice water (6 to 8 tablespoons, non-lattice)
eggwash: 1 egg and 1 tsp water

Procedure
Pulse flour, salt and sugar in a food processor fitted with steel bald until combined. Add shortening and process until mixture has texture of coarse sand, about 10 seconds. Scatter butter pieces over flour mixture; cut butter into flour until mixture is pale yellow and resembles coarse crumbs, with butter bits no larger than small peas, about ten 1-second pulses. Turn mixture into medium bowl.
Sprinkle 8 tablespoons ice water over mixture. With blade of rubber spatula, use folding motion to mix. Press down on dough with broad side of spatula until dough sticks together, adding up to 2 tablespoons more ice water if it will not come together. Divide dough into two pieces, one slightly larger than the other. (If possible, weigh pieces. They should register 16 ounces and 14 ounces.) Flatten larger piece into a rough 5-inch square and smaller piece into a 4-inch disk; (If for a non-lattice, double crust pie, these pieces should be even in weight and both round) wrap separately in plastic and refrigerator at least 1 hour or up to 2 days before rolling.
Note: Since I haven't yet purchased a food processor, I did this by hand, using a pastry cutter.  If you use this method, it takes a while longer, so it's harder to keep everything as cold as it needs to be.  So to make things easier, combine the dry ingredients in your mixing bowl, and chill it in the freezer, along with the shortening, for about half an hour.  This will keep your crust from getting too warm while you work it.

Apple Pie Filling
Ingredients
1 1/2 lbs Granny Smith apples, about 3 medium
2 lbs McIntosh apples, about 4 large (I used 1 1/2 lbs Gala apples)
1 Tbs juice
zest of 1 lemon
3/4 cups plus 1 Tbs sugar
 2 Tbs all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground allspice


Procedure
Adjust oven rack to lowest position and heat oven to 500°F.  Remove larger disk of dough from the refrigerator, and roll dough on lightly floured work surface into a 12-inch disk. Transfer the dough to a 9 1/2-inch deep dish pie pan by rolling dough around rolling pin and unrolling over the pan or by folding dough in quarters, then placing dough point in center of pie plate and unfolding. Working around circumference of the pan, ease dough into pan corners by gently lifting dough edges with one hand while pressing around pan bottom with other hand. Leave dough that overhangs lip of plate in place; refrigerate dough-lined pie plate.

Peel, core and cut apples in half, and in half again width-wise; cut quarters into thin slices and toss with lemon juice and zest. In a medium bowl, mix 3/4 cup sugar, flour, salt and spices. Toss dry ingredients with apples. Turn fruit mixture, including juices, into chilled pie shell and mound slightly in center.

Roll out second piece of dough to 12-inch disk and place over filling. Trim top and bottom edges to 1/2-inch beyond pan lip. Tuck this rim of dough underneath itself so that folded edge is flush with pan lip. Flute edging or press with fork tines to seal. Cut a few slits in the top of the pie. If pie dough is very soft, place in freezer for 10 minutes. Brush egg white onto top of crust and sprinkle evenly with remaining 1 tablespoon sugar.

Place pie on a baking sheet into the oven and lower oven temperature to 425°F. Bake until top crust is golden, about 25 minutes. Rotate pie and reduce oven temperature to 375°F; continue baking until juices bubble and crust is deep golden brown, 35-45 minutes longer.  Transfer pie to wire rack; cool until just warm to the touch, at least 3 hours.
Note: I used the non-lattice approach for the apple pie, as smittenkitchen said the lattice tends to make her apple pies too dry.  But since Strawberry Rhubarb can often bee very runny, I deicded to use the lattice approach for that pie.

Strawberry Rhubarb Filling
Ingredients
3 1/2 cups rhubarb, cut into 1/2-inch pieces (about 1 1/2 pounds untrimmed)
1 lb strawberries, hulled and halved (about 3 1/2 cups)
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt

Procedure
Combine all filling ingredients in a large mixing bowl, and toss to coat the fruit evenly.  Prepare the pie as in the procedure above.  To make a lattice pie crust, see instructions here.

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Saltine Toffee

I forgot how good this stuff is.  In high school, each year at the beginning of Hanukkah, my friends and I used to get together and make it on top of matzo, and everyone in the class would be begging for "just a little piece" all week long.  Thank you Melissa for introducing me to this simple and delicious candy!

When I was back in Eugene for a few days this summer, my mom decided to make it for Krissy's Going away (to College) party.  It was a hit.  Only she makes it with Saltine crackers, which add just the perfect amount of saltiness to each bite.  And I was so excited that mom had left a good amount at home in the fridge, however, I had gotten excited too soon.  Mom, being the generous person that she is, had my sister and I deliver it to my cousins' house so that they could enjoy it instead.  Sigh.  But that's what sweets are for, sharing.  So I've decided to make a batch myself, and I'm sure there will be plenty of friends to share with :)

This recipe is all over the internet, but here it is once again:

Ingredients
A bag and a half salted saltine crackers (about 40 crackers)
1 cup butter
1 cup brown sugar
2 cups semi sweet chocolate chips
cup chopped nuts (I used slivered almonds)

Procedure
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.  Line a large jelly roll pan with aluminum foil and spray with non-stick cooking spray (I forgot to spray mine, but it turned out okay).  Lay the saltine crackers evenly on the pan, squeezing in as many as possible.

In a small saucepan, melt the butter and brown sugar over medium heat.  After the butter has completely melted, continue stirring until the mixture begins to boil around the edges.  Let it boil for three minutes without stirring. After three minutes, pour the hot brown sugar mixture evenly over the saltine crackers.  I had to spread the toffee over the crackers, so that the whole pan was evenly covered.

 my small sauce pan was just barely big enough

Bake in the preheated oven for 5-6 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and sprinkle the chocolate chips across the toffee. Let them melt for a couple of minutes and then use a spatula to spread the melted chocolate evenly across the toffee (I turn off the oven after taking out the toffee, but return the toffee to the warm oven after sprinkling the chocolate chips over it.  One minute in the hot oven melts the chocolate just enough that it's easy to spread).

 after 5-6 minutes in the oven, it should be all bubbly

Sprinkle chopped nuts on top of the melted chocolate. Let the toffee and chocolate cool completely (I put mine in the fridge to help it set up quickly). Break the toffee into bite-size pieces.

To store, keep toffee in an air-tight container for 1-2 weeks (in the fridge if your house is warm, like mine) or in the freezer for a couple of months (if you can make it last that long).

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Girls Night Panna Cotta

 

Monday night is girls night.  Or ladies night, as we sometimes call it.  I got to host tonight, and I was so excited since I've been out of town for a while, and was missing my girlfriends.  Always a super fun and relaxing evening, catching up, telling stories, and snacking on whatever goodies people came up with.  This time I decided to make panna cotta - one of my all time favorite desserts, and a simple one at that.  To liven it up I soaked some fresh raspberries in Grand Marnier, and scooped a few onto each cup.  And it's always fun to get to use the china I found with my mother-in-law at our favorite consignment shop in Phoenix :)

Ingredients
1 pint (2 cups) heavy cream
2 cups milk (I used whole milk, but anything thing will do)
1/2 cup sugar
1 vanilla pod
6 Tbs cold water
2 packets plain powdered gelatin
a drizzle of Grand Marnier and berries for garnishing, if desired

Procedure
In a medium saucepan, combine the cream, milk, and sugar.  (Most recipes call for all cream, but I find that substituting milk for half of the cream tastes just as wonderful).  Split the vanilla pod in half lengthwise, using a small paring knife.  Using the back of the blade, scrape out the tiny vanilla beans and add them to the cream mixture.  Toss in the pod as well.  Heat over medium low heat until the sugar dissolves and the cream is warm to the touch.  No need to let it boil.  Turn off heat.

In a small bowl, sprinkle the gelatine powder over the water.  Let stand for 5 minutes.  Stir the gelatine mixture to make sure there are no chunks, then mix it into the warm cream.   Divide evenly into 8 serving dishes.  I used teacups!  Refrigerate for at least 1 hours before serving.

About 30 minutes before serving, toss berries in Grand Marnier and let stand.  To serve, scoop a few berries into each dish.

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Salted Caramel Bars

It feels good to be back in Eugene.  I was welcomed by the rain, a true Eugenian welcome.  Rain and my parents new kitchen.  Mom and Jamie were still on their way home from their beach volleyball tournament in Seaside, and Dad said that we're on host/hostess duty for church the next day.  So I set right to work making some deliciousness.  As probably everyone who knows me knows, I love any excuse to make dessert, and I'll jump at any chance to spend a few hours baking.

The church I grew up in has always provided a nice spread of finger-food after each service.  Sometimes it's a little excessive, and probably intimidates people from volunteering to join the host/hostess volunteer list.  But regardless of how lavish or decadent or tasty the snacks, there is something beautiful about watching everyone linger after the service is over, enjoying each others company over a cup of coffee and a salted caramel bar.  A simple little bite to excite the palate provides for nearly an hour of fellowship, and brings a family atmosphere to the congregation.

As sad as it sometimes makes me to visit VCC, because so much of my (church) family no longer goes there, I will never stop visiting, because those who are left make me feel like I've come home, every time.  And somehow, Garry McCready knows exactly what songs to play, as if he is personally welcoming me back.  Come thou fount of every blessing, tune my heart to sing thy grace.   How deep the father's love for us, how vast beyond all measure.  Those songs will stay in my head all day long. :)

Ingredients
for the shortbread
6 oz unsalted butter, chilled
1 3/4 cup flour
pinch of salt
1/3 cup brown sugar, packed

for the caramel
5 1/2 oz unsalted butter
1 can (396 g) sweetened condensed milk 
1/3 cup brown sugar, packed
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp sea salt

for the topping
6 oz dark or semisweet chocolate
coarse sea salt

Procedure
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.  Using parchment paper, line the a 8"x8" baking dish.  In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, salt and sugar for the shortbread.  Using your a pastry cutter, cut in the butter until the mixture begins to come together, and looks moist.  Press the dough into the bottom of the lined baking dish, and pierce with a fork.  Bake for about 35 minutes, or until just barely golden brown.  Set aside to cool.  While cooling, begin the caramel...
In a medium sauce pan, melt the butter over medium-low heat.  Once melted, add the sweetened condensed milk, sugars, and salt.  Turn the heat up to medium, and stir.  When the sugars have dissolved, turn the heat to medium-high, and stir constantly.  When the caramel reaches a boil, turn the heat to low, and continue stirring for 10 minutes.  This step is important.  If the caramel isn't cooked long enough, it won't set well, and your bars will be a gooey mess!  After ten minutes, pour the caramel over the shortbread, and spread it evenly, so that it reaches all the corners.  Let cool completely at room temperature (if you're in a rush, it probably wouldn't hurt to throw them in the fridge).
For the chocolate layer, simply melt the chocolate in a double boiler (in a metal mixing bowl over a pan of simmering water), or in a microwave proof bowl for 30 second increments, until smooth.  I was working with poor quality chocolate, so I had to add a bit of butter to get the chocolate nice and smooth.  But it meant the chocolate didn't harden like it should have.  So I recommend using a good quality chocolate.  Spread the chocolate over the caramel, and sprinkle with coarse sea salt!
Cool at room temperature, then cut into squares using a large knife.  It helps to run the blade under very hot water, and to clean the blade often between slices.  This makes for prettier bars!

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Crème Brûlée

One of my favorite desserts ever.  And it's only the first time I've ever made it.  Dathan and I decided to cure our boredom and our empty stomachs by making a fun dinner together for Carsten.  We decided on pork sous vide (slow cooked under 145 degree water for a few hours), with a yummy sauce and zucchini, peppers, and beet stems (had them leftover from the bruschetta party).  Dathan asked if we had a blow torch to finish off the pork with, and when I remembered we were gifted one for our wedding, I couldn't help but pick up some cream at the grocery store while we were there.  Guilty.

Whenever I think of crème brûlée, I think of Mangiamo!, one of our favorite late night date spots in Grand Rapids, MI.  We would go there all the time just for an hour away from school, and a delicious bite for dessert.  Their crème brûlée was some of the best I've ever had.  Mmmmm... with fresh berries on top and everything.

It turned out pretty good for my first try - the only thing I struggled with was trying to caramelize the sugar without warming up the custard.  I think crème brûlée should be very cold, it's so much tastier that way.  After practicing a few more times, I think all you need to do is let it sit for a few minutes after you caramelize the sugar.  It helps the temperature to even out inside a bit.

Ingredients
1 vanilla bean pod
2 cups heavy cream
3 egg yolks
pinch of salt
1/4 sugar, plus more for dusting

Procedure
Preheat oven to 300 degrees.  Set the kettle on, or have a a saucepan of boiling water ready.  Line a shallow baking pan with a small kitchen towel (I forgot this part - not sure if it mattered or not).

Using a small knife, split the vanilla pod lengthwise, and scrape the seeds into a medium sauce pan.  Throw the pods in too.  Add the cream and stir.  Set the pan over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally until the cream begins to bubble around the edges.  Don't let it come to a full boil!  Remove from the heat and let steep for about 15 minutes.

In a large bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, salt, and 1/4 cup sugar until the mixture is thick and pale yellow, about five minutes.  Continue to whisk while very gradually adding the cream mixture.  Stir until well blended, then pour the custard through a fine-mesh sieve to remove the vanilla pods and any unwanted small bits.

Divide the custard about four 6oz ramekins, or six 4oz ramekins.  Place the ramekins in the prepared baking dish, and place the baking dish on the middle rack of your oven.  Add the boiling water to fill the pan halfway up the sides of the ramekins.  It's important to do this after the pan is already in the oven, to keep from spilling boiling water everywhere!  Cover the pan loosely with aluminum foil and bake until the custards are just set around the edges, about 30 to 35 minutes.  Transfer the ramekins to a wire rack to cool to room temperature.  Again, no need to take the water-filled pan from the oven until the water has cooled!  Once cooled, cover the ramekins with plastic wrap and refrigerate until chilled - at least four hours.

When ready to serve, sprinkle 2 tsp of sugar over each custard.  Using a kitchen butane torch, melt the sugar.  Hold the flame perpendicular to the custard, keeping the tip of the blue flame right up to the custard.  Heat until the sugar bubbles and begins to turn brown. Be careful not to burn the sugar!  Let sit for one or two minutes before serving.

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