Brandied "Pumpkin" Pie

Some prefer apple. Others go for pecan. A few brave the world of "mincemeat." But few can deny that pumpkin is the most traditional flavor of pie to serve for Thanksgiving.

Pumpkin is easy to acquire. Just buy a can of Libby's pumpkin puree and call it a day. Or....shake things up. Ditch the can and make a better pumpkin pie by not using pumpkin at all. Instead, make "pumpkin" pie with butternut squash. After all, I've ready that Libby's pumpkin isn't really pumpkin anyway but Dickinson squash--although Libby's will call it Dickinson pumpkin, and I might point out that "pumpkin" is a sort of generic term anyway, rather than a name for specific type of squash. So, it's all good (Snopes even looked into this).

However, it's even better if you use butternut squash, which is, after all, my favorite squash, and I suspect it might be yours as well (it's really good). Just roast the squash first and puree it, making sure you have enough for 1 3/4 cups, which is about the amount you'd get in a 15 oz. can. And since booze and dessert go so well together, this recipe also calls for some brandy. Cheers to that!

Just who came up with this wonderful variation on the Thanksgiving pie? Melissa Clark, the New York Times recipe writer who, at this point, I think is safe to say is the goddess of all things delicious.  Seriously, I've never met a Melissa Clark recipe that wasn't incredibly good (her garlicky chicken thighs and pinto bean soup recipes are among my favorites).

Brandied "Pumpkin" Pie
Adapted from a New York Times recipe by Melissa Clark

For the crust:
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour (150 grams)
1/4 tsp. salt
10 tbsp. (1 stick plus 2 tbsp.) unsalted butter, cold and cut into cubes
2 to 4 tbsp. ice water

For the filling:
2 1/2 to 3 lb. butternut squash (to make 1 3/4 cups butternut squash purée)
2 tbsp. melted unsalted butter
All-purpose flour (for the work surface)
3 large eggs
1 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup dark brown sugar (153 grams)
2 tbsp. brandy
2 tsp. ground ginger
1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. grated nutmeg
 Pinch ground clove

1. Make the crust: add the flour and salt to the bowl of a food processor and pulse to combine. Add the butter and pulse into the mixture forms pea-size pieces. Add ice water in 1-tbsp. increments, pulsing after each addition, until the dough just comes together (you may not use all the water). The dough should be moist but not wet. Place the dough on a lightly floured surface and form into a ball, then flatten it into a large disc. Wrap the dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate it for at least 1 hour, up to 2 days.

2. Make butternut squash purée: Preheat oven to 400 F. Peel and halve the squash and remove and discard its seeds (pro tip: an ice cream scoop works great for removing squash seeds and slimy membranes). Cut the squash into 1 1/2-inch pieces and place them in a large bowl. Pour the melted butter over the squash and toss to coat. Transfer the buttered squash cube to a baking sheet and roast, stirring every 15 minutes, until the squash is tender, about 30 to 45 minutes. Remove from oven and cool, then puree in a food processor.

3. Lightly flour a work surface. Place the chilled dough disc in the center and roll out to a 12-inch circle. Transfer the crust to a 9-inch pie plate. Fold the edges of the dough under so the dough comes up to the top of the pie plate (see photo above). Crimp the edges with fork tines and prick it the dough all over with the fork. Place the pie plate in the refrigerator to chill the crust for 30 minutes (don't skip this step--the dough needs to be cold when it goes in the oven to minimize shrinkage).

4. Heat the oven to 375 F. Line the top of the chilled crust with aluminum foil and weight it down with pie weights (you can also use coins or dried beans). Bake the pie crust for 20 minutes, remove the foil and weights and bake an additional 5 to 7 minutes until the crust is lightly golden. Remove from the oven and set on a rack to cool a bit.

5. Lower oven temperature to 325 F. To the bowl of a food processor, add the squash purée, eggs, cream, dark brown sugar, brandy, ginger, cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon salt, nutmeg and clove. Turn on the food processor and blend until the mixture is smooth. Pour squash mixture into the cooled pie shell. Set the pie plate on a baking sheet and place in the oven. Bake until the crust is golden and the filling jiggles just a bit in the middle when shaken, about 50 to 75 minutes (Clark says to bake the pie 50 to 60 minutes; I recommend using an instant-read thermometer and cooking the pie until the filling registers 165 F). Remove the pie from the oven and cool before serving.

Thanksgiving Central

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Butter Pecan Ice Cream

This ice cream pretty much stole the show when I made this for Thanksgiving last year. It is really really good. Note that the recipe calls for whole eggs rather than the usual egg yolks. Worked totally fine that way.

Butter Pecan Ice cream
Adapted from a recipe available from Epicurious originally published in Gourmet, 2002

2 cups shelled pecans (1/2 lb.), finely chopped (I scaled back to 1 1/2 cups, noting that many Epicurious commenters noted they thought 2 cups was too much and used less)
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened (doesn't need to be, as the pecans will be very hot)
1/4 tsp. salt
1 1/2 cups packed light brown sugar
2 tsp. cornstarch
4 large eggs, lightly beaten
2 cups whole milk
2 cups heavy cream
3/4 tsp. vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350 F.

2. Spread pecans on a baking sheet (lined with foil for easy cleanup) and toast in the oven until fragrant and slightly darker, about 7 to 8 minutes (watch the nuts to avoid burning them). Remove nuts from oven, transfer to a bowl (they will be hot). Add butter and salt to hot pecans and toss until butter is melted, then set nuts aside to cool completely.

3. Stir together the brown sugar and cornstarch, then add the eggs and stir until combined (you can try using a whisk for this, since the original recipe says to "whisky" but I think using a spoon or spatula will work much better, as the whisk tends to fling ingredients too easily). Bring milk and cream just to a boil in a 3- to 4-quart heavy saucepan over moderately high heat, (reduce heat to medium-low) then add to egg mixture in a stream, whisking constantly, and transfer custard to saucepan. (rather than add the hot milk to the bowl and transfer back to the pan, I just added the egg mixture to the pan while whisking constantly).

Cook custard over moderately low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until thick enough to coat back of spoon and registers 170 to 175°F on an instant-read thermometer, 2 to 3 minutes (do not let boil).

Immediately pour custard through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl and stir in vanilla, then cool, stirring occasionally. Chill custard, its surface covered with wax paper, until cold, at least 3 hours.
Freeze custard in ice cream maker until almost firm. Stir together ice cream and pecans in a bowl, then transfer to an airtight container and put in freezer to harden.

Thanksgiving Central

Fall-Leaf Apple Pie

I've covered apple pies with a plain crust and a lattice, but for this pie I wanted to get more decorative. I've seen pies decorated with cutouts and the idea in Fine Cooking magazine to use overlapping leaves seemed perfect for Thanksgiving, everybody's favorite fall holiday.

The Fine Cooking recipe calls for cutting each leaf by hand, as well as making smaller leaves. I cheated a little bit: I used a leaf-shaped cookie cutter. This worked great, as each leave was the same size--about 3 1/2 inches long by 2 inches wide. I scored a line down the middle of each leaf with sharp knife (do this carefully to prevent cutting all the way through the dough).

When placing the leaves on top of the pie, they should overlap just slightly. If your leaves are cut to the same size as mine, you'll need 24 leaves to complete the top. Start with the outer ring and place 14 leaves flush against the edge of the pie plate. Then, complete the inner ring with 9 leaves. Finish with a final leaf in the center.

Since I've had such good luck with it in the past, I switched up the crust recipe and used my trusty "foolproof" double-pie crust with vodka recipe from America's Test Kitchen.

Fall-Leaf Apple Pie
Adapted from Apple with Leaves recipe in Fine Cooking and Foolproof Pie Dough recipe from America's Test Kitchen

Crust:
12 1/2 oz. all-purpose flour (about 2 1/2 cups)
1 tsp. table salt
2 tbsp. sugar
20 tbsp. cold unsalted butter (2 1/2 sticks), cut into 1/4-inch slices
1/4 cup chilled vodka
1/4 cup very cold water

Pie:
5 to 6 firm, tart apples, peeled, cored and quartered
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 tbsp. all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/8 tsp. salt
1 to 2 tbsp. unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces

1. Combine 1 1/2 cups flour, salt and sugar in a food processor, about two 1-second pulses. Scatter butter over dry mixture and process until the dough starts to collect in uneven clumps, resembling cottage cheese with no uncoated flour, about 15 seconds. Scrape sides of bowl with rubber or silicone spatula and redistribute dough evenly around the blade. Add remaining cup of flour and give 4 to 6 quick pulses until dough is evenly distributed and the mass of dough has been broken up. Empty mixture into bowl.

2. Sprinkle vodka and water over dough mixture. With the spatula, combine the liquid with the dough using a folding motion, pressing down on dough until it sticks together (use your hands a little if needed, but be careful not to overwork the dough). Divide dough into two pieces, roll into balls and flatten slightly to form thick 4-inch discs. Wrap in plastic and chill at least 45 minutes, up to 2 days.

3. To make the pie crust and decorative top: On a lightly floured surface, roll one of the dough discs into a 12-inch round 1/8 inch thick. Fold the dough over the rolling pin, ease it into a 9-inch pie pan, and unfold it so it's centered over the pie plate with edges draped over the sides. Press the dough up the sides and over the rim of the pan, and trim it to leave about an inch of dough beyond the rim of the plate. Fold the edge of the dough under itself so that the crease is flush with the top of the pie plate. Press a fork into the edge of the dough to make vertical lines--this "crimping" process seals the folded dough together. Chill the pie plate with the dough while you cut out the leaves.

4. Combine any scraps from the first disc with the second disc and roll out the dough to 1/8 inch thick. With a paring knife or a leaf cutter, cut out at least 24 leaves 3 1/2 x 2 inches in size. With the paring knife, score a "vein" down the center of each leaf, being careful not to cut all the way through the dough. Place the cut leaves on a floured baking sheet (don't stack them) and set them aside in a cool place.

5. Cut the apples into 1/4-inch slices--there should be about 7 cups. Put the apples in a large bowl and add the sugar, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Toss gently to coat the apples with the flour-sugar-spice mixture. Transfer the apples to the cooled pie shell, tucking in any apples to create a slight dome in the center. Dot the apples with large flecks of the remaining 1 to 2 tbsp. of butter.

6. Starting at the rim of the pie plate, place the leaves at a slight angle and slightly overlapping around the edge of the pie until the leaves go all the way around. Then make a second smaller circle of leaves closer to the middle of the pie--finishing with a final leaf in the middle. Chill the pie in the refrigerator for 15 minutes.

7. Position two racks close together in the lower third of the oven, set a foil-lined baking sheet on the lowest rack to catch any drippings from the pie. Heat the oven to 350 F.

8. Bake the pie on the second-lowest rack until the crust is a deep golden brown all over and the apples are tender when pierced with a thin knife blade, about 60 to 80 minutes (I baked my pie for 85 minutes). Let the pie cool completely before serving.

Thanksgiving Central

Remembering Michel Richard: Le Kit Kat Bar

Le Kit Kat Bar (Bread Furst version)

Two weeks ago, D.C. lost Michel Richard, one of the city's great chefs. He was best known for two restaurants: his four-star fine-dining Georgetown establishment Citronelle (which closed in 2012), and Central, a more casual downtown bistro known for its burger and fried chicken.

Le Kit Kat Bar bottom layer (with corn flakes)

In Richard's memory the week after he died, Bread Furst, our neighborhood bakery, offered Le Kit Kat Bar, Richard's wonderfully decadent no-bake chocolate dessert bar inspired by the Kit Kat Bar. I picked up two and brought then home for Chris and I enjoy to enjoy after dinner. The bars were wonderfully chocolatey and quite rich (I decided to eat only half of mine and save the other half for the next day). They consisted of two layers: a firmer lower layer with a wafering crunch throughout the chocolate and a lighter top layer almost like a firmer version of chocolate mousse. Needless to say, I wanted the recipe.

Le Kit Kat Bar creamy chocolate top layer

I didn't have to go far. The Arlington, Virginia bakery, Livin' the Pie Life, shared the recipe on its blog a few years ago. It's surprisingly easy, requiring few ingredients and--best of all for these hot summer days--it's a no-bake treat, requiring just enough heat to melt the chocolate, which can be done in the microwave. The recipe includes an optional hazelnut sauce, which sounds really good, but I didn't make, since I was taking them in to work for an office dessert contest, where they were a big hit. I cut them a lot smaller than the rather generous portions Bread Furst served. You can cut them into squares or Kit-Kat-like fingers.

Michel Richard's Le Kit Kat Bar
Adapted from Livin' the Pie Life's recipe adapted from Michel Richard's original Happy in the Kitchen recipe

2/3 cup creamy peanut butter
2 tbsp. peanut oil (I used vegetable oil)
7 oz. milk chocolate chips melted and slightly cooled (I melted the chips in the microwave according to package directions)
1 1/4 cups crushed cornflakes (I put the cereal in a bag and used my fingers to crush them through the bag)
1 1/4 cups heavy cream
5 oz. bittersweet (i.e., 60% cacao) chocolate chips
Cocoa powder (optional)

1. Add peanut butter and oil to the bowl of a stand mixer and beat on medium-high speed until the mixture is light in color, about 3 minutes. Reduce speed to low and add the melted chocolate chips, beating until combined. Turn off the mixer and stir in the crushed cornflakes.

2. Line an 8 x 8 inch square baking pan with plastic wrap so that it overhangs the sides. Transfer the chocolate mixture to the pan and smooth the top with a spatula. Chill in the refrigerator until firm, about 30 minutes.

3. Melt the bittersweet chocolate chips and set aside to cool a bit. Add the cream to a bowl of a stand mixer (the bowl should be cleaned after step 1) and whip on high speed until soft peaks form (run a spoon through the cream and it should stand up a bit but fall back on itself; in contrast, stiff peaks will stand upright and not fall over). Fold half of the melted chocolate into the whipped cream, then add the remaining chocolate and fold it into the chocolate-cream mixture until the mixture is uniform in color. Spread the cream-chocolate mixture over the chilled chocolate-corn-flake layer, making sure to get the mixture into the corners and smoothing the top with a spatula. Bang the pan against the counter a few times to remove air bubbles. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 4 hours until set (I refrigerated it overnight).

4. Using the plastic wrap that's overhanging the sides, lift the chocolate mass out of the pan. Carefully peel off and discard the plastic wrap. Cut into bars of desired size. If desired, dust the bars with cocoa butter by spooning a little bit of cocoa into a fine-mesh sieve and shaking it over the bars. Serve immediately or refrigerate again until ready to serve (the bars should remain refrigerated).

Cornmeal Skillet Cake with Strawberries

If you've been searching for the perfect summer dessert, the search is over.

This Cornmeal Skillet Cake with Strawberries is amazing! Dorie Greenspan's recipe, recently published in The Washington Post, is a variation on the classic strawberry shortcake. Instead of the shortcake, the dessert's foundation is a wonderfully flavorful corncake baked in a cast-iron skillet and flavored with lemon zest, vanilla and buttermilk.

As good as that cake is, the strawberries are going to make or break this dish, so get the best ones you can, preferably ones that are local and therefore picked ripe. They'll have more flavor than strawberries raised thousands of miles away that are picked under-ripe to "ripen" during transport.

A couple key tips from Dorie: the recipe calls for baking the cake in a 10-inch cast-iron skillet, which I did. If you don't have one, you can use a 9-inch springform pan, but you'll need to bake the cake longer--more like 40 minutes. She also recommends working the lemon zest into the sugar with your fingers until the mixture is fragrant, which infuses the sugar with lemon flavor. A tip from me: I used an ISI cream whipper to make the whipped cream, which is simpler than using a stand mixer and makes it easy (and fun) for you and those you share this with to pump a little more whipped cream on top.

Cornmeal Skillet Cake with Strawberries
Adapted from a recipe by Dorie Greenspan for The Washington Post

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled, plus more (about 2 tsp.) for greasing the skillet
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup fine yellow cornmeal
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1 cup plus 3 tbsp. sugar
Finely grated zest of 1 lemon (I used a Microplane to grate the zest)
2 large eggs
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 cup regular or low-fat buttermilk (I used low-fat)
1 quart (about 2 lb.) fresh strawberries, hulled (I also sliced mine into 1/8-inch thick slices)
Sweetened whipped cream (see below)

1. Preheat oven to 350 F.

2. Grease a 10-inch cast-iron skillet with the 2 tsp. of unmelted butter.

3. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

4. Add the 1 cup sugar and lemon zest to a large mixing bowl. Using your fingers, combine the sugar and lemon zest until the mixture is fragrant. Whisk the eggs, one at a time, into the sugar mixture until well incorporated. Stir in the vanilla extract (you may want to switch to a silicon spatula at this point). Add half the flour mixture and stir until incorporated. Add the buttermilk and stir until evenly mixed. Add the remaining dry ingredients and stir to incorporate. At this point, the batter will be pretty thick, but it should be evenly mixed. Add the melted butter in three batches, stirring to incorporate completely after each addition.

5. Transfer the batter to the cast-iron skillet and smooth the top with a spatula. Sprinkle the top with 1 tbsp. of sugar. Bake in the oven until the cake is golden brown around the edges and starting to pull away from the sides, about 30 to 35 minutes. Test the center with a toothpick to make sure it's baked through (the toothpick should come out clean). Place the cake and the skillet on a wire rack to cool for about 30 minutes before serving.

6. While the cake is baking, sprinkle the remaining 2 tbsp. of sugar over the sliced strawberries and stir to distribute the sugar evenly.

7. To serve: cut the cake into wedges and cut the wedges in half horizontally to make a top and a bottom. Place the bottom on a plate or in a bowl. Top generously with strawberries and whipped cream and lay the top cake piece on top.

Sweetened Whipped Cream

2 tbsp. sugar
2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups heavy whipping cream

In a 2-cup measuring cup, combine the sugar and vanilla extract, using a fork. Add a few tablespoons of cream and use the fork to combine it with the sugar. Pour in the remaining cream and stir to combine. Transfer the mixture to an ISI cream whipper, charge with one cream charger (N₂O) and chill in the refrigerator until ready to use. Alternatively, after mixing together the ingredients, whip with a stand mixer on high-speed until thick and fluffy (don't overwhip or you'll start to make butter).

Star Wars Day: Dark Side Black Chocolate Cake

"Show me again the power of the darkness, and I'll let nothing stand in our way. Show me, grandfather, and I will finish what you started."
--Kylo Ren (a.k.a the grandson), Star Wars: The Force Awakens

"Give yourself to the Dark Side. It is the only way you can save your friends. Yes, your thoughts betray you. Your feelings for them are strong. Especially for... sister. So, you have a twin sister. Your feelings have now betrayed her, too. Obi-Wan was wise to hide her from me. Now his failure is complete. If you will not turn to the Dark Side... then perhaps she will... "
--Darth Vader (a.k.a. the grandfather), Return of the Jedi 

The force is strong in the Skywalker family. That much is certain. What's unfortunate is that it's not always the good side of the force--the side of the Jedi--but sometimes the dark side. Spoilers ahead, but I doubt there are many people with any interest in Star Wars that don't realize that Anakin Skywalker had two kids--Luke and Leia--then turned to the dark side and became Darth Vader. He later tried to recruit a young-adult Luke to the dark side. "Join me, and together we can rule the galaxy as father and son," implored Vader, moments after having chopped off Luke's hand. Family dysfunction isn't just universal, it's intergalactic apparently.

Dark side grandfather and grandson (background image from The Empire Strikes Back, from Wookieepedia). 

Luke, of course, had no interest in the dark side. But Luke's nephew, who's Leia's son and thus also Anakin's grandson, Ben Solo, took after his grandfather and joined the dark side, changing his name to Kylo Ren. Imagine if Darth Vader and Kylo could have joined up? They'd have gotten into some pretty serious dark-side stuff that I imagine is way different than anything most of us do when hanging out with grandparents. Stuff like blowing up planets, force-choking your opponents and hiring bounty hunters to help track down wayward adversaries.

And were those dark-side-of-the-force Skywalkers to accomplish those tasks, surely they would celebrate together afterwards with a cake like this. This is a black chocolate cake. Not a regular chocolate cake or a dark chocolate cake but honest-to-goodness black chocolate. Just to look at it is to feel as all the goodness of your soul is sucked out into the cake. Just like the dark side, it's very tempting. You'll want a slice. Trust me, it's useless to resist.

Hey there Star Wars good guys. This cake is not for you.

Star Wars fun aside, this is a wonderful cake, which I made as my birthday cake this year. The recipe is an adaptation of Sally's Baking Addiction's Triple Chocolate Layer Cake. Sally's cake was almost exactly what I was looking for when I wanted a dark, rich chocolate layer cake. I say almost because I wanted to push the chocolate even darker and richer. To do so, I substituted Dutch-processed cocoa for the natural cocoa called for in Sally's recipe. And not just any Dutch-processed cocoa, but black Dutch-processed cocoa (I used Cocoa Trader brand), which is as dark as cocoa gets. It's one of those "black" ingredients that's actually dark brown. This stuff is black as the night sky. I get scared just looking at it.

So what's the difference between natural and Dutch-processed cocoa? It's actually pretty important. Cocoa is naturally acidic, thus natural cocoa--for example, the kind Hershey's makes--is an acidic ingredient. Acid is an important element in the chemistry of many baked goods, which rely on the chemical reaction between an acid and a base to produce carbon dioxide. In the batter, the gas is trapped as thousands of tiny little bubbles, which provides "lift," making the cake (or cookies or bread) rise and become less dense. Without this, your baked goodies would have a very dense texture that, in most cases, would not be very appealing. One of the easiest places to see this reaction is in making buttermilk pancakes, which call for buttermilk (an acid) and baking soda (a base). As the batter cooks on the griddle, little bubbles form in the dough. I learned at a young age that when those bubbles start to burst, your pancake is ready to turn over, but what I didn't realize was that those bubbles were carbon dioxide formed by the chemical reaction between the buttermilk and baking soda in the batter.

In contrast to natural cocoa, Dutch-processed cocoa has been treated with an alkalizing agent. This makes the cocoa darker, but it also neutralizes its acidity. Thus, it won't react with baking soda to create lift, so something else must be added. That's where baking powder comes in. It's a mixture of baking soda and acid-salts, so it contains both a base and an acid. That's why if you add water to baking powder it fizzes, since the water activates the chemical reaction to produce carbon dioxide. Similarly, when you add water to baking soda, it doesn't fizz, since that acid-base reaction isn't occurring. This is also why baking powder isn't as shelf-stable as baking soda, since heat and moisture can cause baking powder to basically react with itself, rendering it less effective. So remember to replace your baking powder periodically, especially if you don't do much baking.

Sally specifically says not to use Dutch-processed cocoa in her recipe, since she formulated her leavening for natural cocoa. Elsewhere on her site, she has great discussions about both baking powder and soda and using natural vs. Dutch-processed cocoa. So, I don't doubt her at all when it comes to her recipe. That said, since I'm aware of the chemistry involved, I thought it would be a good cooking challenge to figure out how to adjust the leavening appropriately to account for Dutch-processed cocoa. Sally's original recipe called for both baking soda and baking powder. It also contains buttermilk, which is another acid. So in using Dutch-processed cocoa, I was only eliminating the acid from the cocoa, not all the acid in the recipe, as the buttermilk would still be reacting with the baking soda. I basically just needed a little additional baking powder to account for the lost acid in the cocoa.  After consulting with a coworker who's a baking pro, I figured that doubling the baking powder (from 1 to 2 tsp.) and cutting the baking soda (from 2 to 1 tsp.) would probably be enough to account for the difference. Turns out, this was right, as the cake rose a desired amount and produced the kind of cakey-rich texture I was hoping for.

The Dutch-processed cocoa is also used for the frosting. Here, the chemistry isn't important, since frosting doesn't "rise," the cocoa is just there for flavor and color. Be sure to use butter that's at room temperature for making the frosting. If you forget to set the butter out to warm up, proceed very cautiously if you use the microwave, since melted butter will not work for making a creamy frosting (if you do happen to melt it, you'll need to let it cool down and re-solidify before proceeding).

Dark Side Black Chocolate Cake
Adapted from Triple Chocolate Layer Cake by Sally's Baking Addiction

Note: 1: I've repeated Sally's weight-based measurements in grams, as I agree that measuring dried ingredients by weight is more accurate for baking and grams are more precise than ounces, since they are a smaller unit of measurement. I've also included the volume measures (i.e., cups), for those who do not have a kitchen scale (but I recommend getting one, as they are very useful).

Note 2: Black Dutch-processed cocoa can be found in some stores and online (I used Cocoa Trader brand). Dutch-processed cocoa is different from natural cocoa because the former has been treated to neutralize its acidity. Thus, when used in recipes, other acids must be present to react with baking soda or baking powder (which is both an acid and a base) may be substituted. The original recipe called for natural cocoa, but since I used Dutch-processed, I had to adjust the leavening to account for the different chemistry. To do this, I doubled the amount of baking powder and reduced by half the amount of baking soda. You can make this recipe with any Dutch-processed cocoa; it doesn't have to be the black kind. However, if you substitute natural cocoa--like Hershey's--you'll need to adjust the baking soda and baking powder amounts back to the original recipe.

Note 3: Used a stand mixer for making the cake batter and frosting. If you don't have one, instead, use a large bowl and a hand mixer.

Cake:

About 2 tsp. unsalted butter, softened, for buttering the cake pans
220 grams (1 3/4 cup) all-purpose flour, plus extra for the cake pans (see note 1 above)
350 grams (1 3/4 cup) sugar
65 grams (3/4 cup) black Dutch-processed cocoa powder (see note 2 above)
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup freshly brewed hot coffee

Frosting:

2 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, softened at room temperature
360 grams (3 cups) powdered (confectioner's) sugar (Sally's recipe called for using 3 to 4 cups, depending on how thick you want the frosting; I like a little thinner frosting, as I find it easier to spread of the cake)
65 grams (3/4 cup) black Dutch-processed cocoa powder
1/4 tsp. salt (or more to taste)
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 tsp. vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350 F.

2. Prepare two 9-inch round cake pans by buttering both pans, placing a round piece of parchment in the bottom of each pan, buttering the parchment, then flouring the pans with the parchment in place (refer to this Cook-In 101 primer on baking cakes if you need more in-depth instructions on this method of prepping cake pans).

3. Whisk together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium-size bowl.

4. In the bowl of a stand mixer (see note 3 above), combine the buttermilk, oil, eggs and vanilla extract and mix on medium-high speed until combined. Reduce the speed to low and slowly add the combined dry ingredients to the wet ingredients in the mixer bowl, then add the coffee. Stop the mixer, scrape down the sides with a spatula, then turn the mixer back on to make sure the ingredients are evenly blended. The resulting batter will be quite thin, which is expected.

5. Pour the batter evenly into the two two prepared cake pans. Lightly tap the pans on the counter (this is make sure there are no large air pockets). Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of each cake comes out clean, about 23 to 27 minutes (my cakes were done and perfect at 23 minutes, but you may need longer). Set the cakes on individual round cooling racks and allow to cool for about 15 minutes.

6. Using a plastic knife, carefully run the knife around the edge of the cakes to separate them from the sides of the pan, Set an inverted round cooling rack on top of the cake, then carefully invert the cake and the rack. Slowly remove the cake pan, leaving an upside-down cake on top of the cooling rack. Repeat with the other cake. Carefully remove and discard the parchment rounds. Allow the two cakes to cool completely before frosting.

7. Make the frosting: Add the butter to the bowl of a stand mixer (clean it out first if you're using the same bowl you made the cake batter in) and beat on high until very creamy, about 5 minutes. Reduce the mixer speed to low and slowly add the powdered sugar, cocoa powder and salt to the butter. Add the vanilla and the cream on low speed, then, once incorporated, increase speed to medium and beat for about a minute. Stop the mixer, scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula, and beat a little bit more until the frosting is evenly mixed.

8. To frost the cake: Place the first cake right-side-up so the flat surface that was on the bottom of the cake pan is touching the cake plate. Using a spatula (preferably a metal offset spatula), spread about 1/3 of the frosting on top of the cake in an even layer. Invert second cake layer and carefully slide it on top of the frosting, so that the flat surface that was on the bottom of the cake pan is now on top. Spread about 1/3 of the frosting on top in an even layer, then spread the rest of the frosting on the sides of the cake, adding the remaining 1/3 of frosting to the cake and smoothing the frosting by holding the spatula vertically and moving it along the side of the cake. Even the top with the spatula. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Eat within 7 days (shouldn't be a problem).

Related

Star Wars Day Cocktail: Aunt Beru's Blue Milk Brew

Oscar Cocktails Bonus: The Lightsaber (Star Wars: The Force Awakens)

Vegan Lemon Cake with Lemon Icing

Vegan baking isn't something I thought I'd be into. Butter and eggs are hallmarks of almost every type of baked treat such as cookies and cakes. Forgoing those ingredients might mean making substitutions that just don't quite give you the same richness or texture.

That's why this recipe by ShopCookMake appealed to me. Rather than substitute for those ingredients, it just omits them. And the results weren't just adequate, they were fantastic. This is a delicious lemon cake perfect for springtime. Instead of butter, the cake is made with vegetable oil, which is a common substitution anyway, even if the cake recipe also uses eggs. Yes, the cake wasn't quite as rich as a cake with butter and eggs, but frankly the lack of richness contributed to this being a "lighter" treat in keeping with the season.

I made a few alterations to the recipe. First of all, I increased its volume to be appropriate for a 9 X 13 baking dish. Although the original author declined to specify the size of the baking dish for her recipe, its volume of 1 1/2 cups of flour suggests to me that it was ideal for a 9 X 9 pan (although her cake is clearly rectangular--she must have a different size pan I'm not used to). Additionally, I used only lemons, instead of lemons and limes, and I omitted the vinegar, which struck me as superfluous. The reason a cake recipe would have vinegar is to contribute acid to activate the baking soda and thus create leavening. This cake already has a generous amount of acid from the lemon juice and, given that lemon cakes are comparably more delicate in flavor as compared to, say, a chocolate cake, I was concerned the vinegar could add unwanted flavor. Omitting it just makes the recipe simpler.

Vegan Lemon Cake with Lemon Icing
Adapted from a recipe by ShopCookMake for Instructables

Cake:
2 to 3 lemons (enough for 1/3 cup of juice and 3 tbsp. of zest)
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 2/3 cups demerara or turbinado sugar
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 1/4 cups water
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 cup vegetable oil, plus more for the pan

Icing:
3 tbsp lemon juice (about 1 lemon)
1 1/4 cup confectioner (powdered) sugar

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F.

2. Zest the lemons, then juice them. You'll want 1/3 cup of juice and about 3 tbsp. of zest.

3. Whisk together the flour, sugar and baking soda in a large bowl, then stir in the lemon zest. Whisk together the lemon juice, water, vanilla and oil, then add to the dry ingredients and whisk together until combined.

4. Brush a 9 X 13 baking dish with vegetable oil, then pour the batter into the dish. Smooth the top with a spatula. Bake until a toothpick or knife inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean, about 25 to 30 minutes. Remove the cake from the oven and set on a cooling rack. Cool completely before icing the cake.

5. Combine the remaining lemon juice and powdered sugar in a small bowl, using a spoon to mix the icing until smooth. Pour over the top of the cake. Serve the cake from the pan, cut into squares.

8-2-Eat: Desserts for Valentine's Day

8-2-Eat is my food-focused list series. A perfect Friday distraction. Valentine's Day is this weekend. Instead of fighting your way through the crowds at restaurants Sunday night, be a pro and make dessert at home. Your lover will be even more impressed...I guarantee it. Here are 8 delicious dessert suggestions.

Triple Chocolate Mousse Cake. Nothing says Valentine's Day romance like chocolate, and this mousse cake has three-time the chocolate for extra seductive power.

Chocolate Truffle Cake. Another chocolate winner, pictured above. This decadent flourless chocolate cake is sinfully delicious.

Mocha Baked Alaska

Mocha Baked Alaska. Wanna show off? Baked Alaska is visually stunning but delicious too.

S'mores Pie. This is a little more down home, but still a very sweet Valentine's Day dessert, especially if you and your significant other met at a summer camp.

Momofuku Milk Bar Blueberry & Cream Cookies. Couldn't score a Valentine's Day reservation at Momofuku? You can still enjoy the Milkbar treats at home, like these amazing Blueberry & Cream Cookies you can make yourself.

Tres Leches Cake. Creamy sweet goodness that gets even better with a drizzle of chocolate sauce. Definitely a romantic choice.

By the Fire Sundae

By The Fire Sundae. Not into chocolate? Weird..but, I understand it's not everyone's thing. Instead, turn up the heat with this decadent fire-inspired sundae of maple-bacon ice cream, brown butter blondie, caramel sauce and smoked whipped cream.

Brownie-Blonde Sundae. For the couple that wants to have it all, this sundae features a chocolate-chip peanut-butter blondie, a peanut brownie, vanilla ice cream, peanuts, chocolate sauce and whipped cream.

Dallas Bakeoff: Pam's Emerald Mine Cookies

This recipe also appears this week on Dallas Decoder, representing Pamela Barnes Ewing in the Dallas Decoder Holiday Bakeoff IV: Pam vs. Katherine.

All she wanted was a life where she and Bobby were happy. And she got it, for the most part. But one evening, just as they were reconciling after 2 years apart, Pam had a terrible dream in which Bobby--her lifetime love and former husband--was murdered out of spite by her deranged half-sister Katherine.

You see, Katherine always had a thing for Bobby. She even fabricated a letter from Pam in which Pam said she wanted to end her marriage to Bobby. It was a contributing factor in their divorce.

During the dream, following Bobby's "death," Pam invested in a Colombian emerald mine in Bobby's honor, a decision that sent her on a grand adventure to South America. This dream was so vivid that Pam shared the whole thing with Bobby. Later, she made these cookies for Bobby, sort of as a joke, but in a way, they symbolized her unending love for him--that she would honor him even if he was gone. Of course, Katherine thought the symbolism was rather silly, opting to bake some frosted hats with cheap gumdrops. Pam knows that Bobby likes her cookies best.

Dallas Bakeoff: Pam's Emerald Mine Cookies
Adapted from Chocolate M&M Cookies by Dinners, Dishes and Desserts as adapted from Sally's Baking Addiction

Makes about 24 cookies

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
2 tbsp. milk
1 cup green mini M&M's (I bought containers of the red and green Christmas mini M&Ms and separated them, using both the green and red M&Ms in cookies separately--so I guess I also made some "ruby mine" cookies)

1. Combine the butter, sugar and brown sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer and beat on medium-high until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes (alternatively, combine the ingredients in a large bowl and beat with a hand mixer). Add the egg and vanilla and beat until combined.

2. Whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl. Add dry ingredients to the bowl with butter and sugar and beat on low speed until combined. Add the milk and stir into the dough with a spatula, then stir in half of the M&Ms. Cover the mixing bowl with the dough with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for at least a half hour.

3. Preheat oven to 350 F. Line two baking sheet with parchment or silicon baking mats.

4. Spoon the dough into golf-ball-size pieces and place 2 inches apart on the baking sheet (you should be able to get 12 onto each sheet). Flatten each mound slightly and place a few additional M&Ms on top of each cookie. Bake the cookies until the edges are done and the center appears slightly underdone, about 9 to 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for about 5 minute, then carefully transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.

Related
Katherine's Frosted Gingerbread Hat Cookies

Dallas Bakeoff: Katherine's Frosted Gingerbread Hat Cookies

This recipe also appears this week on Dallas Decoder, representing Katherine Wentworth in the Dallas Decoder Holiday Bakeoff IV: Pam vs. Katherine.

All she wanted was Bobby. Sure, he married her half-sister Pam (twice) and April, and almost married that dreadful Jenna, but Katherine knows deep in her heart that Bobby loved her best.

She baked these frosted gingerbread hat cookies to remind him of her bold sense of style. Katherine wears a good hat like no other woman on Dallas. The cookies are spicy and sweet, just like Katherine, and way better than Pam's emerald mine cookies, which sound like something that would chip a tooth.

Pam claims her cookies were inspired by a particularly vivid dream in which she invested in an emerald mine after Bobby's death because he'd been interested in emeralds. Can you imagine? Bobby was never interested in emeralds. And Bobby's death?! Need we more proof that sweet darling Pam is absolutely bonkers? Keep dreamin' Pam!

Katherine's Frosted Gingerbread Hat Cookies
Gingerbread recipe adapted from Gingerbread Cookies 101, The Food Network, from a Rick Rodgers recipe

Makes about 3 dozen cookies

12 3/4 oz. (3 cups) all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
3/4 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 tsp. ground allspice
1/2 tsp. ground cloves
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. freshly milled black pepper
12 tbsp. (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
2/3 cup unsulfured molasses
1 large egg
Simple cookie icing (see recipe below)
Red and green food coloring
Red and green gumdrops

1. Whisk together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, allspice, cloves, salt and pepper in a medium bowl.

2. Combine butter and brown sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer and beat on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Beat in the molasses and egg. Add the combined dry ingredients and stir with a wooden spoon until just combined to form the dough. Divide the dough into two pieces, flatten into large discs and wrap with plastic wrap. Refrigerate 3 hours to chill completely.

3. Preheat oven to 350 F with two racks evenly spaced in the top and bottom thirds of the oven. Line three baking sheets with parchment or silicon baking mats (you can re-use one of the sheets if needed, unless you have an oven big enough to accommodate three baking sheets at once).

4. Place one of the dough discs on a floured surface and allow to warm slightly (about 10 minutes). Sprinkle the dough with a little flour and roll out to 1/8-inch thickness. Use a 2 1/2 inch round cookie or biscuit cutter to cut out circles of dough; transfer the circles to the baking sheet, spaced at least 1-inch apart. Re-roll any scraps and cut out additional circles. Repeat with the other chilled dough disc.

5. Bake the cookies until the edges are lightly browned and the dough looks dry on top, about 10-12 minutes (rotate the cookie sheets top-to-bottom and back-to-front halfway through baking). Cool the cookies on the sheets for about 5 minutes, then carefully transfer with a spatula to a wire rack to cool completely (cookies must be completely cooled before frosting).

6. Divide the cookie icing into several bowls, depending on how many colors of hats you want to make (it may depend on what colors of gum drops you have--I made red, green and white hats). Add a few drops of food coloring to each bowl and stir into the icing, adding additional drops as needed until the color of the frosting matches the gumdrops. Using a knife, spread about 1 teaspoon of frosting (maybe a little more) on each gingerbread circle, using the knife to spread an even layer so that the brown of the cookie does not show through and the icing goes to the edge of the circle. Place a matching-color gumdrop in the center of the circle and press down gently. Sprinkle the cookie with matching colored sugar (this helps give the cookie an even texture, since the gumdrop will have a sugar-coated texture, whereas the icing, without sprinkled sugar, will dry smooth). Continue as desired (I frosted some cookies without gumdrops and also left some unfrosted). Store cookies in the refrigerator.

Simple Cookie Icing

3 cups powdered (confectioner's) sugar
2 tbsp. light corn syrup
3 tbsp. milk, plus additional as needed

Combine powdered sugar, corn syrup and milk in medium bowl and stir with a fork until they form an even consistency. Add additional milk (in small increments, about 1 tsp.) as needed to reach a smooth texture similar to thick sour cream. Use immediately, as the icing will harden as it sits out. Multiply the recipe as needed so you enough icing for your cookies.

Related
Dallas Bakeoff: Pam's Emerald Mine Cookies

More Gift Ideas: Books about Food and Drink

More and more I read books on my Kindle or iPad, but I still buy cookbooks in paper form. There's just something to said about leafing through a cookbook or cocktail book--pausing to look at the photos, dog-earing the pages you want to return to--that's not replicated on an e-reader. Any of these eight books, would make an excellent gift for someone who loves to cook or make cocktails.

The Savoy Cocktail Book by Harry Craddock. Classic cocktails are back, and this is a classic among classics when it comes to cocktail recipe books. Harry Craddock, an American bartender who worked at London's Savoy Hotel, wrote this book first published in 1930, which is considered one of the best (if not the best) collections of prohibition-era cocktails. Given its age, there are many editions kicking around, some of which include a new section at the front with "new" cocktails that I don't really care for. Go for a facsimile of the original 1930 edition.

American Whiskey, Bourbon & Rye: A Guide to the Nation's Favorite Spirit by Clay Risen. I read that whiskey recently surpassed sales of vodka (in dollars, not volume) in the United States, fueled by a resurgence in popularity of bourbons and ryes, our homegrown “brown” spirits. For any American-whiskey lover, Risen’s guide is essential. The user-friendly format has full-color photos, tasting notes and price information for each whiskey, organized in alphabetical order by brand-name. The new 2015 edition includes 300 bottles, up 50 percent from the 200 in the 2013 version.

Tasty by John McQuaid. Pulitzer Prize-winner Maryland-based author John McQuaid published this fascinating look at how taste works earlier this year. A wonderful read for those who enjoy the scientific side of the eating experience.

The Cocktail Chronicles by Paul Clarke. This was my favorite new cocktail recipe book this year (which I reviewed in July), a wonderful look at the modern cocktail renaissance's love of classic and contemporary drinks.

Chesapeake Bay Cooking by John Shields. Regional cookbooks are a wonderful way to immerse yourself in recipes that are beloved because they represent the ingredients and traditions of a particular place. When it comes to honoring the Chesapeake Bay region, John Shields clearly knows his stuff. The chef of Baltimore's Gertrude's released the 25th anniversary edition of this book this year, a collection that, naturally, has a lot of seafood, but much more as well. Of course there are recipes for Maryland crab cakes, including variations, but have you heard of St. Mary's County Stuffed Ham? It's a southern Maryland tradition, and it appears in Shield's book as well.

Momofuku Milk Bar by Christina Tosi. This book came out in 2011, but I suspect is getting more attention in D.C. these days since pastry chef Christina Tosi and her Momofuku business partner/cherfDavid Chang opened their first D.C. restaurant and bakery, Momofuku CCDC and Milk Bar. Lines for Milk Bar have been rather long since it's opening last month, so skip the line and make your own crack pie and blueberry & cream cookies at home with this cookbook.

Lucky Peach Presents 101 Easy Asian Recipes by Peter Meehan and the editors of Lucky Peach. I've been a fan of Lucky Peach magazine for years. The publication was created by Momofuku restaurant titan David Chang and Peter Chang, the latter serving as its editor. The book does a good job adhering to its "easy" promise--the most difficult thing might be finding some of the ingredients, which aren't necessary staples of the mainstream grocery store (but worth seeking out).

Mi Comida Latina: Vibrant, Fresh, Simple, Authentic by Marcella Kriebel. I came across this gorgeous book at the downtown D.C. holiday arts fair this year. Kriebel, a D.C. local, assembled the recipes in this book from her notes traveling through Latin America. The book itself is entirely hand-written and illustrated by her, making it not just a wonderful collection of recipes, but a piece of art unto itself.

Related
Still need more ideas? Check out today's other holiday gift ideas story.

Momofuku Milk Bar Blueberry & Cream Cookies

When we visited Momofuku CCDC for dinner recently, we left the restaurant with a rather large bag full of assorted cookies from Milk Bar, the restaurant's attached bakery. Since opening about a month ago, the bakery has maintained a rather long line of devoted sugaristas seeking cookies, soft-serve and crack (pie, that is).

Momofuku Milk Bar's five varieties of cookies. Note that the commercial version of Blueberry & Cream Cookies contains brown rice syrup and all-natural egg substitute.

I'm not one for long lines, so it's nice that if you're eating in Momofuku CCDC, you can order as much as you want from Milk Bar and take it to-go. So we sprang for two of each of the bakery's five varieties of cookies: the corn cookies and compost cookies that we already knew and love, chocolate-chocolate (as chocolatey as you'd expect), cornflake-marshmallow-chocolate-chip (a chocolate chip cookie with added crunch and goo), and--what turned out to be real revelation--blueberry and cream cookies.

Milk crumbs (just before adding the white chocolate)

In the Momofuku Milk Bar cookbook, Momofuku pastry chef Christina Tosi explains that the cookie came about as a showcase for milk-crumb, a buttery baked crumble of flour, sugar and powdered milk (Tosi calls it "milk powder") coated with white chocolate. Tosi says she doesn't drink milk straight--surprising for someone who's made a name for herself from a brand called "Milk Bar"--but said the crumb was inspired by her idea of what the flavor of milk should be.

From there, Tosi thought of using the crumb in a cookie with a fruit flavor. Peaches were considered ("momofuku" is Japanese for "lucky peach"--not coincidentally the name of the restaurant brand's magazine), but in the end, she went with dried blueberries, which she found at Whole Foods (as did I, in size that conveniently is twice the amount Tosi's recipe calls for--perfect for making a double-batch as I did below).

So this is basically a sugar cookie with the aforementioned milk-crumb and dried blueberries mixed in. Be sure to give yourself plenty of time to make this. The milk-crumb needs to be baked and cooled, and the dough needs to chill for at least 1 hour. I promise you'll be happy with the results, which are buttery, creamy, fruity and sweet.

Blueberry & Cream Cookies
Adapted from a recipe from Momofuku Milk Bar by Christina Tosi

Makes about 75 cookies

Notes: I have doubled the ingredients for the cookies to make a double-batch. The amount of ingredients for the milk-crumb is the same as in the cookbook. Tosi's original cookie recipe calls for using a 1/2 recipe of milk-crumb. Tosi smartly includes weight (in grams) and volume measurements for her cookies. I used the weight measurements for dry ingredients measured by the cup or cup-portion (but I've included her volumetric conversions for those measurements below) and volume measurements for liquid ingredients and ingredients measured by teaspoon. Tosi's recipe calls for glucose instead of corn-syrup, but she notes that corn-syrup in half the amount of glucose may be substituted. Her recipe also calls for white chocolate, but I used white-chocolate chips, as the bar variety was not available at Giant or Whole Foods the day I baked the cookies.

Milk crumb:

40g (1/2 cup) plus 20g (1/4 cup) powdered milk
40g (1/4 cup) all-purpose flour
12g (2 tbsp.) cornstarch
25g (2 tbsp.) sugar
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
4 tbsp. (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted
90g (3 oz.) white chocolate chips

Cookies:

450g (2 cups or 4 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
300g (1 1/2 cups) sugar
300g (1 1/3 cups) light brown sugar, packed
1/4 cup light corn syrup
4 large eggs
640g all-purpose flour (4 cups)
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tbsp. kosher salt
260g (1 1/2 cups) dried blueberries

Make the milk crumb:

1. Preheat the oven to 250 F.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the first 40g (1/2 cup) of powdered milk, flour, cornstarch, sugar and salt. Add the melted butter and toss with a spatula until the mixture comes together in small clusters.

3. Spread the crumbs on a baking sheet lined with a silicon baking mat or parchment. Bake for 20 minutes until the crumbs are fragrant and look "sandy." Remove the crumbs from the oven and allow them to cool.

4. Transfer the crumbs to a medium bowl and break up any clusters larger than about 1/2 inch. Add the remaining 20g (1/4) of powdered milk and toss to distribute it evenly. Melt the white chocolate (I did this in the microwave using the package directions) and pour it over the crumb mixture. Toss the clusters with a spatula to coat with white chocolate. Allow the white chocolate to cool (takes about 15-20 minutes), tossing the clusters every 5 minutes.

Make the cookies:

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the butter, sugar, brown sugar and corn syrup and beat on medium-high until creamy, about 2-3 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula, add the eggs and beat on medium-high for another 7-8 minutes (I recommend scraping down the sides of the bowl every so often while doing this).

2. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl. Add the butter mixture and combine at low speed until the dough just comes together, no longer than a minute. Add the baked milk crumbs and dried blueberries and blend on low-speed until incorporated, about 30 seconds.

3. Portion the dough onto sheet pans lined with silicon baking mats or parchment (you'll need at least 4 standard-size baking sheets) in balls about the size of golf balls, 2-3 inches apart. Flatten the tops slightly. Wrap the sheet pans with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, up to 1 week.

4. Preheat oven to 350 F with two racks evenly spaced apart.

5. Remove and discard the plastic wrap. Bake for 16-18 minutes, rotating the cookies top-to-bottom and front-to-back after the first 8 minutes (note: this is a little shorter than Tosi's original baking time, but I also made the cookies a little smaller). The cookies should be lightly browned on the edges and light yellow in the middle--continue baking another 1-2 minutes until they reach this point. Cool the cookies completely on the baking sheets, then transfer to an air-tight storage container.


Related

Restaurant: Momofuku CCDC (Washington, D.C.)

Corn Cookies

Compost Cookies

Caramel Apple Custard Pie

Two years ago, I shared a recipe for Apple Custard Pie with Gingersnap Crust, my attempt to make an apple pie with a texture more like pumpkin pie. The apple custard was a great discovery--it's like rich apple sauce, sweet and satisfying but still somehow "lighter" than a pumpkin filling. That pie was very good, but I wanted to revisit it and make some changes.

First, I wasn't fully sold on the crust. It was delicious, but it burnt a bit in the oven and was hard to cut. For this pie, I wanted to use a more traditional pie crust. When looking at options in the Cook's Illustrated book, The Science of Good Cooking, I came across the rather clever idea of rolling the crust out using graham cracker crumbs. This adds a bit of that "cookie" flavor while still having a traditionally flaky crust. I also decided to add a caramel sauce that would form layers above and below the apple-custard filling. The caramel sauce was a big plus, giving the pie a needed richness boost. I had also considered topping this with meringue, but decided it really wasn't necessary (plus meringue is difficult to deal with for Thanksgiving, as it should be done just before serving for best results). So, no meringue, but I didn't miss it.

Admittedly, this dessert has a lot of steps. I cut a few corners when I made it, and I regretted this, as the pie was a bit "runny" because I hadn't allowed the custard to completely chill nor the caramel sauce. The next day though, after spending the night in the fridge, it was perfect.

If you were going to make this for Thanksgiving, I suggest making it ahead of time, given all the steps involved. For example, you could do the following the day before, then on Thanksgiving Day, just serve it:

11:15 a.m. (or earlier) mix the pie dough; chill in the refrigerator
12:20 p.m. allow pie dough to warm a bit at room temperature
12:30 p.m. roll out pie dough and form pie shell in pie plate
12:45 p.m. chill formed pie shell
1:00 p.m. bake pie shell (allow to cool afterwards for about an hour)
2:00 p.m. make the caramel sauce
2:30 p.m. pour first layer of caramel into pie shell, then chill in refrigerator; make the filling
3:00 p.m. assemble and bake the pie
3:30 p.m. remove pie from oven, allow to cool on rack
4:00 p.m. place baked pie in fridge to chill
5:00 p.m. pour final layer of caramel sauce and return to fridge

Caramel Apple Custard Pie
Crust recipe adapted from Foolproof Single-Crust Pie Dough for Custard Pies recipe from Cook's Illustrated: The Science of Good Cooking by America's Test Kitchen and Guy Crosby; caramel sauce recipe adapted from Bourbon-Caramel Pumpkin Tart, Fine Cooking.

Note: Take note of the time required before making this pie, as it requires not just cooking time but chilling and cooling time too (see suggested schedule above).

Equipment: food processor, pastry rolling mat (optional, may use other flat surface), pie plate, immersion blender (optional, may use food processor), pie weights (optional, may use spare change), aluminum foil.

Crust:
1 1/4 cup (6 1/4 ounces) all-purpose flour
1 tbsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
10 tbsp. unsalted butter, cold, cut into 1/4-inch pieces
2 tbsp. ice water (plus more if needed)
2 tbsp. chilled vodka
3 whole graham crackers, crushed into crumbs (about 1/2 cup of crumbs)

Caramel sauce:

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
2 tbsp. unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup bourbon

Filling:

4 large Granny Smith apples (use 5 if they are smaller), about 2 pounds, peeled, cored, quarted and chopped into 1/4-inch thick pieces
1/3 cup water
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tbsp. cornstarch
2/3 cup whole milk
2/3 cup heavy cream
4 large egg yolks, lightly beaten

Crust:

1. Add 3/4 cup flour, sugar and salt to the bowl of a food processor and pulse a few times to combine. Scatter the cold butter cubes across the top of the mixture and process until the butter is incorporated and the mixture forms uneven clumps with no remaining floury bits, about 10 seconds. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula, sprinkle remaining 1/2 cup of flour over the dough and pulse until the mixture has broken up into pieces and is evenly distributed around the bowl, about 4 to 6 pulses.

2. Transfer mixture to a medium-size bowl. Sprinkle with 2 tbsp. of ice water and the vodka. With a spatula, use a folding motion to stir and press together the dough until the dough sticks together. Add a little additional ice water (no more than a tablespoon) if the dough doesn't come together. Using your fingers, form the dough into a disc about 4 inches across. Wrap the dough with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour.

3. Set dough on counter to warm up for about 10 minutes. Spread half the crushed graham cracker crumbs on the surface where you'll be rolling out the pastry. Place the dough in the middle of the crumbs, sprinkle with some of the crumbs and roll out, sprinkling with crumbs as you roll until the dough is a 12-inch round about 1/8 inch thick. Carefully transfer the rolled dough to a pie plate (I like to wrap the dough around the rolling pin and then carefully unroll it into the plate, gently lifting up the edges to ease the dough into the corners of the plate). Trim the overhang to about 1/2-inch evenly around the pie plate. Fold the overhang under itself to the edge of the dough is flush with the rim of the pie plate. Flute the edge of the dough or press with the tines of a fork (I always do the latter as my "fluting" skills aren't up to snuff). Chill the pie dough for at least 15 minutes.

4. Preheat oven to 425 F with oven rack in middle position (depending on how long it takes to heat your oven, you may want to start the preheating while the dough is first chilled, before rolling it out).

5. Line the top of the pie shell with aluminum foil and weight it down with pie weights or spare change (don't worry--the money won't melt at this temperature). Bake until the dough is dried out, about 15 minutes. Remove the weights and foil and continue baking until the pie shell is a golden-brown color, about 10 minutes longer. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely, about 1 hour.

Caramel Sauce:

6. Combine brown sugar, butter and salt in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring frequently, until the sugar melts and begins to darken around the edges, about 5 minutes. Carefully whisk in the cream (it will sputter a bit) and simmer, whisking frequently, until the mixture is smooth and thick enough that the whisk leaves the bottom of the pan visible, about 7 to 9 minutes. Add the bourbon and continue simmering, whisking occasionally, until the whisk leaves the bottom of the pan visible again, another 2 minutes. Transfer caramel mixture to a heatproof glass measuring cup and allow to cool.

7. Pour half of the caramel sauce into the baked pie shell and return pie shell to refrigerator for at least 10 minutes before adding the filling below. Refrigerate remaining caramel sauce until ready to use (you may need to gently reheat it in a microwave before pouring it over the pie below).

Filling

8. Heat a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add apples and 1/3 cup water. Cover and cook until the mixture boils. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until the apples are very soft, about 15 minutes. Using an immersion blender, puree the apples until they are very smooth (alternatively, transfer to a food processor, puree until very smooth, then transfer mixture back to the saucepan). Cook apple puree over medium-low heat, stirring frequently, until mixture is thickened (it should be as thick as pumpkin puree). You should have about 2 cups (16 oz.) of puree (don't fret if you have a little less). Set aside.

9. Combine apple puree, brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, salt and cornstarch in a large saucepan over medium heat. Once the mixture begins to sputter, cook, stirring constantly, for about 5 minutes. Add the milk and heavy cream and cook until the mixture simmers.

10. Add the lightly beaten egg yolks to a medium bowl. Whisk in about 1 cup of the hot apple mixture, then whisk the egg mixture into the saucepan with the apple mixture until well combined. Remove the saucepan from the heat.

Assemble and bake

11. Preheat oven to 400 F.

12. Pour the hot apple mixture on top of the first layer of caramel in the pie shell. Bake until the filling is puffed and dried out on top, about 25 minutes. Cool on a wire rack then refrigerate about an hour. Pour the remaining caramel sauce on top of the cooked filling and chill a final 15 minutes to set the caramel before serving (or chill overnight and serve the next day).

Related

Apple Custard Pie with Gingersnap Crust

Bourbon-Caramel Pumpkin Tart

Apple Pie with Vodka Crust

Lattice Apple Pie with Rye Whiskey Crust

Thanksgiving Central