Christmas Fudge Cookies

To me, a huge part of the holidays has always been defined by baking. This time of year, my electric mixer is whirring away on the reg, and there is a constant smell of sugary, chocolatey baked goods wafting out of the kitchen. I mean, what's a holiday without holiday baking? No holiday at all, I say. The usual rotation is made up of sugar cookies and fudge cookies decorated generously with drizzles of chocolate and various colored sugars, and the requisite chocolate chip cookies dotted with red and green M&Ms (I'm hoping and praying the peanut butter ones come in holiday colors this year). After they've all cooled to a manageable temperature, I'll put them into plain, white boxes, tie them all up with festive silver and gold ribbons, and deliver them to doormen, neighbors, friends, and coworkers, feeling a little bit like Santa Claus the whole time. One of my favorite parts of the holidays, always.

You can click on over HERE for the recipe for these fudgy, chocolate cookies. They're winners every time. xo

Roasted Squash with Lemon Tahini Sauce

I love roasted veggies of all types and colors: carrots, kale, broccoli, cauliflower. Give me a farmers' market bag full of veggies, and there's a 100% chance they'll end up in a 450 degree oven sprinkled with salt and pepper until charred crispy at the edges, bitterness deliciously tamed by the heat. Those are pretty good odds. But squash was a different beast to me. I was confused by it. Did it taste like a pumpkin? Why were there so many varieties? How did one cut into the things? Would I need some sort of hacksaw? So many questions. And so, I warily avoided it for...basically my entire life. Until I was flipping through the recent issue of Bon Appetit one cold November morning and happened across this recipe for roasted squash with lemon tahini sauce that looked so mouthwateringly good in it's glamour shot that I had to just let my reservations loose and go for it. I've been working on cultivating fearlessness lately, anyway.

Well, I think we all know how this here story ends. It was really, really, really good, you guys. Like ate it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and then for breakfast again the next day good. And like all other roasted veggies, it's easy to make, although my hunch on the cutting difficulty wasn't that far off center. It takes some muscle and a very sharp knife, but it's worth it. Give it a try! xo

Roasted Squash with Lemon Tahini Sauce
From Bon Appetit, December 2012
Ingredients:
1 small kabocha squash or large acorn squash (1 pound), scrubbed, cut into 1-inch-thick wedges, seeded
1 1-pound delicata squash, scrubbed, cut into 1-inch-thick wedges, seeded
7 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 1/2 teaspoons cumin seeds, divided
Kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper
4 scallions, cut into 2-inch pieces
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon tahini (sesame seed paste)
Aleppo pepper or crushed red pepper flakes

Directions:
Arrange racks in upper and lower thirds of oven; preheat to 425 degrees. Place kabocha on a rimmed baking sheet and delicata on a second sheet. Divide 3 tablespoons oil and 1 1/4 teaspoons cumin between sheets. Season squash with salt and pepper; toss. Roast for 15 minutes.

Combine remaining 1/4 teaspoon cumin, 1 tablespoon oil, and scallions in a small bowl; season with salt and pepper and toss to evenly coat. Scatter scallion mixture over squash, dividing evenly between sheets, and continue to roast until squash is tender but not mushy, about 15 minutes longer (time may vary depending on squash).

Meanwhile, whisk lemon juice, tahini, and 1 tablespoon water in a small bowl to blend. Gradually whisk in remaining 3 tablespoons oil. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Transfer squash to a platter. Drizzle tahini sauce over and sprinkle with Aleppo pepper.

Lamb Chops with Rosemary Potatoes

It's officially turning into snowing/sleeting/freezing-raining season in New York lately. And when that happens, all I really want to do is get home, light some candles, throw on a comfy old college hoodie, put on some music, and cook a super simple, hearty dinner, preferably composed of some sort of meat and potatoes combo. Also, preferably to be eaten while firmly ensconced on my couch, watching an episode of Revenge, or some other such guilty pleasure. Perfect for these cold November nights. xo

Lamb Chops with Rosemary Potatoes
From Canal House Cooks Everyday
Ingredients:
5 medium potatoes, peeled and quartered
2 lbs lamb chops (shoulder or rib)
Salt and pepper
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
3 large sprigs fresh rosemary

Directions:
Put the potatoes in a large pot of salted cold water and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to medium and cook the potatoes until they are barely tender, 5-10 minutes. Drain and set aside.

Season the lamb chops well with salt and pepper. Heat a heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. When it's hot, add the olive oil, then put the lamb chops in the skillet. Cook in batches, if necessary, to brown the chops (crowding the skillet will braise them instead). Cook until well browned, about 5 minutes, then flip and cook for about 3 minutes for medium-rare. Transfer the chops to a plate and keep warm in a very low oven, if you like.

Add the garlic and rosemary to the sizzling oil in the skillet, reduce the heat a bit if the garlic is browning too quickly, and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the potatoes in one layer, season with salt and pepper, and cook undisturbed until they have developed a nice crust, about 5 minutes. Continue to cook, turning only occasionally, until the potatoes are tender and golden brown on all sides, 10-15 minutes. Serve the chops with the potatoes, garnished with more fresh rosemary, if you like.

Serves 4

Food for Thought

I've been thinking about gratitude a lot lately (for obvious reasons) and what a huge role it plays in happiness. I was taking a class last week at Yoga Vida with Heather, one of my favorite teachers, and she mentioned that it can be said that "gratitude is rooted in our incompleteness."  It comes rushing in when we soften into the reality that we cannot be everything and do everything on our own. We need friends. We need family. We need co-workers. We need people to love us. But it can be super scary to admit that kind of vulnerability, so most of us (especially us Type A New Yorkers) just go around trying to do everything on our own.

I was reading a study published by The University of California, Berkley, and it came up with a multitude of definitions for gratitude from a variety of sources, including the following:

1. The object of gratitude is other-directed—persons, as well as to impersonal (nature) or nonhuman sources (e.g., God, animals, the cosmos; Solomon, 1977; Teigen, 1997).

2. Although a variety of life experiences can elicit feelings of gratitude, prototypically gratitude stems from the perception of a positive personal outcome, not necessarily deserved or earned, that is due to the actions of another person.” (Bertocci & Millard, 1963, p. 389).

3. “...an estimate of gain coupled with the judgment that someone else is responsible for that gain."

4. As an emotion, gratitude is an attribution-dependent state (Weiner, 1985) that results from a two-step cognitive process: (a) recognizing that one has obtained a positive outcome, and (b) recognizing that there is an external source for this positive outcome.

Seems all the definitions agree on one thing: gratitude is centered around external sources (i.e. other people). Also? The study developed a lot of fascinating, scientific findings, but I'll break it down for you: a grateful person is a happier person. Sounds like good enough reason to me to start letting more people in, focusing on what we have instead of what we've lost, and being happier for it. xo

Favorite Things: 11.21.12

I haven't done one of these posts in awhile and I thought the day before Thanksgiving was as good a time as any. I've been really into things that reflect a good deal of classic Americana heritage these days anyway. xo

Things I like:

1. Gold flatware--seems right for Thanksgiving

2. The perfect overnight bag

3. A set of hot sauces--so much more fun than wine as a hostess gift

4. The American Scene, by Henry James--fascinating

5. A little turquoise and diamond ring

6. Cowboy boots--except Isabel Maranticized (a.k.a. chic)

+more favorite things:

Slow motion ladybugs--cannot stop watching

Pumpkin crate by Terrain

New dinosaur!

I went to see this last night--incredible

Pumpkin Cheesecake with Gingersnap Crust

As promised, here is a new favorite recipe for a pumpkin cheesecake tart. Except the word "tart" always reminds me of fruit desserts, which this is most certainly not, so I'm just calling it a pumpkin cheesecake. Also, the cheesecake part and the pumpkin part are supposed to be prettily marbled together, which didn't quite work out for me. But, I swear up and down that marbling or not, this cake (not tart) is something pretty darn remarkable. So instead of lugging out your tired old pie dish on Thursday, I would suggest you branch out a bit and give this little gem a try. The ingredient list may look long, but most of it is stuff you probably already have laying around your kitchen, and the actual assembly as easy as, well, pie. Har.

Happy baking. xo

Pumpkin Cheesecake with Gingersnap Crust
From The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook, by Deb Perelman
Ingredients:
Crust:
4 ounces gingersnap cookies (about 16 cookies), coarsely broken
3 ounces graham crackers (five and a half 2 1/2-by-4 7/8-inch graham-cracker sheets)
4 tablespoons salted butter, melted

Cheesecake batter:
4 ounces cream cheese, well softened
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 large egg yolk

Pumpkin batter:
1 large egg
1 large egg white
1 1/4 cups pumpkin puree
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon table salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
Few fresh gratings of nutmeg
1 cup heavy cream

Directions:
Make crust: Preheat your oven to 425 degrees. Finely grind the gingersnaps and graham crackers in a food processor (yielding 1 1/2 cups). Add the melted butter, and process until the cookie-crumb mixture is moistened. Press the mixture firmly into the bottom and up the sides of a 9-inch-diameter tart pan with removable bottom. Place pan on rimmed baking sheet.

Make cheesecake batter: Mix together the ingredients in a small bowl until smooth.

Make pumpkin batter: Beat the egg and the egg white lightly in a large bowl. Whisk in the pumpkin, sugars, salt, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and nutmeg. Gradually whisk in the cream.

Assemble tart: Pour the pumpkin batter into gingersnap-graham crust. Dollop the cheesecake batter over pumpkin batter, then marble the two together decoratively with a knife. Try not to pierce the bottom crust as you do. Bake for 10 minutes, then reduce temperature to 350 degrees and bake for another 30 to 40 minutes, or until a knife or toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Cool the tart completely on a rack, or in the fridge if you like it cold. Serve immediately and refrigerate any leftovers.

Simple Chestnut Stuffing

In honor of one of my favorite days of the whole, entire year, I'll be posting my best recipes for the two Thanksgiving dishes that really matter--stuffing and pumpkin cheesecake. Because, come on, turkey's just not that exciting, and why eat pumpkin pie when you can have pumpkin cheesecake?

Here's a super simple, herb-laden stuffing dotted generously with chunks of creamy French chestnuts. It's got just the right ratio of crisp edges and soft, moist center (something that a stuffing baked inside a turkey just can't get right--it's all about the casserole, tradition be damned). Use a good, crusty, white peasant bread for this and make sure to let it dry out for a day before diving in, and you (and your stuffing) will be golden (and crunchy and chewy and delicious). Happy Thanksgiving prep week. xo

Simple Chestnut Stuffing
Ingredients:
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter plus more for baking dish
1 pound good-quality day-old white bread, torn into 1-inch pieces (about 10 cups)
2 1/2 cups chopped yellow onions
1 1/2 cups 1/4-inch slices celery
1 jar whole, peeled chestnuts, broken up into smaller pieces
1/2 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
2 tablespoons chopped fresh sage
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth, divided
2 large eggs

Directions:
Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Butter a 13x9x2-inch baking dish and set aside. Scatter bread in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake, stirring occasionally, until dried out, about 1 hour. Let cool; transfer to a very large bowl.

Meanwhile, melt 3/4 cup butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat; add onions, celery, and chestnuts. Stir often until just beginning to brown, about 10 minutes. Add to bowl with bread; stir in herbs, salt, and pepper. Drizzle in 1 1/4 cups broth and toss gently. Let cool.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Whisk 1 1/4 cups broth and eggs in a small bowl. Add to bread mixture; fold gently until thoroughly combined. Transfer to prepared dish, cover with foil, and bake for about 40 minutes.

Uncover stuffing and bake, until set and top is browned and crisp, 40-45 minutes longer.