Basque Bonito del Norte Tuna Dip

Versatile, hard to categorize but with a distinctive Basque identity, this is somewhere between a snack, starter, dip, spread, stick-your-spoon-in-as-you-pass-the-bowl and good to eat any time of day.

Servings: 6-8 as a starter

Ingredients:

1 large onion, finely chopped
3 yellow and/or red sweet peppers, coarsely chopped
2-4 fat garlic cloves, minced or pressed
olive oil
6 oz mixed green and black olives, pitted and chopped
1-2 oz capers, drained
1 14-oz can tomatoes in rich juice
10-15 oz piquillo peppers, drained and cut in small pieces
1 tablespoon sherry or white wine vinegar
8-12 oz of bonito del norte tuna in olive oil
Salt and black pepper
Toasted country bread (to serve)

Preparation:

Gently fry the onion and garlic in the oil in a deep saucepan for about 10 minutes, add peppers and cook until onions are soft.

Add the olives, capers, tomatoes (plus juice) and cook gently for 5 minutes. Add the piquillo peppers and cook for 5 more minutes.

Stir in the vinegar, followed by the bonito del norte. Check the seasoning, (it will probably need no extra salt but quite a bit of pepper), simmer a little longer and leave to cool. Chill in the fridge, preferably leaving overnight for the flavors to settle, before serving with slices of toasted country bread.

mocha nut balls

1 c butter
1/2 c sugar
2 t vanilla
1 - 1.5 T strongly brewed coffee (preferably French pressed)
1/2 c cocoa
1 3/4 c sifted flour
1/2 t salt
1/2 c nuts, finely chopped

shape in marble sized balls. place on ungreased cookie sheet, and bake at 325 for 15 minutes. cool and roll in powdered sugar.

makes 6 dozen

Brown Sugar Cakes

6 servings

Brown sugar topping/filling:

2 oz butter

2 oz heavy cream

1 c brown sugar

Cake:

8 oz unsalted butter, very soft

1/2 c sugar

1/4 c brown sugar

3/4 t vanilla

3 eggs

2/3 c almond flour

1 c all-purpose flour

1/2 t salt

1 t baking powder

For topping:

Bring butter and heavy cream to a boil in a small saucepan. Pour it over the brown sugar and whisk until there are no lumps. Chill. Cover the bottom of 6 (4 ounce) ramekins with brown sugar topping, and reserve the rest for filling the cakes. Place in freezer until ready to fill.

For cake:

Cream the softened butter, sugars, and vanilla extract in a mixer with the paddle attachment. Add eggs and mix well. Take the bowl off of the mixer and fold in the sifted dry ingredients with a spatula. Divide the batter (it will be thick) between the six ramekins. Bake at 325°F for 12 minutes, until the cakes begin to bake around the edges. Remove from the oven and take a small spoon of the brown sugar topping and sink it into the center of each cake. Return ramekins to the oven until cakes are golden brown and firm to the touch, about 7 more minutes. Serve right away, or reheat directly before serving.

tipsy pineapple

large pineapple
rum, preferably aged or dark
brown sugar
butter

Peel and core the pineapple. Cut into chunks. Melt a tablespoon or two of butter in a non-stick skillet over medium heat, add the pineapple and toss gently. After a minute or so, when the pineapple begins to give off some liquid, sprinkle a bit of brown sugar on top. Cook a few minutes like this, then stir gently to turn the chunks over. Sprinkle this side with brown sugar, and add a splash or two of rum. Stir and continue to cook until desired softness has been reached, adding more rum and/or sugar if needed. It's not a very scientific recipe--the point is to have the pineapple warm and soft and fragrant, to use the rum and sugar to enhance the pineapple, not to overpower it, so depending on how ripe your pineapple is, you may not need much.

chicken in garlic and shallots

1 whole chicken cut into 8 pieces or 10 chicken thighs
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 c plus 2 T olive oil
10 peeled cloves of garlic
10 shallots, peeled and split in half from stem to root
several springs parsley, sage, thyme

large ovenproof straight sided saute pan with tight fitting lid

preheat oven to 350 F. season chicken liberally with salt and pepper. toss with 2 T olive oil and brown on both sides in wide frying pan or skillet over high heat. remove from heat, add garlic, shallots, whole herbs, and remainder of the olive oil. cover and bake for 1 1/2 hours.

vichyssoise (from ab)

1 pound leeks, cleaned and dark green sections removed, approximately 4 to 5 medium
3 T unsalted butter
Heavy pinch kosher salt, plus additional for seasoning
14 ounces Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and diced small
1 quart organic vegetable broth
1 c heavy cream
1 c buttermilk
1/2 t white pepper

Chop the leeks into small pieces. In a 6-quart saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the leeks and a heavy pinch of salt and sweat for 5 minutes. Be careful that the leeks do not brown at all during this time. Decrease the heat to medium-low and cook until the leeks are tender, approximately 25 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add the potatoes and the vegetable broth, increase the heat to medium-high, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and gently simmer until the potatoes are soft, approximately 45 minutes.

Turn off the heat and puree the mixture with an immersion blender until smooth. Stir the cream and buttermilk together, and add to soup. Stir in white pepper. Taste and adjust seasoning if desired. Serve hot or cold.

quick cassoulet

2 T olive oil
1 lb pork tenderloin, cut into 1-inch cubes
1/2 lb kielbasa, cut into 1/4 inch coins
3 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (about 3/4 lb) cut into 1-inch pieces
1 can whole peeled tomatoes, drained and coarsely chopped
1 large clove garlic, chopped
1 c dry red wine
2 cans cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
1/4 t salt
1/8 t cayenne pepper

In a large heavy-bottom pot, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil over medium-high heat. Brown pork on all sides for about 4 minutes. Remove pork to a plate and reserve. Add kielbasa and cook for 4 minutes, turning halfway through cooking, until nicely browned. Remove to another plate and reserve.

Add remaining tablespoon of oil to pot and cook chicken for 4 minutes, turning halfway through cooking. Break up tomatoes and add along with garlic, cook for 3 minutes, stirring to loosen up any browned bits from bottom of pot. Add wine, simmer for an additional 2 minutes.

Add in beans, salt, cayenne and reserved kielbasa. Simmer for 5 minutes. Just before serving, stir pork back in pot and heat through.

panna cotta

buttermilk panna cotta [with blood orange spread]

1 envelope gelatin
1/4 c cold water
1 c heavy cream
1 c sugar
2 c buttermilk
1 T vanilla
[1 jar Blood Orange Spread]
[2-3 T Grand Marnier, Tuaca, or other liqueur for flavoring]

In a small bowl, sprinkle gelatin over water until dissolved. Let stand for 3 minutes. In a saucepan, heat cream and sugar over low heat until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and cool slightly. Stir the gelatin mixture, vanilla and buttermilk into the cream until well-combined and smooth in texture. Brush the sides of 8 6oz. shallow deep cups with oil. Pour into the prepared cups and let chill for 4 hours or overnight, until set.

When ready to serve, unmold by running a warm knife around the edges of the panna cotta, and unmold onto a plate. [Whisk Blood Orange Spread until smooth. Top each panna cotta with a dollop and garnish with sprigs of mint leaves.]

If using Grand Marnier or other liqueur, decrease the amount of cream or buttermilk by an equivalent amount.


lemon panna cotta with blackberry sauce

Vegetable oil
1 c whole milk
1 c whipping cream
1/2 vanilla bean, split lengthwise

5 T fresh lemon juice
2 t unflavored gelatin
1/2 c sugar
1 c crème fraîche
2 T grated lemon peel

3 c frozen blackberries (about 12 ounces), thawed, drained, juices reserved
3 T light brown sugar, packed
3 T crème de cassis (black-currant-flavored liqueur; optional)

Lightly oil six 3/4-cup ramekins or custard cups. Mix milk and cream in heavy medium saucepan. Scrape in seeds from vanilla bean; add bean. Bring to simmer. Remove from heat. Cover; let steep 30 minutes. Remove vanilla bean.

Pour lemon juice into small bowl; sprinkle gelatin over. Let stand until gelatin softens, about 10 minutes. Stir sugar and gelatin mixture into milk mixture. Stir over low heat just until sugar and gelatin dissolve, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Whisk in crème fraîche and lemon peel. Divide among ramekins. Cover; chill until set, at least 6 hours or overnight.

For sauce:
Puree 2/3 of blackberries and all reserved juices, brown sugar, and crème de cassis, if desired, in blender. Strain mixture into medium bowl, pressing on solids to extract as much liquid as possible. Discard solids in strainer. Stir remaining blackberries into sauce. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill.)

Run small knife around each panna cotta. Place bottoms of ramekins, 1 at a time, in bowl of hot water 45 seconds. Place plate atop ramekin. Hold plate and ramekin together; invert, shaking gently, to turn out panna cotta. Serve with sauce.

gingersnaps

2 1/4 c all-purpose flour
2 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
1 T ground ginger
1 T finely chopped crystallized ginger
1 t ground cinnamon
1/2 t ground black peppre
1/2 t ground allspice
3/4 c butter, softened
1 c brown sugar, packed firmly
1 egg
1/4 c molasses
1/2 c granulated sugar (for coating)

In a medium bowl, mix flour, baking soda, both gingers, cinnamon, black pepper, and allspice. Set aside mixer, cream butter until fluffy and lightened in color. Add brown sugar and beat until well-blended. Add egg and molasses. Beat until thoroughly combined. Gradually add dry ingredients and mix well. Dough will be sticky. Refrigerate for 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 350 degress. Shape dough into balls 1 1/2" in diameter. Dip tops in granulated sugar. Place balls, sugared side up, about 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheets.

Bake 12 to 16 minutes until cookies are firm to the touch and the edges are beginning to brown. Let stand 1 minute. Remove from baking sheets to rack.

Makes about 48 cookies.

ab's chewy chocolate chip cookies

8 oz butter
1/4 c white sugar
1 1/4 c brown sugar
1 egg plus 1 egg yolk
2 T milk
1 1/2 t vanilla
2 1/4 c bread or high-protein all-purpose flour
1 t kosher salt
1 t baking soda

melt butter in a heavy medium saucepan. meanwhile, sift together 2 1/4 cups bread flour with kosher salt and baking soda.

combine melted butter and sugars in mixing bowl and cream until light and fluffy. add the eggs, milk, vanilla, and combine well. slowly add the flour and beat until thoroughly combined, then add the chips.

chill the batter, then scoop onto parchment paper, and bake at 350 degrees for 10-15 minutes, remove parchment/cookies immediately and finish cooling on a rack. store in ziploc bags for up to a week, or freeze for up to three months.