Lemon-Strawberry Cake with Lemon Buttercream

Even though I always start pondering cake options weeks in advance of my birthday, I usually end up choosing something lemony or berry-filled or both, unless I decide on butterscotch. I always have to try something different, it’s never the same cake twice, but the flavors are usually similar. I’ve been enjoying baking from Flour since receiving a review copy last fall. Not only has everything from the book been completely delicious, the recipes have also just worked really well. Even if you have a standard approach to apple pie, and I did, the one from this book might change your mind about it. The techniques resulted in the best apple pie I’ve ever made. So, I’ve come to trust this book, and I’m thrilled that Joanne Chang is working on a second one. I knew there would be a good option for a birthday cake in Flour. The name of the cake in the book is lemon-raspberry cake with lemon buttercream, but I had fresh, local strawberries to use instead. It’s intended as a three layer cake with lemon curd mixed with buttercream and berries between each layer. I cut the quantity down to two layers for the cakes and stored the extra buttercream and lemon curd in the freezer for another use. This was a special occasion cake, meaning there are a few parts to making it, although none of them are difficult.

I started by making the lemon curd in advance, and I used meyer lemons for the juice. The next day, I made the cakes which began by creaming together butter and sugar and then adding vanilla and lemon zest. A mixture of flour, baking powder, and salt were added alternately with milk. Last, egg whites were beaten until they held peaks, and they were folded into the cake batter. While the cakes baked and cooled, I gathered ingredients for the French buttercream. First, a sugar syrup was made in a saucepan, and it was brought to 238 degrees F. Eggs and egg yolks were mixed in a stand mixer until pale, and then the syrup was slowly added to the eggs while mixing on low speed. Once all the syrup was added, the speed was increased to medium, and it was mixed until fluffy and cool. Next came the butter, and this was an obscene amount of butter. Three cups of butter were cut into chunks, and the chunks were slowly added while mixing until the buttercream became smooth and lovely. A pinch of salt was added, and the frosting was completed. One last item to make was the lemon syrup which was a mix of lemon juice, sugar, and water which was brought to a boil to dissolve the sugar and then left to cool. That lemon syrup was brushed on top of each cake layer before the filling and toppings were added. A little of the lemon curd was mixed with a little of the buttercream to make the filling that was placed between the cake layers. And, I need to pause for a moment while I remember that mixture of lemon curd and buttercream because it was delightful. I placed some of it in a plastic bag so I could pipe a quick circle of the mixture around the edge, and that held the berries in place preventing berry juice from running on the outside of the cake. Sliced strawberries were placed on the curd-buttercream layer inside the circle barrier. The other cake layer went on top, it was brushed with lemon syrup, and the remaining plain buttercream was used to frost the top and sides of the layers. Last, some lemon curd was spread on top of the cake, and I decorated with a few whole strawberries.

The cake met my requirements perfectly for lemony-ness and berry flavor. Lemon curd, buttercream, and fresh strawberries couldn’t possibly disappoint. The cake layers themselves were light as can be, and the brushed-on lemon syrup kept them from becoming dry. With the strawberries, it was a cake for spring, and I bet the lemon flavors would be great with blueberries too. I’m not sure I can top this, so I might have to bake the same cake again next year.

Spaghetti with Fennel, Chile, Lemon, and Breadcrumbs

It’s true that I have trust issues with recipes. If I’m skeptical, I may proceed as instructed, but I try to be prepared should I feel the need to change course. So, although I was intrigued by a pasta recipe that suggested a topping of breadcrumbs in place of parmesan, I had a wedge of parmigiano reggiano ready and waiting just in case. This came from Delicious magazine a few months ago, and I can’t seem to locate the recipe online so I’ll include it below. Spicy breadcrumbs were made by toasting chunks of day-old bread that had been tossed with olive oil and dried chile flakes and then processing them to crumbs once cool. They were tasty breadcrumbs, and they were certainly going to add a flavorful, crispy element to the pasta dish, but I wasn’t convinced they could completely replace the experience of a good parmigiano reggiano. I had just received some fennel from my CSA, and making fresh pasta is one of my most favorite kitchen tasks, so with some back-up parmesan to shred over each plate of pasta should it be necessary, I was ready to experiment.

I made the fresh pasta from Stir: Mixing It Up in the Italian Tradition since this has become my go-to pasta recipe. I cut the fresh pasta sheets into thin spaghetti and let the strands dry for a bit while working on the breadcrumbs. Half a loaf of day-old bread, and I used some leftover Norwich sourdough which had been stored in the freezer since Christmas, was cut into chunks and tossed with extra virgin olive oil, salt, and red chile flakes. The bread chunks were toasted on a sheet pan in the oven until dry and crisp, and they were left to cool. Then, they went into a food processor with some fronds from the fennel and were pulsed until crumbly. Next, the fennel bulbs were prepped by slicing them thinly with a mandoline or Benriner. Lemon rind was supposed to have been cut into thin ribbons, but Kurt isn’t a fan of big pieces of citrus rind in savory dishes, so I zested the lemon with a microplane instead. Last, garlic was minced, and cooking could commence. While water for the pasta boiled, olive oil was heated in a large saute pan. The fennel and garlic were gently cooked over medium heat so as not to brown the fennel but just to allow it to soften. The lemon zest was added, and after a short dunk in the boiling water, the drained pasta was added with lemon juice and more olive oil. Everything was tossed about in the pan to combine and warm through, and then it was served topped with the breadcrumbs.

This dish ended up delivering two surprises. First, I had assumed the fennel would retain its anise bite since it was so gently cooked. Although it didn’t even brown in the pan, it did soften and become sweeter and was not at all like sharp, raw fennel. The bright lemon juice and zest mingled nicely with it. The other surprise was that the breadcrumbs were delicious and satisfying in a way that I didn’t expect at all. With the salt, chile flakes, and fennel fronds, the crunchy bits of bread were all the dish needed. At the end of the meal, the wedge of parmigiano reggiano had gone completely untouched.

Spaghetti with Fennel, Chile, Lemon, and Breadcrumbs
adapted from Delicious magazine

half a loaf of day-old bread such as a sourdough rustic loaf or ciabatta
2 teaspoons dried chile flakes
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 organic lemons (organic is important here since the peel will be used)
3 fennel bulbs
12 ounces long strands of thin pasta (make fresh pasta if you have time)
Salt and pepper to taste

-Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees F. Cut or pull the bread into chunks and place on a baking sheet. Toss the bread chunks with two tablespoons of the olive oil, the dried chile flakes, and a big pinch of salt. Spread the pieces into an even layer and bake for about 10 minutes until golden and crisp. Then, set aside and allow to cool.

- Zest one lemon and then cut both in halve to be juiced. Remove and discard the outer leaves of the fennel and reserve 1/2 cup of the fronds. Thinly slice the fennel, and using a Benriner is the quickest way to do it.

- Place the fennel fronds and cooled bread chunks in a food processor and pulse until crumbly.

- Boil a large pot of salted water for the pasta, and time the cooking of the pasta for it to be ready when the fennel and lemon zest have cooked (fresh pasta will cook must faster than dried). Meanwhile, heat three tablespoons olive oil in a large saute pan over medium heat. Add the sliced fennel to the saute pan, and cook while stirring for a couple of minutes. Add the minced garlic and continue to cook for three minutes until the fennel begins to soften. Add the lemon zest, reduce heat to low and cook for another five minutes or so. The goal is for the lemon and garlic flavors to meld with the fennel, but the fennel should only gently cook and not brown. When the pasta has cooked, drain it and add it to the saute pan. Add the juice from the two lemons and the remaining olive oil, and toss to combine.

- Serve the pasta and fennel topped with a generous handful of the breadcrumbs, and I promise you won’t need a single shred of parmesan.

I’m submitting this to Yeastspotting where you’ll find some seriously well-made bread.

Glittering Lemon Sandwich Cookies

Once I stared baking from the Gourmet Cookie Book, I couldn't stop with just one cookie. As I flip back through the book again now, I don't see any cookies in it that I don't want to try. This next one I baked is the second to last cookie in the book, and it's from a 2008 issue of the magazine. The glittery, sparkly little butter cookies sandwiched with a lemon buttercream just had to be tried. They're made with a straightforward dough with no surprises, and the hardest part of making these was rolling the dough into little balls to be coated with sanding sugar. The very next day after baking these, I found a similar recipe from which I learned that if you chill the dough for a bit, rolling it into balls is much easier. I'm set for next time. Each cookie is tiny, made with just barely a teaspoon of dough, but when they're sandwiched together they're just the right size.

To start, flour, cornstarch, and salt were whisked together and set aside. Butter and confectioners' sugar were mixed until fluffy, and lemon zest and vanilla were added. The flour mixture was mixed in until the dough formed. At that point, I should have chilled the dough for at least 30 minutes. Had I done so, rolling teaspoons of it into balls and then coating them in sanding sugar would have been a breeze. Since I didn't chill the dough, I had sticky cookie dough all over my hands and repeatedly had to stop and wash my hands and start again. I rolled half the cookies in plain white sanding sugar and the other half in sugar in confetti colors. The sugared balls of dough were placed on baking sheets and baked for about 12 minutes. When they were cool, the filling was made with confectioners' sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice, corn syrup, and softened butter. The buttercream was placed in a plastic bag, the corner was snipped, and filling was piped onto the flat sides of half the cookies before they were paired up and sandwiched.

I think these dazzling, little treats look a lot more complicated than they really are which is one reason I liked them. Another reason is that the tart lemon flavor in the smooth filling is a nice contrast with the sugary, crunchy cookie coating. They're festive and eye catching, and this is a cookie I know I'll be making for many more occasions to come.

Persimmon Martini

It couldn’t have been better coordinated. Just after reading about persimmons in the latest issue of Edible Austin, we received persimmons in our CSA. A persimmon bundt cake with Italian cream cheese frosting was mentioned along with a salad with toasted walnuts and a persimmon flan. Everything sounded delicious and I’m hanging on to that bundt cake recipe, but I immediately zeroed in on the persimmon martini with fresh ginger, lemon, and a vanilla bean. The cocktail recipe was written with a juicer in mind, and I don’t own one. I pureed the persimmon flesh with lemon juice and grated ginger rather than juicing them. However you do it, the flavors will be fantastic. This cocktail is perfectly suited to the fall season, and I’m already thinking of other ways to combine these well-matched ingredients.

I started by scooping the very ripe flesh from four persimmons and picking out the seeds. That went into a food processor with lemon juice, freshly grated ginger, seeds scraped from half a vanilla bean, and a little honey. It was processed until smooth, and then it was stirred with ice and vodka in a cocktail pitcher until well chilled. The ice was strained as the martinis were poured into glasses. If you use a juicer, your fruit mixture will be thinner and should work fine in a cocktail shaker. I learned the hard way that my puree didn’t pour well through the shaker’s strainer. Hence, I transferred it to a pitcher. Once in glasses, the martinis were garnished with half a vanilla bean.

The vanilla warms up the persimmon flavor, and the ginger and lemon add zing. As soon as I tasted this concoction, I imagined it would make a delicious sorbet or maybe a pudding. Or, I might simmer it until it’s thickened and pour it over ice cream. Maybe I should mix a few more martinis and see what other ideas come to mind.

Orange Sorbet

This dessert started with eggplant. That is, if it weren’t for the eggplant, I never would have made orange sorbet. I had a couple of varieties of eggplant to use, and I started craving a Thai eggplant curry. I knew I had seen an eggplant curry in The Kitchen Diaries which I read several months ago but don’t think I’ve mentioned here before. In that book, which is a year-long food diary about enjoying the right food in the right place at the right time, Nigel Slater mentions a meal involving a curry of eggplant, tomatoes, and lemongrass. He explains that he likes to follow a "stinging-hot principal dish" with a "sharp citrus dessert." The thought of a spicy dish with complex flavors followed by an icy, fruity, sorbet appealed to me very much. The curry in the book is made with a homemade paste involving shrimp paste which would have sent me on a day-long ingredient hunt, so I started asking around about eggplant curry recipes. Leela from She Simmers shared with me an informative post of hers about purchased curry pastes vs ones made from scratch, and her post also includes a link to an easy green curry recipe from Kasma Loha-unchit. That’s the version that I made only with mushrooms instead of pork. Then, it was back to the book for the dessert. So, yes, eggplant brought me along a winding path that led to orange sorbet.

Making the sorbet couldn’t have been easier. A simple syrup was made, and orange zest was added. Since the juice of a lemon was going to be added later, I zested some of said lemon and added it to the simple syrup as well. Once the syrup was cool, fresh orange juice and the juice of the lemon were added. I left that mixture in the refrigerator to chill thoroughly for a few hours before churning it in an ice cream maker. For garnish, I topped servings with a little lime zest.

The eggplant curry with coconut milk, Thai chiles, Thai basil, and green curry paste was spicy and lovely and the eggplant chunks took on all the flavors nicely. And, as suggested, following that with a cooling, citrusy, orange sorbet was refreshing and delicious. With no prompting, questioning, or fishing for a response, Kurt said he liked it. Even though he rarely dislikes a dessert, he doesn’t come right out and say he likes one very often, and then we both wanted seconds of this, so I know for sure it was really good.

Whole Wheat Lemon Almond Biscotti

I can’t believe there are zero posts about biscotti on my site. Well, now there is finally one, but more than two years went by without any biscotti posts. I should explain that biscotti are kind of like scones to me. I’ve admitted that I try almost every scone recipe I ever see, four of which I’ve posted on this site, and I have the same issue with biscotti recipes although I’ve neglected to mention them. The difference is that I seem to encounter more failures with biscotti. I’ve tried recipes that resulted in cookies that were too large and unwieldy, or the add-ins were too difficult to slice through and the cookies were ugly, or the cookies didn’t bake evenly and were too dark on one side. I’ve learned that the initially baked dough logs shouldn’t be too large. Two to three inches wide seems to work best. Then, once the individual cookies are cut, they should be flipped at the half-way point in their baking time. That way, the cookies don’t brown too much on one side and not enough on the other. I’ve also read that some people have success with baking the cookies on their edges rather than flat on a cut side, but I haven’t tried that. Regarding the slicing issue, I now let the dough cool a little longer after the first baking and before slicing, and I always use a serrated knife. With these lessons in mind, I tried a biscotti recipe I’d seen in the December 2009 issue of Living, and these turned out great.

Whole wheat flour, all-purpose flour, and baking powder were sifted together and set aside. Butter was mixed with sugar, honey, lemon zest, and salt, and three eggs were added one at a time. Nice, big measures, one whole tablespoon each, of vanilla and almond extract were added, and that’s why these biscotti smelled so amazing as they baked. Then, the flour mixture was added followed by almonds. I used a mix of whole almonds and sliced almonds because I was in pantry-clearing mode. The dough was wrapped in plastic and chilled for an hour. It was then divided in half, formed into two logs, of appropriate size of course, the logs were placed on a silpat-lined baking sheet, and they were chilled for 30 minutes. The first baking was at 325 degrees F for 35 minutes. Then, the dough logs were allowed to cool enough to handle before they were cut on the bias into cookies. I placed the cut cookies on two baking sheets, and they were baked this time at 300 degrees F for 35 minutes. After about 18 minutes, I flipped each cookie for even browning.

The extracts, lemon zest, almonds, and honey worked together to make these biscotti incredibly fragrant and delicious. They were packed into an airtight container, and each time I opened it, I was struck by how great these cookies smelled. Of course, they were enjoyed dipped in coffee or cappuccino, and I liked them with tea as well. They were crunchy as can be and a definite success in my hit-or-miss history of biscotti making.

Fruit Salad with Limoncello and Yogurt Sauce

Is it just me, or is strawberry season far too short? It’s an especially short season for locally-grown strawberries in Austin. We’ve been getting pints of them in our CSA from Farmhouse Delivery, and I’ve been buying them at farmers’ markets. Just yesterday, when I bought some at Boggy Creek Farm, I worried they might be the last of the local season. Yes, I worry over strawberries. I worry over homegrown lemons too and how to best use them, and that could be why I decided to combine the two in a dessert. This fruit salad is from Barefoot Contessa Back to Basics, and the recipe is also available online. Fresh berries were mixed with limoncello and topped with a yogurt sauce made with lemon curd.

The recipe actually suggests using purchased lemon curd, but I had a last bit of frozen meyer lemon juice, so I made my own lemon curd. I also still had some of the limoncello I made earlier in the year. The lemon curd was whisked into some Greek yogurt along with honey and vanilla. For the salad, I used only strawberries and raspberries rather than the recommended mix of berries and bananas. The berries were tossed with a pinch of sugar and a few tablespoons of limoncello and allowed to sit at room temperature for five minutes or so. The macerated fruit was topped with the yogurt sauce and chopped mint.

I don’t think I’d ever tried limoncello with strawberries before, but it’s a combination that’s very worth remembering. In fact, I see a cocktail created with strawberry juice and limoncello in my future. And, the lemony, tangy yogurt sauce made the dessert more special than you would expect a fruit salad to be. I may not have much time left to repeat this dessert with local strawberries this year, but I might try it again when blackberries make an appearance.

Limoncello Cheesecake Squares

I went on and on about my lemon trees the other day, and when I have a good year for lemons like I just did, I love getting to make limoncello. Limoncello is a simple liqueur involving lemon peels, vodka, and simple syrup. Every recipe I’ve seen seems to suggest a different number of days for the lemon peels to sit in the vodka (three days to 10) and then a different quantity of simple syrup to add at the end (two-thirds cup to three cups for 750 ml vodka). Whichever recipe you use, once it’s ready it can be mixed into all kinds of cocktails, and my favorite is a simple combination of limoncello and club soda over ice. Limoncello can also be used in all kinds of desserts. As I was waiting for my lemon peels to steep in the vodka, I was busy trying to locate a recipe I had seen before for some kind of limoncello cheesecake. It was a year ago if not longer that I had seen this, and I have no idea where I first saw it. In my search, I came upon Giada’s recipe for limoncello cheesecake squares, and that may even have been what I was remembering in the first place but I don’t think so, and I ended giving them a try.

In Giada’s recipe, biscotti are used to form the crust, but I used graham crackers in their place since I had some handy. The graham cracker crust was formed with melted butter and lemon zest, and it baked until golden and was allowed to cool. The filling was made from ricotta, cream cheese, lemon zest, sugar, limoncello, vanilla, and eggs which were combined in a food processor. The filling was poured over the cooled crust, and it baked in a water bath for about an hour. After cooling on a rack for an hour, it was refrigerated overnight. It was very simple to prepare, and since it baked in a nine inch square pan, there was no need to wrap foil on the bottom to prevent water from entering.

The square pan was easier for baking, but I was unsure how easily the cut pieces would be to remove from it. Actually, it was one of the easiest desserts ever to cut and serve from the pan. The crust held together well, and there was no sticking at all. The limoncello flavor was delightful but was not at all overpowering. This was a rich and creamy cheesecake that wasn’t as dense as others. I’ll have to try it again someday with the biscotti crust, or maybe I’ll eventually figure out which recipe I was looking for in the first place.

Citrus Tart

When I was growing up, I didn’t get to see lemons growing on trees. No, in Illinois, citrus was certainly not a local crop. However, several years later when I moved to Austin and started gardening, one of the first things I wanted to add to my garden was a lemon tree. It has to be container grown here because we have to move it inside when we have below-freezing temperatures. But, for most of the year, I get to see a lemon tree in my own backyard. Actually, I now get to see two lemon trees. My friend Kirsten, an amazing garden designer and gardener, entrusted her lemon tree to me when she and her husband moved from Austin to Edmonton. Happily, her tree is still doing fine (even though my gardening skills pale in comparison). Both trees produce Meyer lemons which can take almost an entire year to mature from blossoms. The lemons become ripe and ready to pick in late December or early January. I seem to have good luck with lots of lemons one year and then not so many the next. This was a good year. I picked plenty of lemons for limoncello, lots of vinaigrettes, and more. Since only the peels are used for limoncello, I had a couple of cups of lemon juice in my freezer waiting for inspiration to strike when I saw this citrus tart in the January issue of Living. The tart combines lemon and lime juices which seemed perfect since the lime would sharpen up the sweeter Meyer lemon juice.

This tart’s crust is a press in the pan type made with butter, flour, salt, ground almonds, confectioners’ sugar, and an egg yolk. I used almond meal that I had on hand rather than grinding blanched almonds in a food processor. The dough was a little sticky, but it was simple enough to press it into the tart pan. Then, it was placed in the freezer for 20 minutes. The crust was baked for about 23 minutes and left to cool while the filling was made. Eggs, sugar, salt, fresh lemon juice, lemon zest, fresh lime juice, and cream were mixed and then poured into the cooled crust. The tart went back into the oven, at a reduced temperature, for about 25 minutes or until set. I had to leave mine a few extra minutes until the center was no longer jiggly.

I whipped some leftover mascarpone with cream and a pinch or so of sugar, and my goodness, can someone please tell me why I had never before added mascarpone to whipped cream? That is definitely one of the most delicious concoctions, and it made a very nice topping for the tart. The crust was buttery and rich and possibly just a tad too rich and too sweet for me, although I didn’t hear any complaints. Still, I might opt for a standard shortbread crust or even a pate brisee next time I make this, but I won’t change a thing about the filling. The mix of lime and Meyer lemon juices was fresh and bright and just enough sugar was added, and of course, picking the lemons yourself makes them taste even better.

Roasted Chicken and Carrots with Olives and Lemon

I pick up a lot of different magazines while I’m waiting in check-out lines. One day last November, it was Real Simple that I tossed into my cart. I’ve never subscribed, but I have read issues of it before here and there. The food section always grabs my attention. The photos make the food look irresistible, and the recipes actually are 'real simple.' I cut a couple of pages from that November issue and just recently got around to trying two different dishes. Since I had a bounty of fresh, local carrots last week, the timing was right for the roasted chicken and carrots recipe. This meal couldn’t have been easier as everything roasted together on one baking sheet and required no work while it cooked.

I was thrilled to have bay leaves and a lemon from my own trees to use in this dish, and they were combined with the carrots, seasoned chicken, and olives on a baking sheet. Whenever I’m planning to have chicken for dinner, I now always follow Judy Rodgers' advice regarding seasoning it early. I cut the whole chicken into pieces and seasoned them with salt and pepper early in the day. The pieces were covered and left in the refrigerator for several hours. Once everything was on the baking sheet and tossed with olive oil, some paprika was sprinkled on the chicken for additional seasoning. Then, it baked for about an hour. I did turn the carrots and the smaller pieces of chicken at the half-way point just to be sure nothing got too brown on one side. A sauce from the lemons and olive oil formed on the baking sheet while everything roasted, and it mingled its way around flavoring the chicken and carrots nicely. The olives added a salty, savory bite to this low-maintenance meal.

For a previous meal, I tried the broccoli and gruyere gratin which was also in the November issue. I changed it up just a little by using a mix of broccoli and cauliflower, but otherwise, I stuck to the recipe as it was. A simple bechamel was made, and grated gruyere was melted into it. The sauce was tossed with steamed broccoli and cauliflower, the mixture went into a baking dish, it was topped with more cheese, and it baked until bubbly and browned. It was another winner. Both these recipes resulted in simple and delicious dishes, and now I’ll be flipping to the recipes section a little faster with future issues.

Whiskey Fizz and a True Gin Sour

I like making cocktails at home, but it usually involves a lot of tasting or tinkering for me to get them right. The Cocktail Primer takes out the guesswork and offers an interesting way to categorize drink types. I received a review copy of this book and was happy to expand my cocktail knowledge while trying a few drinks along the way. Eben Klemm, master mixologist and head bartender of B.R. Guest Restaurants, organized this book by grouping descendants from master drinks. He offers six master drink classes, which are defined by style and technique, and the cocktails that belong to each group. For instance, from the martini comes the vesper and negroni. These drinks are not sweet or acidic, and they have a high alcohol content. They each have a primary and a secondary spirit but no fruit or sweet liqueurs. There is also a wealth of cocktail history sprinkled throughout the book. I learned that martinis weren’t always such strong drinks. Originally, they contained a more equal ratio of gin or vodka to vermouth and bitters. As the quality of gin and vodka has improved over the years, there became less need to mask the taste of the liquor, and the modern martini is now much more alcoholic. And, should you shake or stir? Klemm explains that as well. You should shake to aerate and slightly dilute a drink and stir for a more elegant, still result.

I found myself drawn to the chapter about simple sours. These drinks all include one type of liquor, some form of citrus for acidity, and a small amount of sweetness for balance. The fizz was particularly interesting because of the egg white foam that results on top. A fizz should be shaken to aerate the egg white and blend it with the liquor of choice, fresh lemon juice, simple syrup, and bitters. These can be made with gin, whiskey, or rum, and they are finished with a splash of both club soda and red wine. First, I tried a gin fizz, and Kurt and I were both unsure about the flavor and texture combination. Next, I made the same drink with whiskey instead, and we both preferred that version by far. The fizz is shown in the photo at the bottom of this post. Since the gin didn’t work for us in the first cocktail, I tried it again in a true sour. This time, rather than using plain simple syrup, I took Klemm’s advice about trying flavored syrups and made one infused with rosemary. The gin, lemon juice, and rosemary syrup were shaken with ice, and the mixture was strained over fresh ice in a glass. A dash of bitters was added along with a splash of soda, and it was garnished with a maraschino cherry. The true sour is shown in the photo above. It was fresh-tasting, and the lemon and rosemary combined well with gin.

This book does a great job of simplifying the world of cocktails and helping you understand them from the inside out. Once you master the basics and learn about variations on some general themes, you can start getting creative. In the final chapter, there are a few examples of complex sours that make use of more ingredients than the other cocktails in the book. I’m looking forward to trying the paradiso with white peach-white pepper foam that’s made with limoncello. Then, I might be ready to invent a signature cocktail or two of my own.

Crispy Potato Salad

I think Donna Hay might be a food magician. Every recipe she presents is so pretty and seems so doable, and every time I make one of her dishes, it turns out great and never presents a problem. I cut several recipes from an issue of her magazine a few months ago, and when I look back through them I want to drop everything and start cooking. For instance, this salad was a simple mix of fresh spinach, crispy potato slices, and parmesan cheese. That was already a delicious mix of things, but all of that was topped with a creamy lemon dressing. It’s such a simple mix but so good all together. Kurt was thrilled with the crispness of the potatoes. He was sure they were going to become soggy once tossed with the spinach and topped with dressing. They didn’t become soggy at all. The salad really was pretty much perfect in every way.

To start, the potatoes should be thinly sliced, tossed with olive oil and celery salt, and then spread on a baking sheet. I used little yukon gold potatoes and sliced them on a Benriner. The slices were roasted for about 30 minutes total, and I turned them at the halfway point. Let the potatoes cool before combining them with spinach leaves and shredded parmesan. The creamy lemon dressing was made from sour cream, mayonnaise, and lemon juice. To keep the potatoes crisp, wait to drizzle the salad with the dressing after it’s on the plate.

I have to say: try this salad. The deliciousness to simple to prepare ratio here is unparalleled. We were grilling the night I made this. It was served as a side dish for my chicken and Kurt’s steak, and my chicken was far less interesting than this salad. Even the leftovers, in which the potatoes had finally become just a tad soggy, were a delight to have for lunch the next day. I should have made more because I wanted it for lunch again the day after that.

Gremolata Seared Chicken

This is another quick and simple dish from Donna Hay’s Off the Shelf, and I served this chicken with spinach polenta with balsamic tomatoes. The photos and the straightforward nature of the recipes in this book make each and every thing in it difficult to resist. I looked through the Mediterranean chapter for ideas for what to serve with the polenta. Fish roasted in capers and lemon butter was one option. The balsamic and tomato roast chicken looked good but was too similar to the polenta dish. The tuna and grilled vegetable salad wasn’t quite right, but I’ll definitely be making that eventually. Likewise, the green olive baked chicken was almost perfect, but because cherry tomatoes were included in it, I finally settled on the gremolata seared chicken.

Gremolata was made by stirring together chopped flat-leaf parsley, chopped salt-packed capers that had been rinsed and drained, lemon zest, and black pepper. That mixture was sprinkled on chicken breasts, and the chicken was seared in olive oil in a saute pan. In the book, this chicken is shown being served with salt-roasted potatoes and steamed green beans. I’m sure that would have been delicious too, but the chicken also worked very well with polenta and roasted tomatoes.

If I had been planning ahead, I might have applied the gremolata to the chicken and let it sit in the refrigerator for a few hours before cooking. And, certainly, the chicken could have been grilled or baked rather than pan seared. The gremolata provided a very easy way of adding a lot of flavor to the blank canvas that is chicken breast meat. Now, which page of the book should I cook from next?

Pesto di Limone and Pesto ai due Pomodori

A pesto recipe is like a scone recipe for me in that every time I see one, I have to try it. In defense of my sanity though, pesto is a very versatile sauce. It goes well with pasta, smeared on a sandwich, drizzled over vegetables, and could even be a dip. Not only are there many uses, there are also many ways it can be made. In the July/August issue of La Cucina Italiana, there was article about pestos with several recipes which I could not resist. A lemony pesto made with olives was used as a dressing for sea bass crudo on a bed of baby lettuces. I stole the pesto part of that dish and used it instead on a layered salad of raw zucchini and yellow squash slices with fresh mozzarella. Then, I also tried the pesto with two tomatoes which was used as a sauce for spaghetti. That recipe isn’t available online, so I’ll include it below.

To make the pesto di limone, two wide strips of lemon zest were pureed with the juice of a lemon and some olive oil. Then, I was supposed to have used Taggiasche or Gaeta olives, and had I found some green Taggiasche olives the pesto would have been nice and green. Since I used black Gaeta olives, mine was a darker color. The pitted Gaeta olives and two big cups of basil leaves were added to the blender and pureed with the first three ingredients. This resulted in an intentionally thin pesto with a fresh, lemony flavor. The pesto with two tomatoes was just as simple to prepare. First, sun-dried tomatoes, olive oil, and rinsed and drained salt-packed capers were pureed in the blender. Then, cherry tomatoes, and I found the prettiest dark red, almost purple cherry tomatoes, were added, and it was pureed together until smooth. That pesto was transferred to a large bowl, and grated parmigiano reggiano and chopped chives were added.

The tomato pesto required one half cup of olive oil, and I know I’ve used a lot more oil than that in similar quantities of pesto. Yet, the smooth texture gave it a richness that made it seem more decadent than it was. Of course, the flavor was nicely layered with fresh, juicy tomatoes and the depth of sun-dried tomatoes, and the chives lent just enough bite from the allium family. Both pestos are keepers, and I’m sure I’ll think of different ways to use them each time they’re made.

Pesto ai due Pomodori
from La Cucina Italiana July/August 2009
1 c drained oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes
½ c extra-virgin olive oil
1 t salt-packed capers, rinsed, soaked in cold water for 10 minutes, then rinsed again and drained
2 c cherry tomatoes
3 T freshly grated parmigiano reggiano
1 T chopped fresh chives

-using a blender, puree sun-dried tomatoes, olive oil, and capers; add cherry tomatoes and puree until smooth
-add one to two tablespoons water to help blend if needed
-transfer mixture to a bowl and add grated parmiginao reggiano and chives and stir to combine

*Note: This quantity of pesto was used to sauce one pound of spaghetti.