Seriously, what does Santa yearn for at every stop after delivering the presents?
Cookies and candy and hot chocolate, of course.
It’s not a news flash he doesn’t come down too many chimneys anymore. Given the stacked and tiered, toppling plates of goodies he savors over the holidays, Santa will be forgiven for waddling through his holiday rounds more often than wriggling down an ever-increasingly narrow portal.
Fashion alert: that red suit covers more than a few extra gingerbread fantasies.
And what about all those vision of sugar plum fairies dancing in our heads?
Simply put, desserts are what distinguish this holiday from all the other commemorative calendar days.
Independence Day may have its BBQ and fireworks and Easter its ham and crayola-shaded eggs and Thanksgiving its turkey and stuffing, but nothing, anywhere, beats the Holidays for the variety and volume of sweet confections.
Think about it.
Even the most intrepid bakers set about making boatloads of treats to share.
It’s like tomatoes in August. There are just not enough folks to give away the bounty to.
From cookie tins stuffed to the can’t-get-the-lid-to-stay-clamped with cream cheese wreaths and sugar cookies morphed into trees, candy canes and snowmen, to toffee, chocolate rum ball cake or candy to fruitcakes and stollen and Noelle de Bouche to Panettone and strufili honey balls, to chocolate covered pretzels and Oreos® there is an abundance of riches that makes every table at every gathering groan with delight.
Who needs a centerpiece when all eyes are on the come-hither artful composition that is a collage of pastry, candy, cake, pie, bread, tarts, puddings, and mousses?
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| Laduree and its dreamy macarons |
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| Two Little Red Hens cupcakes -- sumptuous, delectable flowers |
The fashionable optics for those dreamy, sherbet-colored macarons—especially Laduree at 864 Madison Avenue between 70th & 71st. Street (http://www.laduree.fr/en/maisons/monde-details#135) and the relentless pursuit of all things cupcake -- only add to the magic of the spiffing holiday confections. Love Billy’s Bakery (184 9th Avenue) www.billysbakerynyc.com and Two Little Red Hens, 1652 2nd Avenue, www.twolittleredhens.com
The choices at every party and post dinner celebration are deliciously dizzying.
The science of baking and pastry making can be intimidating and astonishing.
But it seems most home bakers just jump in with both mixing blades spinning, starting with traditional family recipes handed down over the generations and tweaked, perhaps unwittingly, or then again, with a fierce determination to correct Nonni’s Old World recipe voyage to Brooklyn, or the room temperature differential, e.g. indoor climate change from Paris in the 1950’s to Manhattan in the “naughts.”
This reporter enjoyed a few too many goodies so far this season – and a couple of new discoveries too.
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| Lee Sims Homemade Chocolates |
A few favorite dessert creations included cream cheese cookies stuffed with peppermint, Noel de Bouche, Sickles Market Panettone Glassato from Italy’s Pasticceri Filippi http://sicklesmarket.com/, Lee Sims Chocolates (can’t but love the tag line: “Candy Making As An Art.”) “Owned and managed by the fourth generation of the same family” The homemade boutique chocolate, milk and dark, is some of the best around and a nice discovery: www.leesimschocolates.com
The next best thing to receiving and eating the desserts is a dessert cookbook. Can’t wait to try out the recipes in this gift: Just Mini Desserts, Quick and Easy mini dessert recipes for Casual Entertaining by Robert Zollweg http://retail.libbey.com/Products/Desserts/Just-Mini-Desserts-Recipe-Book
A sure fire route to dessert success is Amanda Hesser’s, The Essential New York Times Cookbook and her latest, Food52 Cookbook: 140 Winning Recipes from Exceptional Home Cooks http://tiny.cc/etdyd
For 52 weeks, Amanda and Merrill Stubs, co author, asked home cooks to submit their favorite recipes, then Amanda and Merrill prepared their choices for best recipes, then offered their selections for their web site and blog readers to vote on, compiled from the home cooks submissions. Double Chocolate Expresso Cookies and Chocolate Bundt Cake are temptation enough to get this cooking experience.
Another sweet discovery was home cook, Joanne Morehead’s 7 Layer Bars – one mouthpop of these complex-nuanced goodies and “dessert culture addict” doesn’t seem too fierce a club membership to have.
When asked how she came about this nutty, chocolaty, sweet treat (testing the theory that perhaps it came by way of culinary angels) Joanne generously wrote her witty, love-filled story behind the 7 Layer Bars, making the whole experience all the more tantalizing:
… About 10 years ago, a friend made these and gave me the recipe. I started making them and discovered that the graham cracker crumbs stuck to the pan so I started using parchment paper, which made all the difference. Also, they were hard to cut at room temp do I started refrigerating them so that they are firm and don't squish under the pressure of the knife. The original recipe called for 12 oz of graham cracker crumbs, 4 tbs of butter and 1 cup each of the nuts, chips and coconut. Over the years, I added more to my taste -- which anyone can do according to what they like. I bring them on Thanksgiving to my Mother-in-law's house and she doesn't put them out with the rest of the desserts but hides them as soon as I hand them over. It's become a joke in the family. One by one they ask about the bars and start looking around to my Mother-in-law's dismay!
Joanne Morehead’s 7 LAYER BARS
6 TBS UNSALTED BUTTER CUT INTO PATS (USE STICK BUTTER)
14 oz GRAHAM CRACKER CRUMBS
1 CUP BUTTERSCOTCH CHIPS
1 1/2 CUPS CHOCOLATE CHIPS
2 CUPS SWEETENED COCONUT
1 1/2 CUP CHOPPED PECANS (I USE PECANS, BUT YOU CAN ALSO USE WALNUTS) PUT IN PLASTIC BAG AND CRUSH WITH MALLET UNTIL YOU LIKE THE SIZE OF THE NUTS)
1 CAN (14 OZ) SWEETENED CONDENSED MILK
PREHEAT OVEN TO 350 DEGREES THEN LOWER TO 325 WHEN OVEN IS HOT AND YOU PUT IN THE PAN.
USE A 9” SQUARE PAN. LINE PAN WITH PARCHMENT PAPER, BOTTOM AND SIDES! DO NOT SKIP THE PARCHMENT PAPER OR YOU WILL BE SORRY. ARRANGE THE PATS OF BUTTER IN PAN AND BAKE IN OVEN UNTIL MELTED; REMOVE PAN AND LAYER INGREDIENTS AS FOLLOW: GRAHAM CRACKER CRUMBS – PUSH CRUMBS INTO BUTTER UNTIL THE LAYER IS STUCK TO BUTTER UNIFORMLY. ADD COCONUT, BUTTERSCOTCH CHIPS, CHOCOLATE CHIPS, PECANS; PUSH EACH LAYER DOWN INTO THE PREVIOUS ONE. I USE RUBBER GLOVES TO DO THIS BECAUSE I’M TIRED OF BURNING MY WRISTS! THEN POUR/DRIBBLE CONDENSED MILK IN A THIN LAYER ONTO THE TOP UNTIL ENTIRE PAN IS COVERED.
BAKE FOR 1/2 HOUR. COOL IN PAN ON RACK AND THEN IN REFRIGERATOR UNTIL VERY FIRM. (THIS WILL MAKE IT EASIER TO CUT INTO SQUARES.) TURN PAN OVER AND PEEL PARCHMENT PAPER FROM BOTTOM. (THANK YOU MARTHA STEWART) THEN CUT INTO SQUARES. NOW WATCH YOUR WAISTLINE GROW!
PS: BUY 2 CANS OF SWEETENED CONDENSED MILK BECAUSE YOU GET TWO BATCHES FROM A BOX OF GRAHAM CRACKER CRUMBS, CHOCOLATE CHIPS AND BUTTER SCOTCH CHIPS.
THERE IS ALWAYS EXTRA COCONUT SO YOU CAN GO NUTS WITH THAT. I BUY THE PECANS AND CHOCOLATE CHIPS FROM COSTCO, SO I ALWAYS HAVE EXTRA TO PLAY AROUND WITH. UNFORTUNATELY, YOU BARELY GET ENOUGH BUTTERSCOTCH CHIPS TO MAKE TWO BATCHES SO SMACK ANY HANDS THAT TRY TO EAT THEM WHILE YOU’RE BAKING!
Extraordinary Desserts from Hamptons and Long Island Homegrown Cookbook (available 2012)
Cuvée Bistro & Bar, Greenporter Hotel
Chef Deborah Pittorino
326 Front Street, Greenport, NY
Farm Stand Strawberry Rhubarb Tartelettes
Serves 8
Crust:
3/4 c. plain flour
pinch of salt
3 oz. unsalted butter, slightly softened
2 egg yolks
1 tbsp. cold water
1 1/2 oz. caster sugar
Sift the flour and salt into a pile on a cold work surface, and make a well in the center. Add the butter, egg yolks, water, and sugar to the well, and use the fingertips of one hand to work them together into a rough paste. The mixture should resemble scrambled eggs.
Gradually work in the flour with your fingertips to bind the mixture into smooth dough. Press together lightly, and form into a ball. Wrap in plastic wrap, and chill for about 30 minutes before use.
Filling:
2 c. fresh strawberries, sliced and divided
4 tbsp. cassis
2 c. fresh rhubarb, diced
2 c. fresh rhubarb, diced
1/4 c. sugar
1/2 tbsp. freshly grated lemon zest
1 1/2 tbsp. cornstarch
1 tbsp. rose syrup
Hull and slice the berries. Irregular pieces work best, as they look better than a bunch of nearly identical slices. Mash a few of the berries, if you wish, and toss them with the remaining berries in a large bowl. Add the cassis on top of the berries, and stir gently to coat them. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
Combine the rhubarb, sugar, and lemon zest in a large nonreactive saucepan. Let stand for 20 minutes. Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium-low heat. Cook, stirring often, until the rhubarb is tender but still holds its shape (5 to 8 minutes).
Meanwhile, stir the cornstarch and rose syrup in a small bowl until smooth. Stir into the simmering fruit. Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture is clear and very thick (about 1 minute). Transfer to a bowl. Place a piece of plastic wrap directly on the surface, and refrigerate until chilled.
Strawberry-Balsamic Gastrique:
3/4 c. superfine sugar
3/4 c. hot water
1 c. strawberries, halved, hulled, and puréed
1/2 c. balsamic vinegar
In a medium saucepan, stir the sugar into the hot water until dissolved. Add the strawberries, and simmer over low heat for 30 minutes. Add the balsamic vinegar, increase the heat, and bring to a boil. Next, reduce the heat to low, and simmer until thickened (about 30 minutes). Let the gastrique cool, then strain it into a jar, cover, and refrigerate.
Assembling the tarts: Preheat the oven to 400°F. Divide the dough into eight balls. Roll out each ball to fill the tart pans. Remove excess dough from edges, reserving it for the lattice work. Divide the filling into eight sections and fill each pan. Be careful not to overfill, or it will spill out during baking. With the excess dough, create a lattice on top of the pie. Brush the lattice with melted butter, as it will prevent burning and give each tart a golden color.
Bake the tarts for 25 to 30 minutes until the crust is a golden color and the juices are bubbling. Remove from the oven, and place on a cooling rack. Allow the tarts to reach room temperature before serving. Serve each tart with some vanilla ice cream and a drizzle of the Strawberry-Balsamic Gastrique.
The Lake House
Chef Matt Connors
240 West Main Street, Bay Shore, NY www.thelakehouserest.com
Warm Berry Cobbler with Lemon Verbena Ice Cream
Serves 4-6
Cobbler Filling:
1 pt. strawberries, stemmed and quartered
1 pt. blueberries
1 tbsp. fresh mint leaves, sliced
1/4 c. sugar
1 tbsp. cornstarch
1/2 vanilla bean, scraped
Mix all of the ingredients in bowl, and marinate for 1 hour or more.
Cobbler Topping:
3 1/3 c. all-purpose flour
1/4 c. sugar
2 tbsp. plus 1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
12 tbsp. cold butter, diced
1 1/3 c. heavy cream
Place all of the ingredients except the cream in a food processor, and blend for 30 seconds. Add the cream, and blend until the mixture forms a ball. Chill for at least 1 hour. Roll into golf-ball size balls and flatten into disks with the palm of your hand.
To Finish Cobbler:
heavy cream
raw sugar
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Put the fruit mixture in 6-oz. ramekins. Top each ramekin with one disk of topping. Brush with a little heavy cream, and sprinkle with raw sugar. Bake for 20 minutes or until bubbling and golden.
Ice Cream:
1 1/2 c. whole milk
1 1/2 c. heavy cream
7/8 c. (or 14 tbsp.) sugar
1/2 c. loosely packed lemon verbena leaves
6 egg yolks
Combine the milk and cream, and add half of the sugar to the mixture along with the verbena leaves. Bring the mixture to a simmer. Whisk together the eggs and the remaining sugar. Slowly add the simmered milk mixture to the egg mixture, whisking. When everything is together, add it back to the milk pot and simmer, stirring, for another 3 to 4 minutes or until thickened enough to coat the back of a spoon. Strain through a sieve and cool completely. Freeze according to ice cream machine directions.
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| Too delicious Warm Berry Cobbler, The Lake House |
Had enough desserts? Hardly.
The Food Network Names its Best 10 Dessert Recipes of 2011:
The Top-Ten picks include Pumpkin Cheesecake, Southern Red Velvet Cake (two different iterations made the list—cake and cupcakes!) and Peach Cobbler.
(Personally love the reader comment about using eggnog in the bread pudding recipe.)
Curiously, there’s always room for dessert… Enjoy the sweet days of holiday confections. May it last till Valentine’s Day chocolate celebrations of love greet the sweet tooth fairy.
Here are Marissa's Amazing Rum Balls. Maybe we can tease the recipe from her....
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| Marissa's Holiday Rum Balls! |
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