Nan-e Barbari (Persian Flatbread)

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NAN-E BARBARI

I know - I've been going a bit bread and baking crazy on here.  But THIS!  Nan-e barbari, more commonly known as Persian flatbread, is a very thick flatbread that is popular in Iran.  It is similar to Indian naan in shape and cooking technique, but is pretty unique and spectacular with it's grooves and coating of nigella and sesame seeds.  I call it "statement bread".

Nan-e barbari requires 2 rises but literally cooks within 20 minutes on a well heated stone in the oven.  There is also a paste that the bread is coated with called a roomal that gives the bread its crispy texture and golden brown color.  This flatbread is most commonly eaten as a breakfast bread, served with a type of feta cheese, clotted cream or jam, but I love it fresh out of the oven with dinner - to scoop up a curry or stew or hug some grilled kebabs.

I use a preheated pizza stone to bake this, but you can also use a cookie sheet.  Just know that you might not get as nice a crunch on the bottom of the flatbread.

Enjoy!

For the Dough:
1 packet active dry yeast
1 ¾ cup lukewarm water
2 teaspoons sugar
3 ¾ - 4 cups bread flour (plus more for coating pizza peel)
2 1/2 teaspoons salt

For the Paste (Roomal):
2 teaspoons all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup water
pinch of sugar

Garnish: nigella seeds and/or white sesame seeds

In the bowl of a mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment, add the yeast, water and sugar and let stand for 10 minutes until it begins to foam.  If it doesn’t begin to foam at this point, your yeast may be bad and the dough may not rise properly.  With the mixer on low, slowly add the bread flour and salt until a shaggy dough forms.  Put the mixer on medium and let knead until a soft, smooth dough has formed (5 to 7 minutes).  You may get a little sticking to the bottom - that’s ok!  Remove the dough from the mixing bowl, form in to a ball and place in a lightly greased bowl to rise in a warm area, covered, for about an hour or until it doubles in size.

Once the dough has risen, punch the dough down and separate into two equal pieces. Shape each dough into a long oval.  Place each oval on a parchment lined cookie sheet and cover with plastic wrap to allow to rise for another 30 - 45 minutes.  

While the dough is on its second rise, preheat the oven to 450° F and allow the pizza stone to heat for 30 minutes or more on the bottom shelf. 

You can also start making the roomal. In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine all of the roomal ingredients and bring to a light boil.  Reduce heat to low and cook until the paste coats the back of your spoon and has deepened in color.  Remove from heat and set aside.

If you have a pizza peel/paddle, lightly coat with flour and place one of the pieces of dough on it (you can also use the back of a cookie sheet or a cookie sheet that has no raised sides). Make sure the dough can easily slide off so you have no issues when transferring it to the hot pizza stone.  Press down on the dough and release some of the air.  Using the side of your pinky finger, gently press down the length of the dough to make the grooves, trying not to go all the way through the dough.  Do this about 4-5 times. You can also go back over the grooves with your fingers if you want a deeper indent - up to you!  Brush the dough all over with the roomal and sprinkle with the nigella seeds and/or sesame seeds.  

Gently slide the bread on to the preheated pizza stone and cook in the oven for about 15 - 20 minutes until golden brown.  While the first piece of dough is cooking, prepare the other half.  
Barbari is best served warm, or at room temp. 

Nankhatai (South Asian-ish Shortbread Biscuits)

NANKHATAI (SOUTH ASIAN-ISH SHORTBREAD BISCUITS)

I know, I say South Asian-ish here!  I grew up eating these beautiful, cardamom-flecked shortbread biscuits, and I mainly ate them with the East African half of my family (go figure!).  The whole time I thought these were South Asian, but when I went to research a bit more about them, I found out differently.  The name for these cookies, nankhatai, is actually derived from Persian "naan", meaning bread, and Afghani "kulcha-e-khataye", meaning biscuit.

I love that!  So many foods commingle and cross culture, and I'm happy these did.  They remind me of childhood days, nibbling at the dinner table with my extended family chatting away in no less than three different languages (unfortunately, I only understood English).

After many, many tries, I got these right.  They are buttery, crumbly, more biscuit than cookie and have what my mom calls this "warming" sensation when you eat them (which I call loads of butter...).  Enjoy!

Ingredients

Yields 1 dozen cookies (about 2” diameter)

1 ½ sticks unsalted butter, room temperature

½ cup plus 2 tablespoons powdered sugar

2 tablespoons plain yogurt

1 ¼ cups all purpose flour

¾ cup semolina flour

¾ teaspoon ground cardamom

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon baking soda

Crushed pistachios, for garnish

Preheat the oven for 375° F.

Using a stand or hand mixer, cream together the butter and powdered sugar until fluffy.  Add in the yogurt.  In a separate bowl, whisk together the flours, cardamom, salt and baking soda.  With the stand mixer running, add the flour mixture in 3 increments, scraping down between each.  Stop when all of the flour is added.

The mixture is very crumbly, so you have to work it a bit to form the cookies.  I like to use an ice cream scoop or spoon to get even amounts, and, rather than roll them between my palms, I pat them into round, semi-flat shapes.

Place cookies on a parchment-lined baking sheet and mark each with an X using a knife.  Bake for 20 minutes, and let the cookies cool before removing.  Garnish with crushed pistachios.

Yemen Honeycomb Bread (Khaliat Nahal)

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YEMEN HONEYCOMB BREAD (KHALIAT NAHAL)

For the last few months, I've been feeling a bit overwhelmed by the political climate and a tenor of hate that's been seeping into conversations, news, social media, everywhere.  It feels like the floodgates have opened, and bigotry has been given a safe space to be expressed. 

A bit heavy, I know, but I can't deny how I've been feeling.

Though for sure, everyone is welcome at my table (it's my go to hashtag :) and that's plain to see in all of the recipes and stories I have here on my blog, as of late, I’ve been cooking food from the (now) 6 banned Muslim countries.  Some dishes are as familiar as an old friend; others are a tentative handshake with someone new.  From Irani Javaher Polow, a jeweled rice which comingles in my memory with Pakistani rice dishes from my childhood, to Yemeni Khaliat Nahal, honeycomb bread rolls filled with cheese and glazed with a sweet, orange blossom-scented syrup (recipe here!), each dish is a bit of resistance.  I’m doing it in part to raise awareness, but it's truly my way through: my personal means of processing this concerted exclusion. Of my parents.  Of me.  Of my daughter. Of so many others.

Ingredients

Yields 32 rolls

For the bread:

¼ cup lukewarm water

1 (¾) ounce packet yeast (active dry or instant)

¾ cup milk

7 tablespoons butter, softened, divided

¼ cup sugar

2 teaspoons salt

1 egg, beaten

3 ¾ to 4 cups all purpose flour

1 (8 oz) package of cream cheese, cut into 32 squares

1 tablespoon black and white sesame seeds, for garnish

For the glaze:

1/3 cup water

1 cup sugar

1 tablespoon honey

1 tablespoon orange blossom water

For the rolls: I make this recipe in a stand mixer, but you can easily do this by hand.  Start with the lukewarm water in the bowl of the stand mixer and sprinkle the packet of yeast over.  Mix gently to combine and let sit 5 minutes or so while you prepare the other ingredients.

In a medium pot, bring the milk up to a simmer and add 5 tablespoons of the butter, the sugar and salt.  Simmer for a minute, just until the butter melts and remove from the heat.  This should not be scalding, so let it cool for a bit before adding to the mixture.

Add the egg and 3 ¾ cups of flour to the yeast mixture and mix together with a fork.  Slowly pour in the milk mixture, using the fork to make a shaggy dough.  Using the dough hook attachment (or your hands), knead for about 3-4 minutes.  The dough should be soft and a bit tacky but should NOT stick to your hands.  If it's sticky, keep adding flour in tablespoon increments until you have a non-sticky consistency.  When you pull up the dough hook, the dough should slide right off.

Grease a 12 inch pie pan or cast iron skillet.  Divide the dough into 32 even-sized pieces. Flatten each piece and place a cream cheese square in the middle.  Form in to ball and place in the greased pan.  Once all the balls have been rolled,  cover with a kitchen towel and let rise for 1 hour.  Preheat oven to 375˚ F.

After the rise, brush the rolls generously with the remaining 2 tablespoons of melted butter, sprinkle with sesame seeds, and bake for 25 to 30 minutes.

For the glaze: Add the water and sugar to a saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-heat (until the sugar has dissolved).  Remove from the heat and whisk in the honey and orange blossom water.  Let cool while the rolls are baking.

Once the rolls are done, pour the glaze over the rolls while they are hot.  Enjoy!

Nigella + Sesame Seed Granola

NIGELLA + SESAME SEED GRANOLA

In keeping up with the New Year's goals of choosing healthier options, I’ve been craving granola a lot lately.  While I was in Venice of all places over the holidays, I had the most incredible (yes, incredible) granola I've ever tasted.  I wanted to recreate it and thought, well, how hard is it really to make my own granola!?  Why have I never thought about doing this before?  So, I grabbed a bunch of ingredients that I thought would recreate the flavors of that granola and decided to try this at home!  And let me tell you……It’s soooo easy.

The trick to a good granola is to cook it low and slow. The hardest part is really choosing your ingredients!  There are so many choices out there. I did a simple granola recipe below (albeit with nigella and sesame seeds) but next time I may add some rice puffs to the mix and maybe switch it up with dried strawberries.  It really depends on your flavor preference.  Also, if you prefer a granola that has more clusters, you can up the maple syrup and not mix the granola as much during cooking.  If you want very cluster-y granola, you can stir in some egg whites before cooking to achieve that.   

This is not like any other granola I've tasted.  It's nutty, sweet and roasted in flavor but with the sharp bite of the nigella seeds.  It is BEST made with ghee (does anything taste worse with butter?), but a neutral oil works well here too.  Enjoy!

Ingredients

Yields 7 cups

1 cup raw, unsalted cashews

3 cups organic rolled oats

1 cup sliced almonds

1 cup shredded, unsweetened coconut

¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons sesame seeds (white, black or a combo)

3 tablespoons nigella seeds

3 tablespoons maple, palm or light brown sugar

½ teaspoon kosher salt

½ cup pure maple syrup

¼ cup ghee or neutral oil (grapeseed, canola or sunflower)

1 cup dried fruit, diced (optional)

Preheat oven to 300° F.  Place a layer of parchment on a large cookie sheet and set aside.

I like to grind up some of the ingredients first for a more even texture.  To the bowl of a food processor, add the cashews and pulse a few times.  Add in the oats and almonds and pulse until you get an even, crumbly texture.

In a large bowl, combine the oat mixture with the coconut, sesame seeds, nigella seeds, sugar and salt.  Stir to combine all of the ingredients.  Pour the maple syrup and oil over the raw granola.  Mix until evenly coated and taste to make sure everything tastes to your liking. 

Spread the mixture on the prepared baking sheet evenly and transfer to the oven. Stir the mixture every 10-15 minutes or so to make sure everything is browning evenly.  It should take about 40-45 minutes total, depending on your oven.  If you are adding in the dried fruit, add it in during the last 10-15 minutes of cooking so it gets a bit drier and doesn’t make the granola soggy during storage.

Remove from the oven and let dry out on a rack until cool. Store in a mason jar; it should last for about 2 weeks or so.

Enjoy with yogurt and fresh fruit or as a cereal with almond milk!

Breaking the Fast After Yom Kippur

BREAKING THE FAST AFTER YOM KIPPUR

Yom Kippur is arguably the most important holiday in the Jewish calendar.  It marks the end of the 10 day celebration of Rosh Hashanah (Jewish New Year) and translates to the “Day of Atonement”.  The day is set aside to atone for the sins of the past year with a complete 25- hour fast.  The fasting begins just before sunset the day before and goes until the next evening.  At sunset on Yom Kippur, you have a “Breaking Fast” meal that usually includes all types of breads, cured meats and food that were cooked the day before since during fasting you are not allowed to do any work (even cooking)! 

With this in my mind, I thought about easy breaking fast food, a homemade coconut bread recipe as well as some different ways to do lox.

CONCORD GRAPE HAND PIES 

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These are beyond easy!  This is grape season, so just halve and remove the seeds from the sweetest grapes you can find.  Roll out a sheet of homemade puff pastry and use a pastry cutter or overturned glass to cut out rounds.  Place a small mount of the halved grapes in each circle.  Fold the circle in half to make a semi circle and use a fork to press the edges down tightly.  Paint with an egg wash and bake at 400° F for about 25 minutes.  Done!

PAN DE COCO (WITH A TWIST)

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Pan de coco is a Dominican bread that's usually a bit more flat.  I combined it with my basic bread roll recipe, adding yeast to make it fluffy and light.  Think a Parker House roll and Pan de Coco had a baby.  It's soooo good.

Yields 16 rolls

¼ cup lukewarm water

(1) ¾ ounce packet yeast (active dry)

3 tablespoons butter, plus more for greasing and melting

¼ cup honey

2 ½ teaspoons salt

1 cup coconut milk

1 egg, beaten

4 – 4 ¼ cups all purpose flour

½ cup coconut flakes

Flake salt, for sprinkling

I make this recipe in a stand mixer, but you can easily do this by hand.  Start with the lukewarm water in the bowl of the stand mixer and sprinkle the packet of yeast over.  Mix gently to combine and let sit 5 minutes or so while you prepare the other ingredients.

In a medium pot, melt the butter.  Add the honey, salt and coconut milk and heat gently until warmed through and uniform.  Remove from the heat.  (It shouldn’t simmer but should be warm to the touch.)

Add the egg and 3 ¾ cups of flour to the yeast mixture and mix together with a fork.  Slowly pour in the milk mixture, using the fork to make a shaggy dough.  Using the dough hook attachment (or your hands), knead for about 3-4 minutes.  The dough should be soft and a bit tacky but should NOT stick to your hands.  If it's sticky, keep adding flour in tablespoon increments until you have the right, non-sticky consistency.

For rolls, divide the dough into 16 even-sized balls and place in a heavily greased, 9-inch cake tin.  Cover with a kitchen towel and let rise 45 minutes.  Preheat oven to 375˚ F.

After the rise, brush the rolls generously with melted butter, sprinkle with coconut flakes and bake for 30 to 35 minutes.  Brush again with butter once out of the oven and sprinkle with a little salt.  Enjoy hot!

LOX 2 WAYS

Photo: Food & Wine

Asian Salt & Sweet Lox

1 lb salmon filet, trimmed and all pin bones removed
1 cup soy sauce
1 tablespoon dark brown sugar
1/4 cup mirin
1 or 2 fresh chilies (thai, serrano, depends on your heat tolerance), roughly chopped
1 inch fresh ginger, roughly chopped
1 bunch cilantro, roughly chop (1/2 for cure, 1/2 for creme fraiche)
1 cup crème fraiche
1/2 lime, juiced

Place salmon in a large ziploc bag on a cookie (just in case the bag leaks).  Whisk together the soy sauce, sugar and mirin until the sugar dissolves.  Pour the mixture in the bag and add in the chilies, ginger and cilantro.  Let as much air out of the bag as possible and seal.  Put another cookie sheet on top and weight down with cans or something else heavy.  Place in the fridge and let sit for 24-48 hours.  After, rinse the filet under cold water until the filet is clean.  Pat dry with paper towels and let it dry out a bit in the fridge before slicing. 

Chop the remaining cilantro a bit more finely.  In a bowl, mix together the crème fraiche with the lime juice and finely chopped cilantro.  Slice the salmon with a sharp knife, serve with thecrème fraiche and enjoy!

Traditional Lox

1 lb salmon filet, trimmed and all pin bones removed
1/3 cup kosher salt
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 bunch fresh dill, finely chopped
3 lemons, zested
2 tablespoons smoke powder (optional)

Place salmon in a large ziploc bag on a cookie (just in case the bag leaks).  Mix together the remaining ingredients.  Pat the mixture onto both sides of the salmon.  Let as much air out of the bag as possible and seal.  Put another cookie sheet on top and weight down with cans or something else heavy.  Place in the fridge and let sit for 24-48 hours.  After, rinse the filet under cold water until the filet is clean.  Pat dry with paper towels and let it dry out a bit in the fridge before slicing.  Enjoy!

Peak Berry Season at the Market

PEAK BERRY SEASON AT THE MARKET

If you can ignore the sweltering heat, this is the best time of year at the farmers' market.  Why, might you ask?  Because it is the only time that all the berries overlap each other in the season, not to mention all of the heirloom tomatoes, stone fruit and the beginning of chili pepper season.  I went to my local greenmarket over the weekend (it was sooo hot out!) and was surprised to see strawberries still available - that doesn’t happen often!  But, always, there is a short window where blueberries, blackberries, raspberries and cherries come together.  This is the time that I make a mad rush to get a mixed berry jam going and, of course, possibly a new tart recipe.  

It’s also the time that I start to think about preserving, whether it be canning tomato sauce, pickling cherry peppers, freezing the berries, or creating syrups or shrubs to enjoy in a cocktail later!   Below are some recipes I may be bringing back for this limited berry season!  Enjoy!

SUGAR PLUM & CURRANT TORTE

MY BREAKFAST CLAFOUTIS

BLUEBERRY, RAW HONEY & COCONUT FOOL

BLUEBERRY-HIBISCUS SMASH

Mother's Day Breakfast in Bed

MOTHER'S DAY BREAKFAST IN BED

There’s nothing better than enjoying breakfast in bed, especially if you weren’t the one that prepared it!  So why not treat mom this Sunday to a lovely, lazy morning with a deliciously home cooked meal! (Anybody from my house getting the hint?? :)  As a child, this was my favorite way to spoil my mom (with Dad’s help….sometimes).  I put together a bunch of my favorite breakfast/brunch recipes below to help you plan your Mother’s Day feast!

HEIRLOOM TOMATO SHAKSHUKA

FLATBREAD WITH SMOKED TROUT, RADISHES & HERBS

Photo: Bon Appetit

MY FAVORITE CHAI

BLUEBERRY CREPES WITH VANILLA ICE CREAM

Photo: Flourishing Foodie

ROASTED ASPARAGUS WITH POACHED EGG AND LEMON MUSTARD

Photo: Food52

SPICED RICOTTA HOTCAKES WITH POMEGRANATE MOLASSES

BUBBLE TEA OATMEAL (!)

Photo: Two Red Bowls

RHUBARB, RASPBERRY AND ORANGE FLOWER WATER GALETTE

Photo: Cannelle et Vanille

PINEAPPLE COCONUT WATER

Photo: 101 Cookbooks

A Bread Dough You Can Use for Everything

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A BREAD DOUGH YOU CAN USE FOR EVERYTHING

Lately, I've been mildly obsessed with baking my own bread and not just your basic quick bread: the real stuff with yeast and what not.  It always seemed so time-consuming - brioches with 5 steps and 2 rising times, cinnamon buns that proof in the refrigerator overnight, sourdoughs with starters, weighing ingredients, waiting for them to rise....(I hope I haven't talked you out of reading on!)

Well, this recipe is none of those.  It's what I call my "universal" bread dough - a simple bread dough that requires only (1) 45-minute rise and can be used to make everything from soft, buttery, fluffy rolls, to cheese-stuffed buns or even pull-apart bread.  It's weeknight bread.  It's weekend-morning-made-THAT-morning bread.  It's guests-are-about-to-arrive bread.  It's everything.

I'm going to share the basic recipe and then some thoughts for ways to transform it.  I'm still experimenting myself with it...like every few days, so expect some more versions of this on Insta!

Yields 16 rolls

¼ cup lukewarm water

(1) ¾ ounce packet yeast (active dry)

1 cup milk

¼ cup honey

3 tablespoons butter, plus more for greasing and melting

2 teaspoons salt

1 egg, beaten

3 ¾ to 4 cups all purpose or "00" flour*

Flake salt, for sprinkling

I make this recipe in a stand mixer, but you can easily do this by hand.  Start with the lukewarm water in the bowl of the stand mixer and sprinkle the packet of yeast over.  Mix gently to combine and let sit 5 minutes or so while you prepare the other ingredients.

In a medium pot, bring the milk up to a simmer and add the honey, butter and salt.  Simmer for a minute or two, just until the butter melts and remove from the heat.

Add the egg and 3 ¾ cups of flour to the yeast mixture and mix together with a fork.  Slowly pour in the milk mixture, using the fork to make a shaggy dough.  Using the dough hook attachment (or your hands), knead for about 3-4 minutes.  The dough should be soft and a bit tacky but should NOT stick to your hands.  If it's sticky, keep adding flour in tablespoon increments until you have the right, non-sticky consistency.

For rolls, divide the dough into 16 even-sized balls and place in a greased, 9-inch cake tin.  Cover with a kitchen towel and let rise 45 minutes.  Preheat oven to 375˚ F.

After the rise, brush the rolls generously with melted butter and bake for 30 to 35 minutes.  Brush again with butter once out of the oven and sprinkle with a little flake salt.  Enjoy hot!

*For the rolls, I used all purpose flour, but for the savoury buns, I used 00 flour, which yielded a more delicate, fluffier texture.

Some fun options:

(1) Before baking, but after brushing with butter, sprinkle with spices!  Thing za'atar, an everything bagel spice blend (!!), furikake, simple nigella seeds...

(2) To make the savoury buns, roll out the dough into an 18"x12" rectangle and place it in front of you with one of the longer sides near you (a horizontal rectangle).  Mix together a stick of unsalted, room temperature butter with a half packet of softened, Boursin cheese.  You could also use regular cream cheese and then add in your own garlic, roasted garlic, chives, other herbs.  Spread this mixture all over the dough and sprinkle with a bit of salt.  You can also use other cheeses here by themselves or in addition to the cream cheese - mozzarella, a mexican blend....Roll the dough, starting with long side near you to form a cylinder, and then place in the freezer for five to ten minutes to make it easier to cut.  Use a serrated knife and cut the rolls into 1 ½-inch thick rolls.  Place cut side down in the greased tin.  Let rise an hour.  Brush with butter and bake at 375˚ F for closer to 40 minutes, until the buns are uniformly golden brown. 

(3) For pull apart bread, roll into a 6"x14" rectangle and cut into 12 pieces.  Spread the butter / cheese mixture on 11 of the pieces.  Stack layers horizontally in a parchment-lined loaf pan, ending with the non-buttered piece to book-end.  Cover and let rise.  Spread the remaining butter-cheese mixture on top with a sprinkle of salt before baking.  Bake at 375˚ F for closer to 35 to 40 minutes until golden brown.  Cover towards the end of baking if the cheese is browning too much.  (By the way, the photo to the side is a pull-apart cinnamon scone bread, but just wanted to give everyone an idea for what it could look like!)

Enjoy!!

Not-So-Traditional Irish Soda Bread

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NOT-SO-TRADITIONAL IRISH SODA BREAD

I love indulging in a warm, baked-from-scratch loaf of bread.  But let's be honest: making it at home can be a long (see: tedious) task what with the letting the yeast rise, punching down, rising again...but that's why the quick bread was invented!  Quick breads are basically any breads that don't use yeast to rise - like banana bread.  With St. Patty’s Day just around the corner, I thought a take on the traditional Irish soda bread would be fun.

Irish soda bread is usually made with a few simple ingredients: flour (wheat or white), baking soda, buttermilk and salt. Once you have those basics, you can expand with any seeds, citrus, dried fruits you want to create a not-so-traditional soda bread.  This recipe is a slightly modified version of one from a great friend/chef, Tamsin Kelly, who makes this with her family for St. Patrick's Day.  I love the combination of caraway seeds, orange zest, and dried currants in this recipe, but you can substitute however you like (raisins, fennel seeds, etc…)!  Enjoy!

Yields (1) 9-inch cake tin 

4 cups plus 3 - 4 tablespoons all purpose flour
3 tablespoons white sugar
¾ teaspoon salt
1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
½ stick unsalted butter, cold and cubed
1 ½ cups buttermilk*
1 large egg, beaten
1 cup dried currants
2 tablespoons caraway seeds
zest of 1 orange

Preheat the oven to 350º F.  

To the bowl of food processor, add the 4 cups plus 3 tablespoons of flour, sugar, salt and baking soda.  Pulse until mixed.  Sprinkle the cold, cubed butter on top and pulse until the mixture resembles a coarse meal. 

Whisk the buttermilk with the egg and slowly add to the flour mixture, pulsing until the dough forms.  Pulse in the currants, caraway seeds and orange zest.  If the dough is too sticky, add another tablespoon of flour.  Do not overmix or it will toughen up!  You just want the flour blended, and you are ready to go.

I like to cook mine in a greased cast iron skillet or you can use a greased, 9-inch round cake tin.  Score an “X” in the dough (about 1/2” thick) and place in the middle of the oven for 60 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.  Rotate the dough halfway through cooking.  When done, transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Make sure to enjoy with a nice, rich, salty Irish butter!!

*I hardly ever buy buttermilk for a recipe since I always have milk, vinegar and lemon juice laying around.  For every cup of milk, use 1 tablespoon distilled white vinegar or lemon juice.  Just mix together and let sit for about 5 to 10 minutes.  It will thicken slightly and look a bit curdled and then it's ready to go!

Spiced Ricotta Hotcakes with Pomegranate Molasses

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SPICED RICOTTA HOTCAKES WITH POMEGRANATE MOLASSES

During the week for breakfast, if I'm being honest, I slurp down a protein shake before I run out the door.  I know, I know - breakfast is the most important meal, but I just can't manage it.  I think about food constantly - carefully planning for weeknight dinners, quick lunches and the perfect snacks.  And, of course, then I go all out for big, family dinners, holidays, and....brunch!!

These hotcakes are my latest, favorite addition to the brunch arsenal, and are everything you could want in a pancake.  Light, fluffy and almost custard-y from the ricotta, and with a spiced nuance from cinnamon, cardamom and (yes!) a touch of black pepper.  They aren't too sweet, either, which, for me, is important when it comes to pancakes.  Pomegranate molasses adds a tart counterbalance to the creaminess, not to mention a touch of fruity sweetness.  Oh, and they could not be easier to make...Enjoy!

Yields 8 pancakes

1 cup flour

1 ½ tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ teaspoon ground cardamom

¼ teaspoon salt

pinch finely ground black pepper

1 cup ricotta cheese*

2/3 cup milk

2 eggs, separated

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

butter for griddle

powdered sugar, for sprinkling

pomegranate molasses, for drizzling

In one bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, cardamom, salt and pepper.  In another, mix thoroughly the ricotta, milk, egg yolks and vanilla.  Stir the dry ingredients into the wet until just combined. 

Lightly beat the egg whites and fold into the batter.  Let the batter rest about 5 minutes.

Heat a griddle or cast iron of medium-high heat.  Add butter to just coat the surface of the griddle.  Use a ¼ (dry) measuring cup to pour equal amounts of batter and work in batches.  Cook for 3 minutes on one side; flip and cook another 2 to 3 minutes on the other side.

Serve hot, sprinkled with powdered sugar and drizzled with pomegranate molasses.

*My ricotta was on the drier side.  If there is a lot of liquid, I suggest drain it a bit with some cheesecloth and a strainer to keep it from changing the batter texture.

Black Friday Brunch

BLACK FRIDAY BRUNCH

It’s the day after Thanksgiving, and your fridge is filled with leftovers!  You can't think about cooking another thing for the rest of the week.  This is my favorite time to be creative and come up with new ways to re-purpose the delicious meal from the night before (instead of just reheating the same old plate). And why not turn the dreaded Black Friday into a yummy brunch day with friends and family while having them help you clear out your fridge! 

THE TURKEY

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Photo: A Beautiful Mess

Everyone’s go-to the day after will most likely be a quick turkey sandwich or a one pot hash mix up, but there are so many other options out there to choose from!  The word brunch and "benedict" go hand-in-hand so why not a Turkey Benedict?  A traditional eggs benedict is your basic starting point and can be played up with whatever your leftover situation looks like. 

- Let's start with the base: instead of using English muffins on the bottom, use any leftover parker house rolls or biscuits.  If you’re feeling really adventurous with your Benedict, you can even use the stuffing as the base and just mold in to a patty and sear in a pan on the stove to give it a nice crust.  You could even crumb coat leftover mashed potatoes to make a patty. 

- Next comes the bacon.  Substitute here with your turkey or ham (or short ribs in my case!), if that’s what you cooked…or both if you’re like my family and completely over do Thanksgiving!  I like to warm them up in a sauce pan real quick. 

- Get some eggs poaching: bring a pot of water to boil, and once it comes to a rolling boil, add a couple tablespoons of white vinegar - this will help the eggs stay together once in the water.  Stir the water a bit and drop the egg in slowly, as close to the surface of the water as you can without poaching your fingers!

- The finishing touch: sauce.  Hollandaise with the runny yolk is what makes this dish, but I’ve come across some recipes that use the gravy instead (equally delicious). Warm up some of the leftover gravy in the pot and pour away once the benedict is assembled!

- For the vegetarian option, omit the turkey and add any leftover vegetable side you might have (think creamed spinach or roasted brussels sprouts).  The possibilities are endless with this dish, you can’t go wrong!

THE VEGETABLE SIDES

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Another no-brainer when it comes to brunch is quiche.  I love quiche because you can pretty much fill them with whatever ingredients you happen to have on hand…hopefully you over-shopped and have an extra pie crust in your freezer or some puff pastry lying around to make your life easier!  If not, use my crab and callaloo quiche recipe as a starting point for your crust and quiche procedure (think roasted brussels sprouts and bacon quiche, green bean casserole, stuffing and turkey quiche etc…) so easy!  Don’t have a ready made pie crust and don’t feel like dealing with homemade dough?  Try this frittata recipe and replace the butternut squash with your chosen Thanksgiving leftover (even better if you do have leftover squash!).

MASHED POTATOES & STUFFING

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Photo: Epicurious

Honestly, I can just eat the stuffing the next day right out of the fridge (and may even be too lazy to heat it up...) - it is so delicious and something I really only cook once a year…so why not!?  But if you want quick bites to initially satisfy your hungry brunch guests these recipes for croquettes, samosas and steam buns are the most genius way to combine stuffing, mashed potatoes and your turkey leftovers…who knew!?

CRANBERRY SAUCE

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What to do with the massive amount of leftover cranberry sauce?  Make some pancakes, waffles, or use my recipe for these breakfast clafoutis and substitute the cranberry sauce for the mixed berries, so delicious and compliments the season so well!  For a more savory recipe, try this cranberry and brie puffed pastry bite.  Also, how good would leftover cranberry sauce be, as is, on top of spiced potato samosas?!?

Enjoy the holiday everyone!

Squash Toast with Chipotle Honey + Pepitas

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SQUASH TOAST WITH CHIPOTLE HONEY + PEPITAS

Okay, so I looove avocado.  BUT (and I know this might offend some of you), I'm not the biggest avocado toast fan.  I know!  In the beginning, it was pretty cute, but now, it's become a phenomenon and a food trend (with an $8+ price tag to boot at most of my local Brooklyn spots)!  Beyond that, it's Fall - the season has changed and so a time has come to explore some alternatives for your morning breakfast, snack or however you might traditionally eat toast.

Squash is everywhere, so why not mash up some buttery, sweet squash and slather it on toast?  Let's go a step further.  Why not spice up the squash with some minced shallots and jalapeño, top with some chipotle-infused honey, throw in some cream cheese and roasted pepitas....I think you get my point here.  Toast can be so much more!

That's what this squash toast is all about.  Hitting highs and lows of flavor and texture.  You've got crunchy, creamy, sweet, savory, spicy (I could go on)....Enjoy!

Ingredients

Serves 4 to 6

For the chipotle honey:

½ cup honey

1-2 dried chipotle chilies (adjust to your heat tolerance)

For the squash toast:

Canola or olive oil

1 medium-sized butternut squash or kabocha (2 to 3 lb) squash, halved and seeded

salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

1 small shallot, minced

1 jalapeno, seeded, ribbed and minced

small handful of cilantro, finely chopped

juice of half a lime

8 to 10 slices white/wheat country bread, lightly toasted

1/2 to 2/3rd cup cream cheese or mascarpone

1/3rd cup pepitas, roasted

Procedure

For the chipotle honey:

Add honey and chilies to a small saucepan.  Cook on low for a half hour, remove from the heat, and let cool and infuse another 20 minutes.  Strain if you want to.

For the squash toast:

Preheat the oven to 425° F.

To roast the squash, generously coat with oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper and roast flesh side down for about 30-40 minutes until mashable.

Spoon out squash into a bowl and add shallots, jalapeño, cilantro, and lime juice.  Mix together and adjust seasoning.

To assemble the squash toasts, slather a tablespoon or so of cream cheese on the toasts.  Top with a spoonful of the squash mixture and sprinkle a few toasted pepitas on top.

These are best enjoyed with the squash is warm.