Our next book has been chosen- if you’d like to cook the book along with us, it’s Confections of a Closet Master Baker: One Woman’s Sweet Journey from Unhappy Hollywood Executive to Contented Country Baker by Gesine Bullock-Prado. We’re very excited to start it and resume our cooking the books with you.

As Gina mentioned, Ruth dresses up in various disguises to eat at the restaurants so she isn’t recognized. In each of her disguises, she finds out something about herself. I like that. I think that’s why I like changing my appearance so much (hair colors/cuts/styles, etc). Every time you change your looks drastically like that, you find something out you didn’t realize before. For example, if you think you’re a wallflower, and then dye your hair bright red… you might be surprised at how you really aren’t a wallflower. Or maybe it’s the hair that changes you? In Ruth’s case, it was wigs and makeup, in addition to a few smartly chosen wardrobe choices.

There are tons of wonderful food/meal recipes in this book, and I want to make many of them, but I haven’t had the opportunity to make them yet, I was planning on the risotto but Brianne did it. So I figured I’d go with a dessert. I had originally planned on making her New York cheesecake, but Jeanine beat me to it, and Gina took Nicky’s vanilla cake. *shakes fist* That’s what happens when you wait too long I guess. So what’s a baker to do?

I picked the Last-Minute chocolate cake. It sounded amazing, and I decided to make it for Valentine’s Day. I made some strawberry-vanilla cupcakes too, but I wanted to make something chocolate. This was the perfect recipe. I made it into cupcakes (of course) and frosted it with vanilla buttercream and topped it with chocolate hearts & Red Hot candies.

Last-Minute Chocolate Cake

• 4 ounces fine quality unsweetened chocolate
• ¾ stick (6 tablespoons) unsalted butter
• ¾ cup brewed strong black coffee
• 2 tablespoons Grand Marnier
• ¾ cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup all purpose flour
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 300° F.

Butter and flour a 9-inch-by-5-inch loaf pan (I used a muffin tin, duhhh).

Combine the chocolate, butter and coffee in the top of a double boiler or in a very heavy pot. Stir constantly over low heat until melted. Let the mixture cool for 15 minutes. Then add the Grand Marnier, sugar, egg and vanilla. Stir well.

Sift the flour, baking soda, and salt together, and add this to the chocolate mixture. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan (fill muffin tins anywhere from ½-¾ full) and bake for 30- 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean (I ended up getting 18 cupcakes, and they baked at 350° F for about 25-30 minutes).

Serves 6.

I omitted the Grand Marnier, only because I didn’t have it. So I added an extra tablespoon of coffee and 1 teaspoon orange extract. It came out awesome, and surprisingly went very well with the Red Hots! I used Baker’s brand unsweetened 1 oz. chocolate squares for the chocolate in the recipe. This is a really great dark, rich, chocolate-y cake with a great “extra” flavor. Some people who tasted it couldn’t quite put their finger on what it was exactly… but they all agreed it is super yum. All in all it was a really good chocolate cake recipe. I’ll definitely make it again. Maybe next time I’ll make it as a cake, and top it with vanilla ice cream as Ruth suggests in the book. Mmm. But also this would make an awesome layer cake if you double it.

I know, chocolate cake around Valentine’s Day is a kind of cliched thing to do, and boring, but have some pity on me. I promise I’ll be back soon with another recipe, less boring too. I won’t let you down, Cooking the Books… I won’t let you down!

Psst.. the cupcakes in the background? They’re made of cloth, handmade and hand-painted, and were a gift from my mother. If you’d like to know where to buy similar creations, shoot me an e·mail or ask me on Twitter!

New York Cheesecake
1 ½ cups graham cracker crumbs (about 6 ounces)
1 cup sugar
½ cup melted unsalted butter
1 ½ pounds cream cheese, preferable without gum, at room temperature
4 eggs
3 teaspoons vanilla
Grated zest of one lemon
2 cups sour cream
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Mix the graham crackers with ¼ cup of sugar and, melted butter and press into bottom and sides of a 9-inch ungreased spring-form pan. Chill while preparing filling.
Beat the cream cheese, ½ cup sugar, eggs, 2 teaspoons of the vanilla, and lemon zest until smooth. Pour into chilled crust and bake 50 minutes to an hour, or until the cheese is set and starting to turn golden in spots. Remove the oven (leave oven on) and cool for about 15 minutes until glossy and set.
Cool completely, cover, and chill at least 8 hours.
Serves 8

So, let’s see. This is my first post on Garlic & Sapphires. I am really enjoying the book so far. I got really into it quite early and blew through the first 100 pages or so. It’s been sitting on my nightstand waiting to be read for the last week and a half though, not gonna lie (did you see the part about 5 classes? Yeah.). So I’m hoping to get through some more of it sooner rather than later, because I’m really enjoying it. It’s definitely quite different from our last book, but interesting and a completely different point of view.

So the first recipe I came across was Ruth’s cheesecake. Well, no offense to Ruth, but sorry. My cheesecake is awesome. It’s the only one my husband will eat, and I’m not about to mess with what he calls perfection. So that recipe was out, immediately. I kept reading and came across something I’ve been dying to make… risotto. A little backstory on this part of the book- Ruth decided she was going to review Le Cirque restaurant. She went in complete disguise, as the “unknown diner.” The treatment she received from a supposed 4 star restaurant was appalling. Servers were rude, inconsiderate, and treated her like she didn’t exist. And her food was pretty crappy, from the sound of it. Not something I’d want if I was spending $40 on a plate of risotto. She returned later as herself, no disguise, and in a packed restaurant with people waiting forever, she was greeted by the owner, “The King of Spain is waiting at the bar, but your table is ready.” Well, needless to say, this visit was all bells and whistles and the finest of everything. She still took a star away. Good for her. She took a lot of shit for that review and taking away that star, but I love a woman who doesn’t give a shit and tells it like it is.

Anyway, so she talked about her adaptation of Le Cirque’s Lobster Risotto. She mentioned being a lobster snob (as am I) and refusing to do lobster at home where so much of the lobster would go to waste. Now, she also “demands” that you use homemade chicken stock. Well, sorry lady, but a 2 year old does not allow for that kind of time or energy. I bought chicken stock. It tasted fine. If you have the time, go for it. If I had some more time, I might try to do that next time, but for the first attempt, I was happy. She also replaced the rosemary in the dish with saffron. I used rosemary. I had it at home, and it was yummy.

But, for my first attempt, I was pleasantly surprised. I made it last night for dinner, with some shrimp that was sauteed in garlic and olive oil. It was really delicious. Madeline loved it, so that was a plus in my book. Brett ate his reheated and he said it was awesome. Thumbs up for me… he’s my own food critic, and can be a pretty snobby one. I attribute that to the amazing palette he has – he can taste such subtle differences that it’s a pretty awesome gauge when I make a flawless dish. So, here you go -

Risotto Primavera

You need:
1/2 pound asparagus
5-6 cups homemade chicken stock*
1/2 teaspoon saffron strands, crumbled**
3 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium red onion, diced
1 smallish carrot, diced
2 small zucchini, diced
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups Arborio rice
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup thawed frozen peas
1/2 cup Parmigiano cheese, plus extra for table
salt and pepper to taste

Then you should:
Cut the tips off the asparagus and set them aside. Dice the top half of the stalks (discard the rest) and set the diced asparagus aside.
Bring the stock to a steady simmer in a saucepan. Remove 1/4 cup, add saffron (*I used rosemary, which is fine) and set aside.
Melt 2 tablespoons of butter with the olive oil in a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Add the onion and cook for about 6 minutes, until it’s golden.
Add the carrot and cook for about 5 more minutes, followed by zucchini, diced asparagus and 1/2 tsp salt and cook for 5 minutes more.
Add the rice and stir until it’s completely coated with the oil. Add the wine and cook, stirring until it has evaporated, about 3 minutes. Now slowly add simmering stock to cover the rice and cook, stirring, until it’s evaporated. Repeat this, adding, stirring, evaporating, for about 20 minutes. Then add asparagus tips, peas (I didn’t use them), and the saffron (rosemary) stock and cook for another 5-10 minutes, until the rice is soft on the outside and still has a bit of a bite at the center. Add a few more spoonfuls of stock, remove pan from heat, and add the remaining 1 tsp of butter and the cheese.

Serves 4.

Ok, so I didn’t use the peas. Honestly, I forgot they were in the recipe when I was food shopping. Oh well. Like I said, I used rosemary instead of saffron and I used store-bought stock. It was delicious. It was a great consistency and I plan on warming some up for lunch today. It would serve 4 people as a big side dish, kind of like an appetizer size of meal. Brett and I had hearty portions with our shrimp, and Madeline had a mini bit of it. I have enough left for probably 2 sides for us for dinner tonight, if you want to gauge it that way.

So, I hope it’s less than a few weeks until I’m back with more from the book. Fingers crossed!! Happy cooking!

I was amused by this concept but I am not going to lie, I wasn’t in love with the book for the first few characters. Ruth is an AWESOME food writer. The woman can make frog legs and Sea Urchins sound absolutely delicious, however I just prefer my novels with a wee bit more plot (i.e. romance, sex, and a murder every now and then). So I was breezing along and then I met Ruth’s Character, Betty. Betty is an older plump woman who is essentially invisible to everyone that she comes across. She does little to take care of herself and you kind of get the feeling she’s like a cat lady. It reminded me of myself at various points in my life. I found my heart move a little slower and I felt sad as I thought about individuals around the world that are so often unseen and then I thought of myself. A few years ago I gained a ton of weight…directly after a wonderful bout with an eating disorder. I essentially went from skinny to fat in less than a year. What amazed me bout this time, was that in both bodies, I was completely and totally like Betty. It was easy to hide behind. I like to think it is all behind me, but as Ruth realized in putting on a costume, these characters stay inside of us, waiting for their time in the light, or just slowly dancing with each other as we go through life. I was pondering this and turning the pages quickly when I met Emily. Emily is essentially a bitch. There are no two ways around it. She is the girl we all hate. She is the girl that I hate. Ruth easily fit into this role so well that it scared her and to be honest it scared me. Emily was the opposite of Betty, and I did not like her at all. Yet, I realized, she is somewhere in me too. There are more than a few occasions I can think of where I have been too short, too rude, too emotionally turned off to realize the Betty’s of the world. And I did not like it one bit.

Each of these women met at a particularly interesting time during the month too. I was pondering my place of work, my place in my work, and my place in the world in general. Needless to say it was all a bit overwhelming. So I turned to the most obvious coping skill I could manage…I went on a diet. Vegan to be precise. It is always so much easier to cut out sugar, or fat, or meat than it is to really look at your life. As I read through these characters that Ruth was playing, especially Betty and Emily I decided to throw my hand in the air, leave it to She-Gods that are out there, and just have a little faith. In doing so I think I allowed some of my many characters to come together and somewhat integrate into themselves. As a symbol of my appreciation for Betty and Emily and Fat me Skinny me and Totally Clueless about life Me…I made dinner. Roast Chicken with roasted vegetables for Betty (a la Ruth), Arugula with White Beans (for skinny bitches everywhere) and then some “Vanilla Cake”…kind of healthy for Betty and Emily. I forgot to take pics of the chicken but here are some pics of the Invisible me’s and the Vanilla Cake!

“Nicky’s Vanilla Cake” Below is the original recipe. I actually don’t care for cake too much, and (Marilla Cover your ears)…I dont really like cupcakes to omuch either…not that I dislike them, I just prefer the denseness of cookies and brownies. But I really wanted to make something from Ruth’s book so I thought I would make this cupcake style. I should definately keep my day job but they tasted great! I put my changes in ().
• 1 cup (250mL) unsalted butter (I used Earth Balance Vegan, the dough was a bit curdled looking but it came together once I added the flour)
• 1 cup (250mL) sugar (3/4 C. Agave Negtar)
• 3 eggs
• 2 cups (500mL) all-purpose flour (I used 1 C. self rising and I sifted both of these)
• 2 tsp (10mL) baking powder
• 1 tsp (5mL) baking soda
• 1 tsp (5mL) salt
• 1 cup (250mL) sour cream (low fat)
• 2 tbsp (25mL) pure vanilla
1. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, blending well after each addition.
2. Mix together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add to butter mixture until combined. Add sour cream. Add vanilla. The batter will be thick.
3. Spoon batter into a buttered and floured bundt pan or angel food cake pan.
4. Bake in a preheated 350F (180C) oven for 40 to 50 minutes or until golden and a cake tester comes out dry. Cool cake in pan on a wire rack for 5 to 10 minutes. Turn cake out of pan and cool completely on rack. Makes one tube cake

Roast Chicken with Potatoes, Onions, and Garlic
Serves 4

1 farm-raised chicken, about 3 1/2 pounds
1 lemon
Olive oil
3 to 4 small Yukon Gold potatoes (or any other variety except russet), each peeled and cut into 8 pieces
1 large onion, cut into 6 pieces
3 to 4 cloves garlic, unpeeled
Salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Wash the chicken under running water and pat it dry. Remove and reserve the extra fat from the inside of the chicken. Very gently run your fingers between the breast and the skin, beginning from the neck end, loosening the skin from the breast on both sides. Being careful not to puncture the skin, place the excess fat beneath the skin (the chicken will then baste itself).

Puncture the lemon a few times with a fork, and place it inside the chicken.

Pour enough olive oil into a roasting pan to make a thin film over the bottom. Toss the potatoes, onion, and garlic into the pan and turn until they are covered with olive oil.

Pour a little olive oil over the chicken, and salt and pepper everything in the pan.

Roast for about 1 hour, or until an instant-read thermometer inserted into a thigh reads 170 degrees F. Remove the pan from the oven and let the chicken rest for 10 minutes.

Carve the chicken into serving pieces, surround them with the potatoes, onions, and garlic, and squeeze the lemon over the top.

YOWZA!

I have one word to describe my attempt at making gnocchi…”YOWZA!!” To say it was a disaster is an understatement. I believe the picture of my gnocchi speaks for itself. I knew going into this that this recipe was not going to be easy at all for a novice cook. But I figured what do I have to lose!

No- Nookie Gnocchi

• 2 russet potatoes
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon salt
• pinch freshly grated nutmeg
• 1 heaping cup flour, plus more for dusting
• salt
• freshly grated pepper
• freshly grated parmigiano

Put the potatoes in a pot with enough water to cover, bring to a boil, and cook, partially covered, until they are just tender, about 35-40 minutes. Remove the potatoes to a cutting board and peel with a paring knife as soon as you can stand to touch them, then run them through a potato ricer or food mill, spreading them out on a cutting board to cool completely.

Mix the egg, salt and nutmeg. Form the cooled potatoes into a mound and pour the egg mixture into it. Begin kneading the potato and egg mixture with your hands, adding the flour a little at a time, being careful not to overwork the dough.

When the flour is evenly combined with the potato and the dough is only a little sticky, divide it into 4 pieces.Roll each piece into a long, narrow tube like a garden snake and slice it crosswise into little soft pillows, each ½ inch wide. Rest each pillow on the tip of your thumb and impress it with the tines of a fork lightly dusted with flour, creating a ribbed surface for the sauce to cling to. Keep a bowl of flour nearby to dip the fork into, as it will become tacky- or better yet, keep some extra forks nearby.

Add the gnocchi about 10 at a time to a pot of salted boiling water. When they rise to the top, they’re done. Remove them to a serving bowl with a slotted spoon or spider and continue to cook in batches. Toss with the sauce and serve with grated parmigiano and freshly grated pepper.

Yield: about 6 dozen.

I am bummed but I am not going to dwell on a cooking failure when I am excited to start our next book!!

 I‘d like to leave off on a brighter note and share the gigantic gingerbread house I saw in Walt Disney World. My family and I spent Christmas and New Year’s there. The gingerbread house was located inside of Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa. In case you are wondering that entire house is edible! It is made with 800 pounds of flour, 600 pounds of sugar and 1,050 pounds of honey.

Gingerbread House @ Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa

That being said…New Years are all about resolutions aren’t they? The past few years my resolutions have been pretty consistent (keep in touch with people more, lose a few pounds…the usual). But I recently read somewhere of a girl who made a list of all of the things that scared her, and vowed to do at least 5 by the year’s end. I loved it! I mean, I know I have a lot of things to improve, but will I really be all that better off next year with a few pounds off my buttox…I think not! So, I have begun my own list, number 12 on that list is “make homemade pasta”, with number 13 a close second.. “make home made gnocchi”. We had all agreed to make Giulia Melucci’s No Nookie Gnocchi, so I figured there would be no getting out of it. With the whirlwind of these past few weeks I will be honest, I did try and think of a few ways to get out of this endeavor but after feeling a bit rested (thanks to my cousin doing the holiday this year) I decided to take it on for my families Sunday Pasta.

Prior to making Giulia’s Gnocchi and reading Marilla and Brianne’s posts I searched high and low for some gnocchi recipes and with the help of Giulia, Silver Spoon, and Alessio Pesucci http://italianfood.about.com/od/gnocchi/r/blr1805.htm I came up with somewhat of a different concoction. My favorite Gnocchi is made at Cannanau in NYC, it is this awesome light airy gnocchi in a fabulous white truffle cream sauce. I don’t particularly care for tomato sauce (I know, I know, I am Italian how can I say that, but c’mon Tomatoes versus cream and butter….helllloooooo!) So I wanted to try and re-create a similar dish. Here is how it went…

Matt and I went to Stop N Shop in search of “russett potatoes”, which they did not have. Personally, I dont see the difference between these and baking, but I didn’t want to regret the russett, so we searched a bit more until I wound up with a 5 pound bag of russet potatoes (lets just say we will be eating a lot o’ potatoes in my house this month). Then I went in search of something with “white truffle”. We had to go to the mall anyway, so I thought Williams and Sonoma would be a great place to start. It was, they had truffle butter and truffle oil…but each was more than 30 bucks, which, Im sorry gnocchi, but that is steep. I definately weighed the option of “do I need this versus do I want this” way longer than I should have, but I opted out. As we were driving home and I was trying to figure out how to mimick the taste of white truffle, Matt figured we could check out Wild by Nature and low and behold they had white truffle olive oil for 7.99! Score! So with ingredients in hand, four cookbooks spread out and my lap top with epicurious and food network on call, Matt and I went to it. Marilla and Brianne posted Giulia’s Gnocchi already so I wont repost that…this is what I eventually wound up with…

for the gnocchi

4 potatoes (I actually started with 5 potatoes, but i dropped 1 1/2 on the floor…abby got to it before I could try and salvage!)

1 1/2 C. flour (plus more as needed)

1 egg

2 shakes nutmeg

1 pinch salt

Boil the potatoes until fork pierces with a knife (about 30 minutes), remove from water and allow to cool (I did not do this), peel the potatoes and pass through a food mill (again, I didnt have a food mill and I read that the small part of the cheese grater would work, but I got fustrated and went strait for the fodd processor, pulsing a few times)

spread the potatoe out, and mix in flour and egg, kneading gently until blended and not sticky (add flour as needed). cut dough into fourths and roll each piece into a long rope. cut the rope into one each pieces. gently press fork into gnocchi and place on baking sheet. Boil and salt 5 quarts water. Add the gnocchi to boiling water at about 10 at a time, when they float to the top remove to a collander. repeat until all gnocchi are cooked. toss with sauce.

Creamy Truffle sauce with shallots and Tomato (this I totally made up as I went along, so some of the measurements are approximate)

4 Tbs. butter

3 Tbs. Olive oil (I actually used 1/3 Cup but the sauce was a bit oily)

3 garlic cloves, sliced

1 shallot, diced

4 tomatoes, cored and diced

2 Cups of heavy whipping cream, plus extra as needed

1/2 C. locatelli cheese (or parmesan)

“olive oil infused with white truffle” (2 tsp plus more as needed)

4 sage leaves

salt

pepper

Heat 2 Tbs. of butter and 3 Tbs. olive oil in large sauce pan over med-high heat. when bubbly add sage leaves and garlic. allow to brown and remove (save for later). Add shallots and simmer for 1-2 minutes. add diced tomatoes, salt and pepper and allow to simmer for 2 minutes. add two cups of cream and locatelli cheese, return sage and garlic and bring to a boil. In the meantime mix truffle oil with last two tbs. butter until smooth. once sauce boils, return to a simmer. add gnocchi. simmer for 5 minutes. check for consistency, add cream if needed (i added about 1/8 cup extra). add butter and truffle oil mix and stir in. I felt it needed more truffil oil so I drizzled some in at this point. allow to simmer a few more minutes. turn off heat and let sit for 5 minutes (uncovered) before serving.

I am not gonna lie…this was AWESOME. For several reasons…I actually mastered making gnocchi…until you have handled a hot potatoe and manipulted them into deliciously puffy little gnocchi you cannot understand the joy this brings! I couldn’t believe I really did it! Second, I attempted my own little sauce recipe and it was actually really good. My brother said it was “restaurant quality”, and I agreed with him! and 3) Matt and I actually did a lot of this together, and it was great to share something I love with him. He made broccoli raab to go as a side (which was also awesome). The two of us claimed our places in the kitchen and just had a great time trying to make something good happen. It was so relaxing having him there, I didnt even freak out  (that much) when I dropped a potato and a half!

This was a great way to end out very first book, I loved, I lost, I made Spaghetti. I (again) thank each of these CTB girls, and Giulia for being such an incredibly supportive first author. I also felt like we would be friends if we knew each other, but I am grateful to the new friends she has helped bring into my life.  She will always have a very special spot in the hearts of the CTB group as well as in my kitchen. I also thank Matthew for being so supportive of this process. There is nothing better than dropping  potatoes on the floor and having the man you love say “its okay, you can use it, Ill eat it anyway”…if that ain’t love I dont what is. I am very much looking forward to starting the new year with “Garlic and Sapphires” and I cannot wait to see what is down the road for Cooking the Books!

In the mean time…I better finish that New Years List….where is my left over gnocchi?

I was slightly disappointed come Christmas Eve. More in myself than anything. You see, I had spent all day attempting to cook with quite an eager, overtired toddler underfoot. While she was able to help with most of the desserts I was making (and the baklava was put together during naptime), I was not ready for her to cover her hands in pasta dough and run all over the house I had spent all week cleaning. Silly me did not read about the fact that I needed a potato ricer and/or food mill until the potatoes were boiling in the pot. Strike one. As we speak, Amazon is running a search for one/both of those so I can try again, as gnocchi is my dad’s absolute favorite food. I was really rushed making it as well, as it was getting late and I had hungry people waiting to be fed. Giulia’s sauce was really delicious, I thought, but my husband (sorry G!) still seems to prefer my own sauce (which is my grandmother’s recipe). My gnocchi was a little lumpy since I tried my best without a food mill. I was more disappointed in myself. I had been looking forward to making that recipe since finding it in the book, and everything else I made that day came out absolutely perfect, except the one I really wanted! So, live and learn. The consistency was right, but they were just a tad lumpy. I hope that next time (and I will definitely blog about it!) it comes out better.

As we say farewell to I Loved, I Lost, I Made Spaghetti, I feel very bittersweet. Partially because it was our first book, but I really felt myself understanding Giulia and where she came from, and I loved her story and her wonderfully positive take on everything. I feel like had we grown up closer to each other (Not like Nassau County and Brooklyn are terribly far away, but you get the point), I like to think we would have been friends. She had posted about this blog on her own twitter page (If you’re a fan of the book, or of her, follow her at @gmelucci) and on her own facebook page as well. There seems to be an unspoken camraderie of us Catholic School girls – kind of like the unspoken trials and tribulations of making it through years with those nuns. She is a fan of us, which makes this first book even more special – the fact that we were embraced so greatly by its author. I can only hope the future authors we read (and cook) enjoy our blog half as much as she has. So, thank you Giulia, for making our first couple of months with this blog SO worthwhile

I hope everyone had a happy and safe holiday and enjoyed your time with your families and loved ones. We sure did!