CHOCOLATE ESPRESSO COOKIES

I usually don’t have a very big sweet tooth, but I got a really strong craving this week for some chocolate espresso cookies. After looking through several different recipes, I decided on this one, by Giada de Laurentiis. I liked the fact that she used chocolate covered espresso beans in hers to give it a stronger Espresso flavor.

Double Chocolate and Espresso Cookies

6 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, chopped into 1/2-inch pieces (recommended: Ghirardelli)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/3 cup dark chocolate-covered espresso beans
1 cup flour
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs, at room temperature
2 tablespoons water
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (recommended: Nestle Toll House)

Place an oven rack in the center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats. Set aside.

In a small bowl, combine the chocolate and butter. Place the bowl over a pan of barely simmering water and stir occasionally until the chocolate has melted and the mixture is smooth.

In the bowl of a food processor, finely chop the chocolate covered espresso beans. In a medium bowl, whisk together the chopped espresso beans, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt.

In another medium bowl, whisk together the sugar, eggs, water, and vanilla extract. Gradually add the dry ingredients and stir until thick and smooth. Fold in the melted chocolate. Stir in the chocolate chips. Using a cookie or ice cream scoop, scoop level 1/4 cupfuls of the batter onto the prepared baking sheets. Bake until slightly puffed and the tops begin to crack, 18 to 20 minutes. Allow the cookies to cool completely on the baking sheets and serve.



Chocolate covered Espresso beans after going in the food processor



Melted semi-sweet chocolate and unsalted butter

Flour, baking powder, salt, cocoa powder, and chopped Espresso beans

The dry mixture above with the egg mixture added

With melted chocolate and butter added

So here's where I made a little mistake. I got the cookies on the baking sheets, in the oven and realized I completely forgot to stir in the semi-sweet chocolate chips!!! Smooth move, Rachel. Instead of yanking them out of the oven, throwning my chip-less cookies away, and starting from scratch, I decided to let them finish baking and see how they turned out. I'm glad I let them finish because, they turned out great! Since they already have so much chocolate in them, it wasn't a deal-breaker that the chips were missing.

To make up for my little chocolate chip snafu, I decided to put a big scoop of my favorite mint chip ice cream between two of the cookies and make an ice cream sandwich.

I would definitely reccommend making these cookies--but with the chips! Even though they turned out just fine without them, I bet they'd be that much better with them.

Hope you all have a great weekend! I'm heading out to Colorado to visit my brother--fingers are crossed for nice weather!

R

MORNING DELIGHT

Oh, how I love a yogurt parfait...

I don't know if you get as excited around granola as I do.  And you don't even have to be a hippy to enjoy it!

I've always wondered why just a 1/2 cup of granola is a whopping 200 calories.  So I set off to find a healthy recipe for granola.

Didn't find one.

Instead, I created my own with about 3 different recipes as a guide.  This homemade granola is very peanutty, and also has some nice saltiness (from the pumpkin seeds and peanuts) and chewiness (from the dried currants).  It's SO much better than all the commercially produced granola...and on par with fancy granola you might find at specialty grocers.  It also makes your house smell wonderful as you bake a batch in the oven.

PEANUT BUTTERY GRANOLA
About 7 cups granola

Ingredients:

3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats

1/2 cup shelled, roasted peanuts
1 cup roasted, salted pumpkin seeds
1 cup wheat germ

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1/3 cup sliced roasted almond I found in my pantry

1 cup dried currants

1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar
1 cup natural peanut butter, smooth or chunky (I used smooth)

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
2/3 cup vegetable or olive oil


***Heat oven to 275°F.  Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.  In a large bowl, combine oats, peanuts, pumpkin seeds, almonds or whatever nuts you like, wheat germ, salt, cinnamon, and ginger.  Be sure to also add the dried currants (or whatever dried food you like) into this oat mixture.

In a small saucepan, mix the honey and brown sugar.  Bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring constantly.  Turn off the heat and stir in the peanut butter and vanilla until smooth.  Pour over the oat mixture.  Pour in the oil, and stir thoroughly.  The mixture will be chunky and rough.  If you feel like getting your paws dirty, go ahead and mix the oats with your clean hands.  This will allow the mixture to be spread more evenly onto the oats.

Spread the oat mixture onto the prepared baking sheet and bake for 45 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes (I used tongs) while baking.  

Allow to cool once out of the oven.

Store for up to 3 weeks in an airtight container.  But I don't think the granola will last that long, given that this is a 10 out of 10 on the delicious-o-meter.

And it can only get more delicious in a parfait.  You can use any fruit you want, but berries seem to work the best.  I would also use either a vanilla, honey, or even plain flavored yogurt.  But nothing too sugary because the granola and fruit will be plenty sweet!

***Make sure your oven isn't too hot because you don't want the granola to burn.  If you like a lighter, less carmelized taste, set your oven to 250 F, but allow your granola to bake for a bit longer...around 55 minutes to an hour.  Enjoy!

 M

THANKS A LATKE

A week or so ago, I enjoyed a wonderful burger and sweet potato fries at Father's Office. If you haven’t been to or heard of Father's Office, it’s a widely praised upscale pub in Los Angeles with two locations. (Read more about it here).

Anyways, while scarfing down my own personal basket of the glorious sweet potato fries smothered in their blue cheese dipping sauce, I kept thinking how gosh darn good they tasted. The sweetness from the sweet potato matched up against the salty and garlicky dipping sauce—I could eat these with every meal. So I thought to myself, how else can I experience this fantastic flavor combination without eating fries every time? Enter latkes. For some bizarre reason, I can eat close to 5 baskets of fries, but when it comes to latkes, I’m much more of a lady. I can stop myself after one or two. Yes, I realize latkes are still fried, but for some reason I don’t feel as guilty eating them as I do with fries. Silly reasoning, I know.

So here it is, Sweet Potato Latkes topped with a Blue Cheese dipping sauce. I pulled this Latke recipe off of Epicurious here.

Sweet-Potato Latkes (makes about 26 Latkes)
1 lb sweet potatoes, peeled and coarsely grated
2 scallions, finely chopped
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
3/4 cup vegetable oil

Stir together potatoes, scallions, flour, eggs, salt, and pepper.
Heat oil in a deep 12-inch nonstick skillet over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking. Working in batches of 4, spoon 1/8 cup potato mixture per latke into oil and flatten to 3-inch diameter with a slotted spatula. Reduce heat to moderate and cook until golden, about 1 1/2 minutes on each side. Transfer latkes with spatula to paper towels to drain.

Here’s what I did for the Blue Cheese dip/topping:
1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 cup finely chopped scallions
2 tablespoons finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
1/3 cup crumbled blue cheese (2 ounces)
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 teaspoon mayonnaise
1 garlic clove, minced

Personally, I like my latkes a little well-done. Don’t burn them until black, but I like the added crunch it gives. Just like well-done hashbrowns.

R

A HOT DRINK ON THE ROCKS

And by hot, I mean spicy! At a BBQ last year, the very creative and talented Leo, who heads the bar at Eleven Madison Park in NY, made a sensational specialty cocktail for all of our friends. This mix of spicy and sweet went perfectly with our smoky meats and traditional BBQ sides. While Leo was bartending, I snapped a quick picture of the ingredients + Leo so I'd someday be able to reference and recreate his liquid heaven (or hell, depending on how heavy you decide to go with the jalapeños).

Here's the recipe for 2 drinks, because who would go to all this trouble to make a lonesome drink for one?

1 oz Aperol
1 oz Cherry Liqueur
4 oz Rum
6 oz Margarita Mix
Juice of 1 lemon
1 jalapeño roughly chopped and seeds discarded

1 oz Mezcal (optional) for an added smoky flavor

Place the lemon and jalapeño in a martini shaker and muddle the jalapeno into the lemon. Add ice and remaining ingredients. Shake well. Pour over ice into tumbler glasses. Garnish with a slice of jalapeño.

Rachel and I made these drinks this past Sunday for a little BBQ we were having. On our first run, we quickly learned we'd used a little too much jalapeño for one friend's liking. Sorry, Jason! So proceed with caution when making this drink. You want your friends to come to your next party!

M

ADO

This past weekend, I was treated to a lovely and romantic dinner at one of my favorite Italian restaurants in Los Angeles, Ado. Located in the charming and homey space formerly occupied by Amuse on Main Street in Venice, it consistently delivers top notch food and service that makes you feel as if it’s a special occasion every time you go. 

Ado is a joint venture from Chef Antonio Mure (Piccolo, Locanda Veneta, La Botte) and Paolo Cesaro (Hidden , Via Veneto). A few months ago they opened 31 Ten, a bar/lounge just down the street from Ado in Santa Monica. I haven’t been yet—but it’s on my list!

Anyways, back to my wonderful and romantical dinner….

The adorable exterior of Ado

I'm not entirely sure what I am staring at in this picture, but I wanted to show the romantic candelit table. Also, notice the half bottle of wine. I love ordering half bottles, because it allows me to try more wine off the menu, and it's usually a little more wallet friendly than just ordering by the glass.

Watercress salad with Pecorino, Hearts of Palm, and roasted Almonds in a Balsamic dressing

Grilled Sea Scallops on a bed of Parmesan fondue. Note that you will want extra bread in your bread basket to scrape up any remaining Parmesan Fondue!!

Ahi Tuna Tartare served with Avocado, Capers, and Balsamic essence

My favorite item on the menu...Home-made Red Beet Tagliolini pasta in a marsala Quail ragu served on a bed of Taleggio cheese fondue. Unlike anything I have ever tasted, the red beet Tagliolini pasta is perfection. Note that you will also want extra bread to mop up any remaining quail ragu or Taleggio cheese fondue.

They have excellent desserts as well; their Panna Cotta is my favorite. But, this trip I was too full for dessert. I'll have to save more room next time...go a little easier on all that bread I kept mopping sauces up with!


R

MY GARDEN UPDATE

I don’t know if you remember, but a few weeks back I decided to start my own little garden on my balcony. I’m growing Sweet 100 cherry tomatoes, basil, rosemary, mint, cilantro, and a few different varieties of flowers.

To be completely honest, the hardest part for me so far has not been the “growing” part…it has been selecting the right pots to grow my garden in. Because these pots are on my balcony right outside my living room and dining room through a giant glass sliding door, I couldn’t choose just any old pot that would get the job done. Aesthetically, the pots had to flow with the rest of my apartment. I wanted some that were eclectic, modern, and slightly rustic (if that makes any sense). I went to several nurseries and found a few options that I really liked, but my pocketbook didn’t like them so much. Who knew cool, modern garden pots were such an investment?! I surely didn’t!

To make a long and probably uninteresting story to most short, I decided on two large galvanized steel tubs that I found at Osh for twenty bucks. Score! Since you must have drainage in pots for gardening, I took my tubs from Osh to a local nursery and politely asked if they would drill holes in the bottom for drainage. They obliged. I then found a great wooden bench at the Rosebowl Flea Market and decided to use it to raise the pots high enough so they would get enough sun during the day. My mission was finally complete!




The finished product. I actually had the blue pot already on hand and it happened to fit the tomatoes perfectly.





Basil



Mint



Cilantro



Rosemary



Tomatoes



These little yellow flowers will soon turn into tomatoes!




Lavender-smells so good


All in all, I’ve had a lot of fun with my little garden. I actually get excited to go out and water my plants. It’s incredible how fast my tomatoes have grown. I went away for a weekend, came back, and they were huge! Hey, if I can start a little garden, anyone can!



On another note, here’s a great salad recipe I love to make. It’s great because it’s a salad that actually keeps in your fridge. It doesn’t get soggy and go bad after one day! Hallelujah!

My Favorite Cous Cous Salad
Serves 4-5

1/2 cup boiling water
1 ¼ cup dry cous cous (I like to use whole wheat cous cous)
6 tablespoons olive oil
1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 cup grape or cherry tomatoes, cut in half
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped finely
2 ½ tablespoons fresh mint, chopped finely
1/2 of a red onion finely diced
1/2 a green bell pepper, finely diced
1/2 an orange bell pepper, finely diced
2 tablespoons crumbled feta cheese
1 teaspoon sea salt
juice from half a lemon

Add cous cous, olive oil and lemon juice to boiling water. Remove from heat, stir well, and cover. Let sit for 5 minutes then lightly fluff cous cous and transfer to a large salad bowl.

Add salt, parsley, mint, red onion, green and orange bell peppers to cous cous and toss well. Place in refrigerator and chill for 30 minutes.

Right before serving when salad is chilled, add tomatoes, feta cheese and squeeze juice from half of a lemon on top. Toss well and serve!

Hope you all have a great weekend!


R

SON OF A GUN

In an effort to keep our blog well rounded, we want to post a variety of interesting food related topics, not just recipes.  Since we're an LA based blog, forgive us for not being able to focus on many restaurants outside of the LA area.   As much as we'd like to jet set around the world to review all the cool new restaurants, unless someone wants to foot the bill (Travel Channel?), we're keeping it close to home.  But hellooooo, LA has SO many cool spots.  And we're selective with the restaurants we choose,  so please keep reading!

This restaurant, Son of a Gun, recently opened with rave reviews...which is very difficult to do in fickle Los Angeles.

Son of a Gun was started by chefs Jon Shook and Vinny Dotolo.  Not only were they awarded Food & Wine's Best New Chefs of 2009, they've appeared on the Food Network's Iron Chef, and now have their own show, Two Dudes Catering.  They still operate a full service catering company, as well as run the ever popular Animal (opened in 2008 to widespread acclaim), where it's sooo hard to get a reservation that's before 10pm.  Such is the case with Son of a Gun.  Great for them, not for us.  

So I went with some friends this past weekend.  We had 11pm reservations and we still had to wait.  Good thing they closed at 1am!  Since Animal is one of my favorite restaurants in LA, when I heard chefs Jon and Vinny were doing a spin-off with a seafood themed spot, I knew I'd have to check it out. Their dishes are quirky and daring, sometimes making even the most adventurous eaters hesitate.  Picky eaters won't have a good time.  I could never date a picky eater.  What a snoozefest that would be!

When we arrived, we were ushered to the back bar, where there's a great specialty drink list and a hot bartender (a dark haired beauty).  But between being pressed up against the wall where the busy waiters push past you on their way to the kitchen or else hovering over the shoulders of people eating dinner at the cramped bar, there really wasn't an area to chill and have a drink.  I was so glad when they finally seated us because I felt like I was in everyone's way!  Which I was.

My pretty and refreshing St. Germain Champagne Cocktail

Walking to our table past the large communal table, I thought how the concept of the community table was becoming more and more popular. Walk-ins get to sit at this table, which I don't particularly prefer because of limited privacy, but if you're single, what a great way to casually meet someone!

The decor is very kitschy with mostly nautical themed items on display: buoys, fish nets, model ships, helms.  Not my style, but it really works here.  I felt a great energy from all the patrons, as if we were part of a secret club where you could only be a member if you were bold and adventurous with your food.  Sorry if I sound like a food snob.  I'm not.  I'm just so in love with food and trying new things that sometimes I'll dare myself to try a new food (not as daring as Andrew Zimmern on the Travel Channel) just so I can say that I've tried it.  Yes, at times, it's gross.  But you end up laughing with your friends and talk about it for days after!  What's so bad about that??

Since we ate so late, the kitchen was out of 1/3 of their menu.  Sad!  So we told our waiter to bring out whatever he thought were the must-have dishes of the items that were available.  Our dinner was still incredible.

Oysters on the half shell

Benton's Country Ham, Honey Butter, Corn Bread

Colombia River King Salmon Crudo, Beets, Pickled Ramps

Albacore Tataki, Sesame Seeds, Radish, Citrus Soy

Clams and Linguine, Spicy Fennel Sausage, Ramp Tops

Frozen Lime Yogurt, Graham Crumble, Toasted Meringue

What they were out of that we so desperately wanted to try: 

Smoked Mahi Fish Dip, Celery, Radish, Crackers

Portuguese Sardine Escabeche, Parsnip, Habenero

Smoked Steelhead Roe, Maple Cream, Pumpernickel

Neiman Ranch Hangar, Fried Oysters, Béarnaise, Fries

I'll make our next reservation for earlier in the night to ensure the above items are available.  I highly recommend Son Of A Gun for a great night out, whether you're on a date or just out with friends.  Your lives will be a much better place having been there!

M