A little butter wont hurt you, says the chocolate torte

"A little butter won't hurt you," was Julia Child's famous mantra.


"This is so bad for you," remarked my daughter as she dropped another stick of butter in with the melted chocolate. ` Kirsten has taken to doing all the celebratory desserts in this house. There are worse things in life than having your daughter become a baking queen. We will all gain weight until classes begin in the fall. As I said, there are worse things.

But if you believe no celebration is complete with a bite of chocolate, this is your cake. Serve it with some fresh raspberries to up your health quotient. But do serve it.

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Moist and delicate. Elegant and simple. Creamy, dense and rich, it has a way of making everyone at the dinner table feel warm, snuggly and loved. And that's why you bake, isn't it?

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For ease, bake this cake the day before. The buttery-chocolatey mixture needs time to set completely. After glazing, it again needs time to set.

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Flourless Chocolate Cake adapted from Williams Sonoma - serves 10

10 oz bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped

3/4 cup butter cut into pieces (plus extra for greasing)

5 large egg yolks

1/4 cup sugar plus 1 tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

pinch of salt 3 large egg whites - room temperature

cocoa powder for dusting

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Chocolate Glaze

1/2 cup butter cut into pieces

8 ounces chopped bittersweet chocolate

2 tablespoons light corn syrup

Flourless Chocolate Torte Preparation

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Grease bottom of 8-inch round cake pan and line it with parchment paper. (Yes, do line it).

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In the top of a double boiler over simmering water combine chocolate and the butter. Melt and whisk to blend. Set aside.

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In a large mixing bowl, beat the egg yolks, 1/4 cup sugar, vanilla and salt until pale and very thick. Gradually pour in chocolate mixture. Beat till well blended.

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In a separate large mixing bowl, beat the egg whites until foamy. Add 1 tablespoon of sugar and beat until medium peaks forms. In thirds, fold egg white mixture into chocolate mixture. Fold until no streaks remain.

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Pour batter into prepared pan and spread evenly. Bake about 35 minutes - until sides puff up a bit and toothpick inserted comes out moist but not liquid. Cool for 30 minutes.

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To invert cake: Run a knife around the edges to loosen the cake. Hold a plate over the cooled cake and invert it onto a flat plate. Remove parchment paper Cool completely. You may then cover and refrigerate until cold - at least 4 hours or overnight.

Chocolate Glaze Preparation

Combine 1/2 cup butter and chopped bittersweet chocolate in a double boiler over barely simmering water. Whisk till blended. Remove from heat and add 2 tablespoons of light corn syrup. Stir until stunningly glossy. Put cold cake on a wire rack over a large sheet of wax paper or baking pan (to catch spills). Slowly pour glaze over the center of the cake. It will spread over the surface and drop down the sides. Help the glaze along with a spatula if it does not cooperate. Refrigerate until firm. About two hours.

To serve: Garnish with raspberries.
Note: While it does have several steps, this is a very easy cake. Trust me. When the cake isn't easy, Kirsten threatens the batter with the garbage can. She never threatened this cake once.

It's not your daily fare. But it brings a touch of class and a chocolate embrace to the end of a gracious meal.

No, it's not Italian. Does it matter?

Sweet Summer Celebrations

My sister and I are July babies. Between two birthdays, a July show and fresh produce that begs for get-togethers, there are a lot of celebrations. I do a lot of grocery shopping down the road at a place called Kowalski's. Aside from the fact that they have an excellent cheese selection, they celebrate local. Much of their meats, produce, salsas, baked goods and yes, cheeses - are locally owned. And then there's the view. Every time I walk out of the grocer - White Bear Lake is welcoming me. I never tire of the view.
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We had a busy kitchen. Paul was making Steven Raichlen's Grilled Corn Chowder Soup.
When the summer corn comes in, this soup is on our agenda. While shopping, I received the sweetest summer surprise. The lovely cheesemonger at Kowalski's presented me with this:

Burrata! Just flown in from Italy today! A gift! "Because you'd know what to do with it." A gift and a compliment. So while Paul was chopping up twenty grilled vegetables, I was roasting tomatoes and re-imagining a Caprese platter. Burrata means "buttered" in Italian. And indeed it is smooth and creamy as a fresh butter.

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Do you see the milk-cream oozing from the mozzarella lining. Delicate, soft, winding it's milk-way to the tomatoes and bread. (And crackers - my mother is always on a diet and wants crackers instead of bread.)

The pesto stood in for the basil.

While I was roasting tomatoes (and zucchini and eggplant but we'll get to that later) and Paul was preparing his soup, Kirsten was doing her Fool.

A Berry Fool. As a writer, there are so many places I could go with the name of that luscious dessert. But I shall endeavor to remain on track. We don't cook enough with berries in this house. No matter how many pints of berries I bring home, they disappear before I can get a baking pan out. While this is English in origin and not Italian, I think you will forgive me. In truth, I am a fool for Fools.

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Berry Fool - adapted from Williams Sonoma's Dessert

(Kirsten changed sugar amounts and berries; all photos from Kirsten)

8 strawberries halved

1/4 cup sugar

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1 cup raspberries and blueberries

1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

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Pinch of salt

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3/4 cup well-chilled heavy cream

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mint leaves and small berries for garnish

Stem and hull the strawberries and slice them in quarters. Toss with 1/4 cup of sugar. Let sit for 5 minutes. The sugar will draw out the juices. Using a fork, mash them until they ressemble a jam. Add the raspberries and blueberries and crush them with the fork. Stir in lemon juice and salt. Place in freezer and chill, stirring frequently. 10-15 minutes.

In a chilled bowl, whip your cream until soft peaks form when beaters are lifted. (Can you see my sister's birthday card and Paul's chowder recipe under the bowl - my ktichen table was Cooking Central.)

Fold the chilled berries into the cream.

Can do ahead: Cover and refrigerate over night. When ready to serve, scoop into clear glasses and serve. Garnish with a small berry and a mint leaf.

This could be a filling for a berry tiramisu. Or an accompaniment to pound cake.

Or layered with sponge cake into a small verrine. A tease. A fool. (from the French word "fouler" - to crush). In-between the burrata and Fool, we had herbed ricotta, roasted ratatouille, grilled corn chowder soup, t-bones and a roasted Panzella salad. I forgot to set out the Valrhona chocolates. Nobody complained. A sweet celebration indeed.

A Trilogy of Tomatoes

In the Village of the Brothers Grimm...

... there was strife, calamity, disease, suffering, evil enchantment, poverty, hardship...

And a fox! All wanted to live "happily ever after." Especially the Fox who would be granted a goose to eat ... that is as soon as the geese finished their bedtime story....

... which the geese never did... in fact they are still telling that bedtime story. So the geese and in the end - all of the villagers lived "happily ever after."

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The tomatoes in the garden were my happily ever after. Twelve-hour days left me as a food metaphor. I was either "toast" or a "wet noodle." So I devised dinners based on tomatoes.

Tomatoes can break evil enchantment. After all, they are known as the Pomme D'Amour (love-apple) in France. As for me, I could dine on tomato topping for bruschetta all summer.

Four tomatoes, a fistful of chopped basil (all right - 1/2-3/4 cup), 2 minced shallots, 4 minced garlic cloves, a little bit of Italian parsley, a drop of vinegar and a swish of olive oil. Maybe salt and pepper.

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Perched on lightly toasted Italian bread - magically turned into crostini by the rubbing of a cut garlic clove and brushed lightly with olive oil. Toasted at 350 degrees F for only 10-12 minutes - so the crostini is not hard as a rock and dinner is served.

Put it on fresh mozzarella. I had more than one.

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A non-authentic panzanella salad was summer magic on a plate. Chopped tomatoes, torn stale bread that was brushed with olive oil and a little minced garlic and just thrown under the broiler for a few minutes. Add to that a few thinly-sliced red onions soaked in vinegar for fifteen minutes. Toss all with basil and Italian parsley and have a summer feast. Drizzle with a good balsamic. Luckily I had the Saporoso Balsamic from the House of Modena sent to me from Gera at Sweets Foods. Perfect!
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Bread and Tomaotes - a title for a play?

When the tomatoes are vine-ripened, just-picked - there's no need to fuss. Let the tomatoes do the talking. Don't dress too much. The tomatoes are center stage.

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And I knew the show weekend would end in "happily ever after" when I sat down to these tomato stacks from Sommer Collier's A Spicy Perspective blog.

Softened goat cheese mixed with herbs (I used a lot of thyme) and drizzled with a good balsamic and stacked.
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This may be as good as it gets.

Or maybe not. Maybe three is better. And so I now dwell happily ever after in the Village of White Bear Lake. And in case I didn't make my self clear - as for those long days with the 42 young performers. I had the time of my life.

All Things Zucchini

I have a love of this time of year, when the zucchini in the garden resembles "Audrey 2" from Little Shop of Horrors and takes over my world. It's abundance makes me feel rich in possibilities. The sheer act of shredding zucchini for fritters forces me to pause and think how I can speed up "The Golden Goose" (actually it's a duck) section of my play. Chopping zucchini for soup opens up a sliver of creativity. Doing somethung mundane releases the brain to the improbable and possible.
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The sheer ability to walk across my yard for dinner is a huge smiling nod for the simplicity of summer. I took a page out of many bloggers' postings for inspiration. The zucchini morphed from a raw zucchini salad to fritters to soup.
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Taking a page out of Ciao Chow Linda's book Zucchini Carpaccio

Linda studded hers with pine nuts and herbs. I played with herbs, lemon zest and black olives.
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Zucchini Carpaccio - serves 4
2 medium zucchini - thinly sliced
lemon salt
zest and juice of 1 Meyer lemon
1/2 cup of chopped basil
1/4 cup chopped Italian Parsley
1/4 cup arugula
1/2 cup your favorite sliced, black olives
extra virgin olive oil
shavings of ricotta salata
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Put your sliced zucchini in a colander lined with paper towels. Add your salt. Let drain for 30 minutes. Rinse and pat dry. (You may omit this step - if I have time I will dry out the zucchini with the salt so it soaks in more of the lemon and oil). Place zucchini in serving bowl. Zest a Meyer lemon over it. Then cut it in half and squeeze out the lemon juice. The Meyer lemon juice has a sweet taste. Toss in your herbs and sliced olives and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil. Toss well. Shave ricotta salata over all and serve.
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The zucchini fritters were inspired by Reeni from Cinnamon Spice and Everything Nice.

Zucchini Fritters - serves 4 (Makes 8 small fritters)
4 small zucchini
salt
1 egg
2 small cloves of garlic minced
1/4 cup red onion, minced
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup chopped basil
1/4 cup chopped Italian parlsey
2-3 zucchini blossoms (washed and dried - if you have)
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
1/4-1/2 cup canola or olive oil (I used canola oil)
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Again optional: but you can shred your zucchini and salt them. Put them in colander lined with paper towels and let them drain for 30 minutes. Rinse and pat dry. Whisk egg in large bowl. Add shredded zucchini (I simply shred with a vegetable peeler - it allows me to "space out" for a time.) Add flour and herbs. Cut your zucchini blossoms into the mixture. Grate your Parmigiano into the mixture. Combine well. Heat olive oil till a drop of water thrown into the oil sizzles. Drop one heaping tablespoon of mixture into the oil. Fry about two at a time. Fry 1-2 minutes per side - until lightly browned. Drain on paper towels. Serve with a dollop of plain Greek yogurt, sour cream or creme fraiche. I know they're deep-fried! But they're only two bites! Two per serving.
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And as a confirmed soup-a-holic, even in the heat of summer - I crave soup. For the zucchini soup, I added a potato for heft, herbs for tang and and savory and milk for smoothness.



Zucchini Soup - serves 4
4 small zucchini or 2 medium zucchini
2 tablespoons Earth Balance Butter
1/4-1/2 cup chopped red or white onion
3-4 garlic cloves, chopped
1 quart chicken broth
1 large potato, peeled and coarsely chopped
1 cup basil
1/2 cup Italian parsley
2 cups whole milk
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Shred a few thin zucchini threads for garnish. Chop all your vegetables - they do not need to be uniform or very small - they will be pureed. Melt butter in medium-large soup pot. When butter foams add your chopped onion and garlic. Saute 2-3 minutes till the onion softens. Add your chicken broth and bring to a boil. Add your potato and simmer for five minutes. Add zucchini and herbs and simmer another 10 minutes (Until potato and zucchini are soft.) Cool for a few minutes.
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In 2-3 batches, pulse soup mixture with some of the milk in a food processor till smooth. Return to pot, add remaining milk and simmer five minutes. Serve with ribbons of zucchini, dollops of Greek yogurt and/or croutons. I wish I had a zucchini blossom to float in it!

I get enough drama at the theatre. But Mother Nature thought I needed more. The Twin Cities seemed to be tornado alley last night. The skies did their version of "Shake, Rattle and Roll." We hovered in the basement till all was clear. With the cat. And the dog. We were lucky - just downed branches and no one went to Oz. Did I tell you that I have a healthy respect for Nature? Its bounty, its fury and its beauty.

Delicious days with pasta, zucchini, herbs and shrimp

It's been a summer of elves, continuing with a summer of witches, of sillies and enchantment. And it's all been delicious: the elves, the plays, the theatrical days, the food.

With tomatoes at the market, zucchini in the garden and herbs that look like they've been sneaking steroids, it was time to cook.
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My second play of the summer In the Village of the Brothers Grimm has 48 roles plus 2-12 narrators. I have two casts of 21 and must plug them equally into the roles that they will heighten their summer theatre experience. Logistics. 48 roles. 42 characters. 12 Narrators. What was I thinking? Time to downsize. Simplify. Simple like my character Simpleton.

I can be Mistress of Simple. And so these were.

We started with celery stuffed with Gorgonzola and mascarpone. I combined equal parts (for 4 celery sticks I used 1/2 cup of each) of Gorgonzola Cheese with mascarpone. I folded in 4 tablespoons of marjoram. Marjoram has a sweet bite that holds up well to the Gorgonzola. Tarragon would also be interesting... and sage ... I toasted 1/3 cup of pine nuts. Simply combine the cheeses, fold in the herbs, stuff the celery and dot with pine nuts.
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There's a grand cheese shop in Minneapolis called Surdyk's. If you get there early enough on a Saturday (early Saturday's are a challenge for me), you will be among the lucky few to get their sweet, fresh ricotta.

It's habit forming. I added thyme, Italian parsley and a little basil. Swirled in some olive oil and simply served it with lightly toasted bread. (I do the routine of: a. rub cut, raw garlic onto the bread. Brush lightly with olive oil. Bake at 400 degrees F for 7 minutes or broil for 3 minutes. Grilling them would be heaven-sent.
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Pleased that I was using my huge, sci-fi-movie herbs, I turned to the zucchini. I picked four small ones and a blossom. I sort of found a recipe and then changed it so much you'd never know what I based it on! It seems long but it is ripe for substitution and start to finish was 30 minutes - worth every second of prep.

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Angel Hair Pasta with Shrimp and Zucchini and Tomatoes and Herbs and Breadcrumbs and Wine and Garlic - serves 4

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3/4 pound angel hair pasta

Breadcrumbs

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (you will need more for the sauce)

2 garlic cloves minced (you will need more for the sauce)

1/2 cup whole wheat panko breadcrumbs

4 tablespoons of thyme, basil and parsley (combined any way that suits you)

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Sauce

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 garlic cloves minced

4 small zucchini

1/2 pint sweet cherry or grape or baby San Marzano tomatoes

4-6 tablespoons thyme and basil combined

1 pound peeled, deveined shrimp

3/4 cup dry white wine

Optional: one cleaned, chopped zucchini blossom
1/4-1/2 cup reserved pasta water

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Preparation

Cook angel hair pasta according to package directions.

Breadcrumbs: Heat olive oil in large skillet or pot large enough to hold the sauce and the cooked pasta. When hot, add garlic and swirl for 10-15 seconds. Add breadcrumbs and then herbs. Swirl until the bread crumbs soak up the oil and start to turn a deeper brown. (4 minutes tops) Remove breadcrumbs to separate bowl, wipe out pan and begin again.

Sauce: Heat olive oil. Add zucchini and tomatoes. Saute till softened. Add herbs, garlic and swirl. Add shrimp and swirl - you just want to swirl enough to get the hot olive coated on all. Add wine. Lower to simmer. Cook until sauce is reduced by half and shrimp is just cooked through. Four-five minutes. Do turn the shrimp constantly.

Pasta: Drain pasta reserving 1/2 cup cooking liquid. Add pasta to pot with sauce and toss. The pasta will just imbibe the juicy-wine-laced sauce. If dry, add a little of the pasta liquid - one tablespoon at a time. Add bread crumbs. Turn into pasta bowl and serve.

I did salt the zucchini for a few hours. I picked them, washed them, sliced them and salted them with some lemon salt I had on hand. I left them in a colander and forgot about them (literally). I rinsed them, dried them and I must say they really soaked in the oil, garlic and sauce and were just packed with soft, filtered-sunshine, tender flavors.

Just before adding the pasta, I sprinkled some chopped zucchini blossoms over all. More sweetness. More tenderness.

The herbs lent spice, the vegetables were sweet, the shrimp had a briney, soft-chew to them. The pasta was pillow-soft and the bread crumbs had some tangy crunch. It was all I wanted from a summer evening. It was simply delicious.

On the night the elves opened, a thunderstorm raged. Babies howled and wee ones called "Mama!" Our 32 young troopers took the stage, hit their marks, smiled at their success and were stronger than the thunder. The theatre shook after 16 elves, fists in air proclaimed, "We are the elves! The elves of Cologne," and then as if on cue: "Thunderclap!" roaring its approval, and then - their kind audience roared their own approval. During curtain call, they whispered to each other, "This was so fun." It was deliciously sweet. And in two more weeks, when my witch, my sillies, my fox, my geese, my woodcutter, Simpleton and Timberly-the-gangster-fairy are done, I hope to hear the 42 teen actors say the same thing. I hope they find the play and the audience a delicacy to be savored.