Dude, I made bagels.

Remember how I said you should check out Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day? Yeah, you still should. I made these bagels from the classic boule dough a couple of weekends ago, guided by this post on their website, artisanbreadinfive.com. Not the traditional New York Style bagel, but I'm not sure you can beat a fresh-from-the-oven bagel no matter WHO makes it. So. Delicious.

Pizza, Pizza!

Oh man. Do you guys have Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day yet? PLEASE go buy it. Or ask Santa. Or get it from the library. I bought it a few weeks ago, and so far I've made their classic boule, pain d'epi which I brought to Thanksgiving dinner and now PIZZA. And I'm not even really a bread person!*


Megan and I usually try to figure out a couple of meals we'll make this week when we're on the way to the grocery store, though we're not often home for dinner together more than twice a week. I never did make the soup I intended to make on Wednesday because we got an invite to dinner from some friends who recently moved into the neighborhood. Maybe Sunday?


Last night, however, I was not to be deterred. I had whipped up a batch of AB5MD's olive oil dough on Sunday afternoon and it's been lurking in the fridge all week. A batch makes about four pounds of dough, which is enough for four pizzas. So naturally, I made four pizzas.

Megan took the Hawaiian with her to watch the Rangers game, which left Adam and I to tackle the Mushroom & Potato Pizza Provencale (a recipe from the book), the classic Tomato Sauce & Mozzarella, and (this is for you dad!) the black olive and anchovy. Oof. We had to take a quick jaunt up the North End to get a cell phone charger from Becca, so we brought some to her, and there was still enough left over for two breakfasts, two lunches and probably a pre-dinner snack. Heh. The dough is tasty, not tooooo crispy (though crispier when reheated in the toaster oven) and easy to work with. Did I mention you should go buy this book?

Olive Oil Dough
Artisan Bread in Five Minutes A Day

Makes 4 pounds of dough, enough for 4 pizzas (easily halved)

2 3/4 cup lukewarm water
1/4 cup olive oil
1 1/2 Tablespoons active dry yeast
1 1/2 Tablespoons salt
6 1/2 cups unbleached AP flour

Mix the water, olive oil, yeast and salt in a large bowl or food storage container (I use a 6 quart square plastic food storage container). With a sturdy wooden spoon, mix in the flour until moistened; do not knead. Allow to rise at room temperature for about two hours, then stick it in the fridge and use it over the next week to ten days. The dough is much easier to work with after a few hours of chilling, as it's a very wet dough.

For pizzas, make sure you have your toppings ready before you roll the dough. I used a favorite tomato sauce recipe that only takes 5 minutes, pre-shredded cheese, canned pineapple chunks (in juice not syrup, please!), and I cut up the ham, olives, anchovies beforehand. You'll also need cornmeal for your peel (i.e. overturned cookie sheet) so the pizza slides off into the oven.
Preheat the oven to 500, or 550 if you can, with a pizza stone or overturned cookie sheet in the middle rack for at least 20 minutes. High heat and hot stone is the best way to get good pizza!

When your toppings are assembled, dust a large work surface with flour. Dust the surface of the dough with flour, then pull and cut off a 1 lb chunk (about the size of a grapefruit). With floured hands, form the dough into a ball, pulling the edges to the bottom and rotating the ball as you go. Pat the ball flat with your hands and use a rolling pin to stretch it out to about 1/8 inch thick. If you're feeling fancy, bounce it on your knuckles and toss it in the air a few times.

Lay the dough on a cornmeal dusted peel or cookie sheet and working quickly, top it lightly with your choice of toppings. Don't go crazy - using too much or too many toppings will sog down your pizza in a big way. Carefully slide the pizza from the peel to the hot stone/cookie sheet and bake for 10 minutes until the edges are golden brown and the cheese is toasty. Remove (again, carefully!) from the hot box and let the pizza cool a few minutes on a rack to give the cheese opportunity to set. Cut and enjoy!

*A "bread person" is one of those people who wants bread with every meal or finds extraordinary pleasure in eating bread. I think I'm a "baking person;" I like eating bread, but I love baking it. Which one are you?

Savory Squash Pasta

Did you have a nice Thanksgiving? I hope so. Mine was very very nice: quality time with the extended fam in Connecticut, tasty food, games. Aaaand a four day weekend doesn't hurt.

If you're back at work for a FULL FIVE DAYS AARGH, like me, may I suggest you take out some of that latent holiday aggression on an acorn squash?Weeks ago I had bought a couple of winter squashes (this acorn, an already eaten butternut, and a sugar baby pumpkin which has yet to be consumed) and decorated the mantle with them, but since December 1st marks the start of the transition time from decorating with squash and corn to decorating with pine cones and berries, I ate the acorn squash last week.

I was bad at taking photos in the middle of the process, so you'll just have to guess at how I got from here to there.

Just kidding! I've adapted a recipe from The Kitchn. Hope you enjoy it!

Savory Squash and Sage Pasta with Pine Nuts

1 medium acorn squash, peeled, seeded and chopped to a half inch dice (approximately)
1 small onion, diced
3-4 cloves garlic, chopped fine
1/3-1/2 cup fresh sage leaves
1/2-3/4 cup pine nuts, toasted
olive oil
salt & pepper
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/2 pound short cut pasta such as penne

1. Heat oven to 375. Toss the cubes of squash, onion, and half the sage leaves, minced, in a couple of tablespoons of olive oil, season with salt and pepper and spread in one layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Roast for 40 minutes, until the squash is tender when pierced with the tip of a knife.

2. As the squash is roasting, bring a pot of salted water to a boil and cook the pasta to al dente, drain, and set aside. A few minutes before the squash is done, heat a couple of tablespoons of olive oil in a large saute pan and fry the remaining sage leaves (whole) until they shrivel, about a minute. Remove to paper towel to drain and salt lightly.

3. Add the cooked pasta to the pan along with the squash mixture, and crumble in the fried sage. Saute for about five minutes until the pasta is getting slightly crispy. Add the pine nuts and saute another minute. Stir in the Parmesan and serve.

Serves 2-4

Chocolate Hazelnut Crinkle Cookies

So I know today is like some big important American Holiday, but it's also another important day: it's the Puma's birthday!

This last weekend while rehearsing bread recipes for T-day (I was in charge of bread, weee!) I also made these cookies to put in the mail to the ATL.

They are a little complicated, yes, but they are supremely delicious - moist, chewy, crinkly outside and infused with amazing hazelnut flavor. The classic chocolate crinkle is good, but if you want to kick it up, hazelnut ain't a bad way to go.

I've been making them since their first appearance in Gourmet in December of 2006, and they haven't disappointed yet. If the snowy white outside is very important to you, be very liberal with the powdered sugar. I hope you like them!

Chocolate Hazelnut Crinkle Cookies
adapted from Gourmet, December 2006

2/3 cup hazelnuts
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
6 oz fine-quality bittersweet chocolate (no more than 60% cacao if marked), finely chopped
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 cups packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1/4 cup whole milk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3/4 cup confectioners sugar

Make dough:
Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 350°F.

Toast hazelnuts in a shallow baking pan in oven until skins split and nuts are pale golden, about 10 minutes. Remove from oven (turn oven off), then wrap hazelnuts in a kitchen towel and rub to remove any loose skins. Cool nuts completely. Pulse nuts with granulated sugar in a food processor until finely chopped.

Melt chocolate in a metal bowl set over a saucepan of barely simmering water or in top of a double boiler, stirring until smooth. Remove bowl from heat and set aside.

Whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt in a bowl.

Beat together butter and brown sugar in another bowl with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until creamy, about 3 minutes. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition, then beat in melted chocolate until combined. Add milk and vanilla, beating to incorporate. Reduce speed to low and add flour mixture, mixing until just combined. Stir in nut mixture. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and chill dough until firm, 2 to 3 hours.

Form and bake cookies:
Put oven racks in upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat oven to 350°F. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.

Sift confectioners sugar into a bowl. Halve dough and chill 1 half, wrapped in plastic wrap. Roll remaining half into 1-inch balls, placing them on a sheet of wax paper as rolled. Roll balls, 3 or 4 at a time, in confectioners sugar to coat generously and arrange 2 inches apart on lined baking sheets.

Bake, switching position of sheets halfway through baking, until cookies are puffed and cracked and edges feel dry (but centers are still slightly soft), 12 to 18 minutes total. Transfer cookies (still on parchment) to racks to cool completely.

While first batch is baking, roll remaining dough into balls. Line cooled cookie sheets with fresh parchment, then coat balls with confectioners sugar and bake in same manner.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake

Hello, lover. Chocolate. Peanut Butter. Cake. Are there any more beautiful words in the English language? Sigh...
Oof, sorry, I was in a reverie. A peanut butter cream cheese frosting induced reverie. I know, weird, right? Peanut butter and cream cheese, and it is SO good. I ate the leftovers on graham crackers once the cake was thoroughly frosted.

I've been eyeing this recipe for months, but I didn't have any occasion to make it, until Michelle at work announced she's having a baby, and she didn't mean getting another puppy.

This was the finale of the baby shower Hugh and I hosted last week, and I think it was quite well received... though we did manage to save a piece for Jack (the husband/baby daddy).

If you like peanut butter cups and rich desserts, give it a try. Oh! Or try it as cupcakes... I bet they would be easier to frost. You could skip the glaze, too... hm. I'm giving myself ideas.

Sour Cream-Chocolate Cake with Peanut Butter Frosting and Chocolate-Peanut Butter Glaze
adapted from Sky High, Irresistible Triple Layer Cakes, via Smitten Kitchen

Makes an 8-inch triple-layer cake; serves 16 or more

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/2 cups sugar
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup neutral vegetable oil, such as canola
1 cup sour cream
1 1/2 cups water
2 tablespoons distilled white vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter the bottoms and sides of three 8-inch round cakepans. Line the bottom of each pan with a round of parchment or waxed paper and butter the paper.

2. Sift the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt into a large bowl. Whisk to combine them well. Add the oil and sour cream and whisk to blend. Gradually beat in the water. Blend in the vinegar and vanilla. Whisk in the eggs and beat until well blended. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and be sure the batter is well mixed. Divide among the 3 prepared cake pans.

3. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until a cake tester or wooden toothpick inserted in the center comes out almost clean. Let cool in the pans for about 20 minutes. Invert onto wire racks, carefully peel off the paper liners, and let cool completely. I took Deb's advice here and froze the layers on paper plates, thank goodness, because this is a very very soft cake.

4. To frost the cake, place one layer, flat side up, on a cake stand or large serving plate. Spread 2/3 cup cup of the Peanut Butter Frosting evenly over the top. Repeat with the next layer. Place the last layer on top and frost the top and sides of the cake with the remaining frosting. Chill the frosted cake thoroughly.

5. To decorate with the Chocolate–Peanut Butter Glaze, simply pour the warm glaze over the top of the cake, and using an offset spatula, spread it evenly over the top just to the edges so that it runs down the sides of the cake in long drips. Refrigerate, uncovered, for at least 30 minutes to allow the glaze and frosting to set completely. Remove about 1 hour before serving.

Peanut Butter Frosting aka the frosting that killed my hand mixer
Makes about 5 cups

10 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1 stick (4 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
5 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted
2/3 cup smooth peanut butter, preferably a commercial brand (because oil doesn’t separate out)

1. In a large bowl with an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese and butter until light and fluffy. Gradually add the confectioners’ sugar 1 cup at a time, mixing thoroughly after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl often. Continue to beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes.

2. Add the peanut butter and beat until thoroughly blended.

Chocolate-Peanut Butter Glaze
Makes about 1 1/2 cups

8 ounces seimsweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
3 tablespoons smooth peanut butter
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
1/2 cup half-and-half

1. In the top of d double boiler or in a bowl set over simmering water, combine the chocolate, peanut butter, and corn syrup. Cook, whisking often, until the chocolate is melted and the mixture is smooth.

2. Remove from the heat and whisk in the half-and-half, beating until smooth. Use while still warm.

Yellow Eye Bean Salad

So, do you guys remember that bean salad my mom made back in July? And how I said I was going to make it "soon"? Ooooh, hee hee heee! Right. It's been nearly 5 months, but I did! I made it! Hugh and I hosted a baby shower on Monday so I took the day off (naughty Bruno, very bad) and cooked... for like 8 hours. It was excellent.

Seriously though, I was happy to have an excuse to revisit the recipe. It's based on a recipe by BAM! himself, though he calls for black eyed peas. Instead, I used Rancho Gordo yellow eyes.

It's pretty straightforward: cook the beans, chop the veggies, add the dressing & seasoning and let it sit in the fridge for a few hours. If you're in Boston and you have a fridge full of beer, you could also put it on your back deck because IT'S ONLY 30 DEGREES. You know, if you want. Just a suggestion. You should give it a stir every hour or so, too.

Take it out an hour before you want to eat it, stir again, and put it in the pretty bowl you thought you lost. I would caution that you should use good beans here, since they are the star of the show, but if you use canned... well, I won't tell.

PS - there's bacon. Did I mention that?

Yellow Eye Bean Salad
adapted from Emeril Lagasse

1 lb dried beans of your choice, soaked for a few hours, cooked and cooled or three 15 oz cans
4-5 slices of bacon, crisp cooked and crumbled
1/2 cup + 2 Tbsp red wine vinegar
1/2 cup good olive oil
1/2 medium red onion, chopped fine
1 medium red bell pepper, chopped fine
1/4 cup chopped green onions
1 jalapeno, seeded and finely chopped (leave a few seeds if you want more heat)
1/4 cup parsley, leaves only, chopped
2 small or 1 large clove garlic, minced
1 1/2 tsp creole seasoning (see below)
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper

Combine all ingredients and refrigerate (or porch-erate) 3-4 hours or overnight, stirring occasionally. Let sit at room temp for 45 minutes before serving.

Serves many.

For DIY creole seasoning, combine the following thoroughly and store in an airtight container:

2.5 parts paprika
2 parts salt
2 parts garlic powder
1 part dried oregano
1 part black pepper
1 part dried thyme
1 part cayenne pepper
1 part onion powder

What I did yesterday

I made a three layer peanut butter chocolate cake, a yellow eye bean salad, and chicken empanadas. I did NOT go to work. Today I DO have to go to work, but I'll tell you all about the deliciousness this week!