SPONGE CANDY

Kathy McCarthy has one sweet job! She makes candy. Well, not just candy. Kathy, or Cocoa as she prefers to be

Kathy McCarthy

called, makes extraordinary, super-delicious, handcrafted, chocolate-coated candy, which she sells at the Sweet Spot in the Savory Spoon Marketplace in Door County, Wisconsin.

Although Cocoa’s specialties include chocolate-drenched toffees (for which she won a blue ribbon at the Arizona state fair), caramels and a divine peanut-butter confection, to me, her pièce de résistance is sponge candy (a crunchy, melt-in-the-mouth delight also know as fairy food, sugar puffs, sea foam and honeycomb).

Cocoa says that she started making sponge candy with her mother when she was a child growing up on a mink ranch in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, and has made it happily ever after for her family’s holidays and special events. Today, she makes the candy for other folks’ special occasions as well, selling the sweet at her chocolate boutique in the Marketplace shop and through mail order.

As generous as she is charming, Cocoa shares her family recipe below. But trust me, when it comes to Cocoa’s candy, one is never enough, so check out the Sweet Spot for more dark, delectable magic. MMmmmmmm.

SPONGE CANDY

Yield: about 1-1/2 pounds candy (about 40 pieces)

Butter to grease pan

1 cup granulated sugar

1 cup dark corn syrup

1 tablespoon white vinegar

1 tablespoon baking soda

About 1 pound good dark chocolate (If you are going to temper the chocolate, use a block or bar of very good chocolate, rather than chocolate chips. See note.)

Butter a 9 X 9 X 2-inch pan and set aside.

Combine sugar, corn syrup and vinegar in a large (3-quart), heavy saucepan. Set pan over medium heat and bring mixture to a boil, stirring constantly until sugar completely dissolves. Without stirring, boil mixture until it registers 300°F on a candy thermometer. (At this stage a drizzle of the mixture will separate into brittle threads when dropped into cold water.) Immediately remove pan from heat, add baking soda and stir quickly until well mixed (the mixture will foam). Quickly pour mixture into the buttered pan. Set aside at room temperature to cool completely. When cooled, break candy into chunks.

Melt chocolate (see note). Dip candy chunks in chocolate and set aside at room temperature until the chocolate is firm to the touch.

NOTE: MELTING CHOCOLATE You can melt chocolate in a saucepan over low heat, in the top of a double boiler over simmering water, or in a microwave set on defrost, but if you are using a fine couverture chocolate, a more professional approach would be, before dipping the candy, to “temper” the chocolate (which gives it a sheen and keeps the surface of the chocolate from appearing mottled or matted).

TO TEMPER ONE POUND OF GOOD DARK CHOCOLATE:

1. Chop chocolate bar or block into chunks.

2. Put 2/3 of the chucks in the top of a double boiler set over simmering water.

3. Attach an instant-read thermometer to the side of the boiler.

4. Stirring gently with a rubber spatula, heat chocolate until it is completely melted and at a temperature ranging between 105°F and no more than 115°F.

5. Immediately remove top of boiler with melted chocolate from the heat. Dry bottom of pan. Set on heatproof surface. Add remaining unmelted 1/3 chopped chocolate to melted chocolate and stir gently, with a rubber spatula, to melt the new chocolate and drop the temperature of melted chocolate to 88°F. (If temperature drops below 84°F you can remove any unmelted chocolate chunks from the melted and set aside for another use, and then set the melted chocolate over warm water and raise its temperature to 88°F.) Keep melted chocolate at temperature between 86°F to 88°F while dipping the candy.

Sweet Spot's Angel Food (chocolate drizzled over sponge candy)

¶ Posted 16 December 2010 † Susan Manlin Katzman § CANDY § CHOCOLATE ‡ Comments Off ° Tagged: Door County, fairy food, honeycomb, Kathy McCarthy, Savory Spoon, sea foam, sponge candy, sugar puffs

ALBUQUERQUE

TEN THINGS TO LOVE ABOUT ALBUQUERQUE and TEN REALLY GOOD RESTAURANT RECOMMENDATIONS

1. OLD TOWN sits in the historic heart of Albuquerque and the neighborhood (which is full of authentic Spanish Colonial buildings housing restaurants, galleries, shops and museums) is as much a city center as was when the city was founded in 1706.

2. ROUTE 66 is greatly touted in history books, songs and legends, but nowhere is the spirit of this Mother Road kept alive than in Albuquerque. The name has changed to Central Avenue, but the kicks are still available at any number of great places stretching through Albuquerque’s Downtown area and trendy Nob Hill District. Personal favorite restaurants along the route:

66 DINER (A diner with old-fashioned décor serving usual diner fare with a NM twist—I’m talking chiles here.)

FRONTIER (A local favorite for wonderfully gooey sweet rolls and inexpensive meals.)

KELLY’S BREW PUB (The quintessential brew pub with good bar food and great handcrafted beers—you can even brew and bottle your own.)

THE GROVE CAFÉ AND MARKET (This light, bright, contemporary café/shop, open only for breakfast, brunch and lunch, focuses on organic and natural foods.)

3. CULTURAL CENTERS

The INDIAN PUEBLO CULTURAL CENTER represents the 19 Pueblos of New Mexico with informative cultural and artistic displays and, on weekends, special Native American dancing and ceremony performances. The center also houses a good gift shop and the PUEBLO HARVEST CAFÉ, serving a luscious sampling of authentic Native American dishes.

The NATIONAL HISPANIC CULTURAL CENTER showcases Hispanic culture through exhibition galleries, performing arts theatre, and the LA FONDA DEL BOSQUE restaurant (try the lunch buffet of traditional New Mexico cuisine). New to the NHCC offerings and not-to-be-missed spectacular is the 4,000 square-foot Torreon Fresco by Frederico (call to see when it’s open and plan your trip accordingly—trust me. This is a must.)

4. SANDIA PEAK TRAMWAY climbs 2.7 miles from desert floor to the 10,378-foot peak of the Sandia Mountains, offering breathtaking views of the Rio Grande Valley.

5. PETROGLYPH NATIONAL MONUMENT stretches over 17 miles and holds around 20,000 ancient images that have been etched or pecked into stone by ancestral Native Americans and early Spanish settlers. Visitors can get close up and personal views of many of the petroglyphs from various hiking trails.

6. BALLOONS have taken off, both literally and figuratively on the ABQ scene. Year-around hot-air balloon rides, an International Balloon Fiesta and the Albuquerque International Balloon Museum make Albuquerque the world’s hot-air ballooning capital of…well…of anywhere.

7. THE GREAT OUTDOORS and ABQ’s mild, high-altitude climate infused with sunshine, lures visitors as well as locals for hiking, biking, golf and other outdoor sports and pleasures.

8. MURALS by different artist decorate the city making it a veritable museum of open-air art. Most of the murals are painted on private buildings, but a handful grace public walls and were commissioned by the city and supported by tax dollars.

9. HOTEL ANDALUZ was built by NM native Conrad Hilton in 1939, and took honors as the tallest building in NM and the first to boast air conditioning. Today’s Four Diamond Hotel Andaluz still racking up the accolades, this time as the most sustainable historic hotel in the nation. It is also one of the most charming and the IN place to stay, drink and dance (tango in the lobby) as well as dine (at the hotel’s 4-star LUCIA restaurant).

10. CHILES rock. Chiles rule. Chilies dominate Albuquerque’s food scene flavoring practically everything including cookies, nuts, jams, candy and most of the dishes in most of the food outlets. Guess one could find a restaurant without chiles on the menu (but who would want to). The state’s “official question” remains, “Red or green?” (Respond “Christmas” and you’ll get both.) Three hot places to sample chile magic:

GOLDEN CROWN PANADERIA (A bakery specializing in pizza, coffee and New Mexican baked goods including a green-chile bread. Show up early in the day for the baked goodies as they sell out quickly.)

EL PINTO AUTHENTIC NEW MEXICAN RESTAURANT (A widely popular cavernous place—seats up to 1,000 diners—with it’s own salsa and chile factory. Wash down the chile dishes with divine margaritas.)

SADIE’S OF NEW MEXICO (A perpetual “best of the city” award winner for the restaurant as well as for a variety of individual popular New Mexican dishes.) Although he wouldn’t divulge the official recipe, Executive chef Brian Stafford gave the following as a reasonable facsimile for the prize-winning Chile con Queso served at Sadie’s:

CHILE CON QUESO

Yield: About one quart. (The recipe can be halved.)

8 ounces butter

1 cup diced onion

1 cup diced tomato

1 cup diced green chile (can used Hatch select canned diced green chile, well drained)

1 pound or more diced or shredded American cheese or a mixture of American and Swiss. (“Kraft sliced singles work,” says Brian)

Melt butter. Add onion, tomato and chile and gently sauté until onions are translucent and falling apart, 10 to 15 minutes (do not brown the onions). Add cheese, a little at a time, stirring constantly until mixture is smooth and creamy. Serve hot with fresh tostados.

For more information about Albuquerque see: www.itsatrip.org.

¶ Posted 28 November 2010 † Susan Manlin Katzman § CHEESE § RECIPES § RESTAURANTS § TRAVEL ‡ Comments Off ° Tagged: Albuquerque, balloons, chile con queso, chiles, Hotel Andaluz, murals, RESTAURANTS

ROAST TURKEY AND BUTTERMILK PIE

If you’re apprehensive about preparing a big Thanksgiving meal, just think of Stephen Flowers and by comparison your cooking will seem easy as pie.

Flowers cooks for passengers riding the historic Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad through the Rocky Mountains between Chama, New Mexico and Antonito, Colorado.

The steam engine, narrow-gauge train rides include a lunch stop at Osier Station, a secluded outpost in the middle of the mountains. Flowers is Osier’s chef and everyday that the trains run (from the end of May to mid October), he roasts six to twelve 25-pound turkeys and bakes 15 to 20 pies—and that’s in addition to preparing a variety of soups, salads, vegetables, breads and other dishes to please several hundred diners.

Chef Stephen Flowers

This cheerful chef says that he has two secrets to pulling off a made-from-scratch Thanksgiving feast day after day.

“One secret is that we aren’t so focused on presentation,” says Flowers who serves buffet style, “so we cook the turkeys breast-side down in about two inches of water. We cook them slowly, about 10 to 12 hours at 275°F, and then we remove the meat from the bone to serve. The turkey is always moist and tender.

“The second secret is our recipe for Southern

Pie and railroad fans

buttermilk pie. We have one basic recipe that we can change with only a few ingredient switches or additions. These minor changes allows us to make a wide variety of different flavored pies each day.”

For those who want to copy Flowers, here’s his base recipe with a few variation suggestions, but the recipe is so adaptable, cooks can get creative and season to suit their own taste.

SOUTHERN BUTTERMILK PIE

1-1/3 cups sugar

1/3 cup flour

3 eggs

1 cup buttermilk

1/3 cup melted butter

1 tablespoon lemon juice

Dash salt

1 unbaked 9-inch pie shell

Ground cinnamon

Ground nutmeg

Preheat oven to 350°.

Mix sugar and flour and set aside.

Put eggs in a medium size mixing bowl and beat just to combine yolks and whites. Add buttermilk, butter, lemon juice, salt and sugar-flour mixture. Beat just to combine ingredients; do not over mix.

Pour mixture into pie shell. Lightly sprinkle cinnamon and nutmeg over top.

Bake at 350°F for until set, about 45 minutes.

VARIATIONS

PINEAPPLE BUTTERMILK PIE

Add drained crushed pineapple to base mixture.

COCONUT BUTTERMILK PIE

Add shredded coconut and a touch of coconut flavoring to base mixture. (Do not top with cinnamon and nutmeg.)

Coconut Buttermilk Pie

¶ Posted 18 November 2010 † Susan Manlin Katzman § DESSERTS § PIES ‡ Comments Off ° Tagged: buttermilk, Cumbres & Toltec Railroad, pie, THANKSGIVING, turkey

FABULOUS SOUP RECIPES

TWO GREAT SOUPS

Both:

French-connected,

white and creamy,

luxuriously rich

and

beautifully versatile (can be served hot or cold, summer or winter, with any number of garnishes changing the flavor).

I developed the Cream of Brie Soup for Food and Wines from France to serve at a convention. The organization wanted a dish that would showcase the rich, subtle flavor of Brie, yet have personality of its own and multiple uses. The soup was perfect, as garnishes contribute to flavor and change the nature of the dish, allowing it to enhance a variety of meals. I love to serve this soup at formal dinner parties garnished with seasonal fruits, and consider it sumptuous enough for Christmas brunch, especially if I can get my hands on white truffles for garnish.

Chef Rene Pianetti

The Cream of Bean Soup comes from Le Chef Coq Restaurant in Nuits-Saint-Georges, where Chef René Pianetti presides over the kitchen and serves food that is both contemporary and original. I found the soup on a summer luncheon menu disguised under the name “Gaspacho.” The custard-smooth bean soup had nothing to do with gaspacho, except it was chilled, but it offered extraordinay flavor that was unique and distinquished. I like this soup best at casual seated dinners on chilly evenings and I sometimes serve it at Thanksgiving, garnishing with prosciutto, country ham, assorted grilled and diced sausages and even sautéed-slivered fennel, if smoked duck is not available.

TWO GREAT SOUPS

Each:

lusciously unique,

dramatically different

and

extravagantly delicious.

Bon Appétit!

CREAM OF BRIE SOUP

Yield: About 4 servings.

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 leek, trimmed and chopped (use white part only)

1 celery rib, trimmed and chopped

1/4 teaspoon dried thyme

1 bay leaf

2 black peppercorns

Pinch ground cloves

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

2 cups chicken broth

1 cup whole milk

1 cup light cream

1/2 pound Brie, rind removed

Garnish suggestions:

Cognac

Crumbled Roquefort

Crumbled Roquefort and diced pears

Fresh berries (perfect for a chilled brunch soup)

Julienne strips of steamed root vegetables

Sautéed apples

Sauteed mushrooms

Shaved white truffles

Toasted nuts and brown sugar (a dessert garnish)

Melt butter in a 3-quart saucepan. Add leek, celery, thyme, bay, peppercorns and cloves; stir well. Cover pot and “steam” ingredients until they are soft, about 15 minutes.

Sprinkle flour over ingredients and stir until flour is absorbed. Cook, stirring, 1 minute. Stir in broth, milk and cream. Simmer 30 minutes. Cut Brie into chucks and stir into soup. Continue to simmer, stirring constantly, until Brie completely melts. Strain soup.

Serve immediately, garnished as desired. Or if serving chilled, cool soup at room temperature and refrigerate until well chilled. Serve chilled with appropriate garnish.

CREAM OF WHITE BEAN SOUP

Yield: About 4 servings.

2-1/2 cups dry white beans (about 1 pound 2 ounces)

Water

6 to 7 cups rich flavorful chicken broth

1 thick slice smoked bacon

1 carrot, peeled and halved

Several sprigs thyme

1 bay leaf

1 large garlic clove, peeled and halved

1 cup heavy cream

About 3/4 cup buttery croutons

Hazelnut oil (optional)

Garnish suggestions

Thin strips of smoked duck

Thin strips of prosciutto

Thin strips of country ham

Sautéed sausage, diced

Cover the beans with cold water and let soak overnight.

Drain beans and put in a 4-quart saucepan. Add chicken broth, bacon, carrot, thyme, bay leaf, garlic. Gently simmer the beans until they are tender, about 3 hours. Set aside until cool enough to handle. Drain beans reserving broth. Discard bacon, carrot, garlic, thyme and bay. Mash beans. Stir in cream and enough (2 to 3 cups) reserved broth to make a thick soup. Pass soup through a food mill or strainer.

Serve immediately, garnished with croutons, a drizzle of oil and duck, country ham, prosciutto or sausage. Or if serving chilled, cool soup at room temperature and refrigerate until well chilled. Serve chilled, garnished with croutons, a drizzle of oil and duck, country ham or prosciutto.

¶ Posted 27 October 2010 † Susan Manlin Katzman § BRUNCH § ENTERTAINING § RECIPES § RESTAURANTS § SOUPS § THANKSGIVING ‡ Comments Off ° Tagged: Brie, chilled soup, hot soup, Le Chef Coq, THANKSGIVING, white truffles

FINDING CRUISE DEALS

If you feel like a fish out of water looking for a cruise that doesn’t go overboard on pricing, don’t feel alone; in this economy most of us are in the same boat. That’s why I called Bob Levinstein, CEO of CruiseCompete.com, for advice. If anyone can shore up our knowledge about cruise bargains, Levinstein can as he has been in the business of finding consumers the best prices on cruises since 2003. Levinstein claims finding deals is smooth sailing once one knows the ropes and he offered the following tips to help cruisers become shipshape savvy about pricing.

HOW TO FIND CRUISE DEALS (according to Bob Levinstein)

Bob Levinstein

CRUISE IN LOW-DEMAND TIMES Choose to cruise in non-peak times, such as when most children are in school. In particular, avoid cruising over holidays as these sailings are typically higher priced due to demand. Less demand equals a lower price.

Think about traveling at the beginning or end of a season (shoulder season) when prices are more competitive and also consider a repositioning cruise. Repositioning cruises are those where cruise lines sail from winter to summer homes or visa versa. As the purpose is to move the ship, these cruises tend to have more days at sea and fewer port stops, but are cheaper than regular cruises.

The Crystal Serenity

BOOK FAR IN ADVANCE OR AT THE LAST MINUTE Cruise ships offer discounts for both. If early, you have the added advantage of choice of rooms AND you can turn in a frequent flyer to cover airfare or take advantage of advance airfare specials.

Close to sailing time—three to six weeks out—cruise ships, eager to fill empty rooms, can drop prices significantly. Individual travel agents can also offer unadvertised discounts close to sailing time, so check out a few and compare prices.

Sail Away party on The Ruby Princess

CHOOSE THE RIGHT CABIN Cruise ships offer different price structures for different type cabins. Cabins on certain decks, and without certain amenities are cheaper to book than the premium cabins with all the bells and whistles. Right choice of cabin can drop costs dramatically.

Keep in mind that if you book a “category guarantee” you can reserve a category of cabin, but not a specific room—which will be assigned. You pay the lowest rate available and often end up being upgraded to a better category.

At a popular port.

CONSIDER ALL DEALS When factoring costs, consider the value of onboard credits. An extra $100 in your onboard account is just as good as a $100 discount off of your cruise fare. This onboard credit can be used for tips and anything else on board.

Think about a specialty soft drink option. For example, on Princess Cruises, soda cards are approximately $9 per person, per day for all you can drink. Some cards included such items as hot chocolate, “mocktails,” and specialty ice creams in addition to soft drinks. Specialty coffee cards are also available.

Purchase your shore excursions directly rather than through the cruise line. A good site to research your options is AllThings Cruise.com.

The Silver Cloud in London

SEARCH THE WEB Use the Internet to locate the sailings with the lowest demand. Find the cruise you want, the exact date and the type cabin, but don’t buy at the price advertised as cruise lines only let agencies promote retail prices. Get custom quotes directly from agents. You can contact multiple travel agencies yourself, or you can put a quote request into CruiseCompete.com and let the 1000 member agents come to you with their best offers.

Here’s how CruiseCompete.com works: You register on the site and then type in your cruise choice being specific about ship, sailing date and cabin type. Member travel agents will bid on your cruise. They will be competitive. You can communicate with agents by phone, E-mail or live chat to ask questions or to see if they can “sweeten the deal” with extra discounts or on-board credit. Compare prices, making sure that your price includes all charges and then you can book with the agent of your choice. There is no cost to you for this service and you will remain anonymous until you make your booking.

Watching movies on the Ruby Princess

¶ Posted 18 October 2010 † Susan Manlin Katzman § CRUISING ‡ Comments Off ° Tagged: cruise deals, CRUISING

OPENSKIES

Something old: the planes.

OpenSkies: business beds and great staff

Something new: the concept.

Something borrowed: a fine chef.

Something blue: the open skies that OpenSkies flies.

If ever there was a marriage made in heaven it’s OpenSkies airlines coupling all-business class service with low value pricing. Can’t beat the service or the deals.

Introduced in 2008, this airline, a subsidiary of British Airways, flies only from New York and Washington, D.C, to Paris. Its small and intimate approach—and its pricing—gives passengers much to love. Here, let me count the ways that OpenSkies rises above competition:

OpenSkies outfitted its fleet of four Boeing 757-200 planes to hold from 64 to 84 passengers. Each plane has only two cabins, both business class. One cabin sports business beds (luscious little pods that fully recline for sleeping), the other, business seats (wide leather seats reclining 140°). The small number of passengers allows

Washington Dulles International

for easy boarding and deplaning, as well as space, style and comfort throughout the flight.

The planes fly nonstop from Newark Liberty International airport and Washington Dulles International RT to Paris-Orly. Dulles and Orly are small and uncomplicated airports, easy to navigate and quick with check in and security. (Sorry, lack the experience to speak for Newark).

The airline offers plenty of perks, including pre-boarding access to airline lounges, truly accommodating staff and value pricing with occasional great bargains.

View from the window: an OpenSkies sunset

Oh, and of course, the food. Love is in the air for foodies, at least on the Dulles/Orly run where the airline hired Michel Richard, of renowned L.A. and D.C. fame, to dish up the catering.

I don’t say this lightly, but the best fish I have ever encountered on any airline was a Salmon with Eggplant served on Open Skies. After hunting literally high and low for a recipe that would allow me to enjoy the dish happily ever after, I found a home-cook’s facsimile in Michel Richard’s fabulous cookbook,

HAPPY IN THE KITCHEN (Artisan books, 2006, 352 pages, 151 recipes, good technique advice, and gorgeous photography. A must-have for the cookbook collector.).

The following recipe gives a taste of both OpenSkies and Michel Richard’s book. Both airline and book wed style to substance and offer much that is oh so easy to love….

EGGPLANT SALMON

(Recipe adapted from Michel Richard’s HAPPY IN THE KITCHEN)

Yield: 4 main course servings.

2 Japanese eggplants (4 to 5 ounces each)

About 6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided

2 garlic cloves

1/4 cup chicken stock

1 teaspoon soy sauce

Fine sea salt

Freshly ground black pepper

2/3 cup (14-inch) diced fresh mozzarella (about 4 ounces)

1/4 cup cut (1-inch pieces) garlic chives (about 10 chives)

1/2 cup chopped yellow onion

2 large ripe tomatoes (about 6 ounces each), chopped

Pinch granulated sugar

4 center-cut salmon fillets, (each 6 to 8 ounces and cut 1 to 1-1/2 inches thick), skin and any pinbones removed (If the belly, a thinner fattier section of salmon is still attached, cut it away and reserve for another use.)

10 basil leaves, cut into julienne

To make stuffing: halve each eggplant, lengthwise. Lay each half cut side down on a work surface and cut into thin half-moon slices, no thicker than 1/8 inch. You should have about 3 cups of eggplant. Heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a medium sauté pan over medium heat. Add the eggplant. Using a rasp grater, grate the garlic directly onto the eggplant (or mince garlic and add it). Cook, turning the eggplant frequently for about 5 minutes, until it is softened and the garlic is fragrant. Add the chicken stock and simmer for about 2 minutes to reduce the stock and glaze the eggplant. Season with soy sauce and salt and pepper to taste. Spread the eggplant on a plate and let it cool to room temperature. When completely cool, scoop the eggplant into a bowl and gently stir in the mozzarella and chives. Taste and correct seasoning. Set aside until ready to use. (The stuffing can be held at room temperature for up to 2 hours.)

To make vinaigrette: heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a small skillet over medium high heat. Add the onion and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes to soften. Add the tomatoes and sugar and simmer gently for 15 minutes. Transfer the tomato mixture to a blender and puree until smooth. Strain through a fine-mesh strainer into a bowl and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat oven to 325°F.

With a sharp knife, cut a vertical slit down the center of each salmon fillet, leaving the bottom 1/2-inch of salmon intact. With your hands or a spoon, pull the slits gently apart to make a pocket and stuff each pocket with 1/4 of the eggplant stuffing.

Place stuffed salmon on an oiled baking sheet, season with salt and pepper and drizzle olive oil over top. Set salmon in the preheated oven and bake for about 12 minutes, or until the stuffing is hot throughout.

Stir basil into the vinaigrette. Spoon some vinaigrette into the center of each serving plate. Top with the salmon. Serve.

¶ Posted 06 October 2010 † Susan Manlin Katzman § AIRLINES § BOOKS § COOKBOOK REVIEWS § ENTREES § TRAVEL ‡ Comments Off ° Tagged: eggplant, HAPPY IN THE KITCHEN, Michel Richard, OpenSkies airlines

DIVINE TARTS

View from the window at L'Auberge Du Lac Casino Resort

I first met the tart in my hotel room at the L’Auberge Du Lac Casino Resort in Lake Charles, Louisana. Temptation knocked on the door in the guise of a “welcome gift” and I confess I abandoned all control and immediately,voraciously indulged. The encounter left me filled with guilt, but wanting more.

Fortunately we met again, at the popular Rouge et Blanc, Lake Charles’ premier wine and food festival. I spied the tart in a discreet corner of the festival, seductive as ever. Bypassing the crowd waiting to sample the festival’s fine wines and food specialties, I rushed to the tart and again yielded to desire. Once. Twice. I couldn’t get enough.

According to dietician Shively Lampson, who made the tarts for both the hotel gift and the festival, I am not alone in my passion.

“Dark Chocolate Ganache Tarts are best sellers at our shop,” says Shively referencing Pure Foods & Health, the retail healthy foods shop in Lake Charles that she co-owns with her husband Gene.

Gene & Shively Lampson at Rouge et Blanc

“Because the tarts are made with unprocessed and uncooked plant foods, they are great for vegans, vegetarians as well as raw food dieters.” In addition, Shively said that “using coconut butter makes the tarts heart healthy. The fat in coconut oil is made up of medium chain fatty acids, and as such is more likely to be used as an energy source rather than stored as fat.”

Talk about lucky in love. My sinfully rich, deeply decadent-tasting chocolate tarts turned out to be a vegetarian “health” food.

Ingredients may be a bit hard to find—and a tad expensive, but if you can’t get to Lake Charles and Pure Foods & Health, you can make the tarts at home with Shively’s recipe.

DARK CHOCOLATE GANACHE TARTS

Yield: 8 to 10 three-inch tarts.

CRUST

3/4 cups cocoa powder

3/4 cups almond meal or fine almond flour

1/2 cup maple sugar or maple syrup powder

1/4 cup coconut butter or coconut oil

Pinch of salt

Put cocoa powder, almond meal, maple sugar, coconut butter and salt in a large bowl. Stir with a wooden spoon or mix your hands until ingredients are thoroughly combined and form a “dough.”

Line 8 to 10 three-inch tart pans with plastic wrap and then press dough over the bottom and up the sides the pans, dividing the dough evenly among the pans. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator to chill 1 hour or more.

GANACHE FILLING

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons cocoa powder

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons maple syrup

1/2 cup coconut butter

Put cocoa powder, maple syrup and coconut butter in the jar of a blender. Blend until ingredients are thoroughly combined and completely smooth (taste to make sure the mixture is not grainy).

Spoon filling into the chilled tart crusts. Lightly lift and drop each pan onto the counter to release any air bubbles. Place tarts in the refrigerator to chill and set at least 3 hours. (Tarts freeze well at this stage.)

TO SERVE

Remove plastic wrap and, if desired, garnish with fresh strawberries or raspberries or with a dollop of Shively’s Vanilla Cashew Cream Sauce (recipe follows).

VANILLA CASHEW CREAM SAUCE

Yield: 1 cup.

1 cup raw cashews, soaked in water for four hours and drained well

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons water

2 tablespoons maple syrup or agave

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Place all ingredients in a blender and process on high speed until smooth. Chill for at least 30 minutes before serving.

¶ Posted 22 September 2010 † Susan Manlin Katzman § CHOCOLATE § DESSERTS § RECIPES ‡ Comments Off ° Tagged: CHOCOLATE, raw food, tarts, vegan, vegetarian

GRAND VELAS SPECIALITY COCKTAIL

Talk about perfectionism; GRAND VELAS ALL SUITES & SPA RESORT in Nuevo Vallarta, Mexico, does everything right. Each of the resort’s 267 well-decorated roomy suites opens to a private terrace with an extensive ocean view. Each of the four upscale, on-property restaurants serves a different well-loved cuisine (Italian, French, Mexican and International), covering a gamut of guests’ taste preferences. And the Grand Velas spa, which authorities consider the hands down finest on Mexico’s Pacific Coast, offers 80 different treatments to polish, pamper and please in a serene and peaceful setting. No doubt about it, this exclusive, all-inclusive sees to the details—no matter how large or how small.

Which brings us to the bar menu.

Some may consider it a coincidence, but I know Grand Velas is so perfection focused that the head bartender probably created the house specialty cocktail to color-coordinate with the garden plants around the resort’s various bars.

Grand Velas resort bars/Susan Manlin Katzman

The resort's lobby and swim-up bars.

The Grand Velas Special, a drink that tastes of vacation with an easy-going refreshing charm, matches not only the bright green, orange and yellow crotons scattered around the grounds and backing the swim-up bar, but also the broad leaf water lilies that grace a garden pool in front of the lobby bar. Pretty perfect if you ask me.

THE GRAND VELAS SPECIAL

A generous splash of green licor de melon (a melon liqueur such as Midori)

1/2 cup fresh orange juice

1/2 cup pineapple juice

1-1/2 ounces ron Malibu (coconut rum)

Put licor de melon in a tall glass. Add orange and pineapple juice. Top with rum. Gently fill glass with ice. Don’t stir. Enjoy.

¶ Posted 27 August 2010 † Susan Manlin Katzman § COCKTAILS § RESORTS § SPAS § TRAVEL ‡ Comments Off ° Tagged: Grand Velas, Malibu, melon liqueur, Mexico, Nuevo Vallarta

DIJON RESTAURANTS

WHERE TO EAT IN DIJON, FRANCE

Sophie Jugie

Sophie Jugie heads the glorious Musée des Beaux-Arts in Dijon, France. As director, she not only oversees collections and operations, but also serves as the face of the museum, traveling, entertaining, and interacting with the leaders of her museum community as well as the international art community in Europe and other parts of the world.

One aspect of Sophie’s job entails dining with dignitaries visiting Dijon. Being a woman of highly refined and educated taste, Sophie knows restaurants as well as art and knows the perfect places to take visitors.

Eager for the inside scoop, I asked Sophie for a list of restaurants that she frequents with dignitaries and then requested that she broaden the list to contain some of her favorite places that give an overview of the good food found in Dijon.

Ever generous, Sophie replied with the following:

SOPHIE JUGIE’S FAVORITE DIJON RESTAURANTS

The Place de la Liberation: Susan Manlin Katzman

The Place de la Liberation with two good restaurants: Le Cafe Gourmand and Le Pre aux Clercs

The most beautiful place in Dijon is obviously the Place de la Libération, the former Place Royale, in front of the Palace of the Dukes and of the States-General of Burgundy where the Musée des Beaux-Arts is located. Here are two favorite restaurants.

For an informal lunch, I like Le Café Gourmand (9 place de la Libération, 03 80 36 87 51) for its original and often renewed menus and its terrace. This is a perfect place to me.

Sitting next door is the famous Le Pré aux Clercs (13 place de la Libération, 03 80 38 05 05) where one of the most talented chefs of Dijon, Jean-Pierre Billoux, is cooking. Among the many delights of this one-Michelin starred restaurant, I recommend the spectacular “quenelles d’ecrevisse.”

It wouldn’t be fair not to mention the other Michelin starred chefs of Dijon producing inspired and rarefied cooking: Stéphane Derbord of Restaurant Stéphane Derbord (10 place Wilson, 03 80 67 74 64) and William Frachot at Hostellerie du Chapeau Rouge (5 rue Michelet, 03 80 50 88 88).

Jean-Pierre Billoux

Jean-Pierre Billoux also owns a typical bistrot, Le Bistrot des Halles, (8 rue Bannelier, 09 80 49 94 15) on the market, with simple but genuine dishes. Also around the market, which is very animated Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays, are a number of other good restaurants. I like Lilouhane (10 rue Quentin, 03 80 30 59 37) for its seafood and DZ’envies (12 rue Odebert, 03 80 50 09 26) where the talented David Zuddas produces original cooking in a design environment.

In other charming streets of Dijon, you will find a large choice of nice places.

Courtyard of La Maison Milliere

Behind the wonderful church of Notre Dame, La Maison Milliere (10 rue de la Chouette, 03 80 30 99 99) offers en trompe L’oeil garden courtyard in which to enjoy a pleasant meal.

In the animated rue de l’Amiral Roussin, not far or the Renaissance Palais de Justice, is my favorite Italian restaurant, Osteria Enoteca Italiana (32 rue Amiral Roussin, 03 80 50 07 36)—vera cucina Italiana, good Italian wines.

The fried Camemberts of Le Petit Roi de la Lune (28 rue Amiral Roussin, 03 80 49 89 93) is a tasting must.

Le Petit Roi de la Lune / La Causerie des Mondes/Susan Manlin Katzman

Le Petit Roi de la Lune sits next door to La Causerie des Mondes

And next door you will find a serene place for a cup of tea, a salad and a dessert at La Causerie des Mondes. Both restaurants are in medieval half timbered houses.

The Place Emile Zola reminds me of the south of France with its big plane-trees and fountain and there I recommend a funny vegetarian restaurant Les Pieds Bleus (13 place Emile Zola, 03 80 50 06 66).

Recently, in the nearby rue Berbisey, also full of bars and restaurants, I discovered Le Piano qui Fume (36 rue Berbisey, 03 80 30 35 45) with an astonishing delicious and refined menu at a very mild price.

¶ Posted 15 August 2010 † Susan Manlin Katzman § RESTAURANTS § TRAVEL § Uncategorized ‡ Comments Off ° Tagged: Dijon, Dijon restaruants, France, Musee des Beaux-Arts

CATALAN TOMATO BREAD

Maria-Lluisa Albacar, the foreign relations manager for Turisme de Barcelona, is an avid foodie, so when she offered to take a bunch of food writers to show off some of her favorite Barcelona restaurants, I was first in line.

My favorite of Maria-Lluisa’s favorite restaurants is Casa Leopoldo, a three-generation-owned oldie in Barcelona’s El Raval district. A leftover from when the neighborhood enjoyed more respect, Casa Leopoldo serves terrific traditional dishes in a setting enhanced by colorful tile walls, dark wood beam ceilings and numerous photographs of famous bullfighters who frequented the place.

As is the Spanish tradition, Maria-Lluisa ordered a generous number of her favorite dishes for us to try and my favorite of her favorites was a crusty, flavor-packed tomato bread that was placed on the table at the start of the meal.

According to Maria-Lluisa pa amb tomaquet (literally bread with tomato in Catalan) is not only one of the simplest Spanish dishes to make, but also one of the most beloved specialties in the whole of Catalonia. She said that sometimes locals top the bread with cheese, sausage or ham, but her favorite way to eat it is warm, crunchy and tasting like fresh-from-the-garden tomatoes—just as it was served at Casa Leopoldo.