Cherished Recipes

 With tomorrow being All Soul's Day, it's a time to remember loved ones that have passed. One of their legacies is food. It coul;d be a stew or a sauce , a holiday cake or cookie recipe. MIne is my one great grandmother's breadcrums soup  - pompeist recipe from the Val Susa in Piedmonte. This simple potage has gotten me through a lot. It's a mix of broth with stirred in eggs and then thickened  with breadcrumbs. It connects me with my past and my heritage.

What is your most cherished family recipe? Do you make it a lot or is it just for special occasions?

Treats For Diwali

 Halloween has its' many treats, from caramel apples to festive cupcakes.Yet Diwali also has it's share of delicious sugary treats. The holiday starts tonight and start it with sweetness to represent good overcoming evil. These are bardem burif and pedi  South Asian confections that are easy to make at home.Try them for a different kind of treat.

Regular contributor Priya Krishna wrote about this sweet  in yesterday's  New York Times Food section.They're known as mithai, sweet usually made with ghee or clarified butter, nuts and dairy. Mithai wasn't always this sweet. Before colonization, the Indians used jaggery , a mix of sugar from sugar cane and the sap of the date palm.The flavor was toasty and not cloyingly sweet .Yet a robust can sugar industry emerged during thi s time according to Arun Kumar Singh, an associate professor of politicla science at Multianimal Modi College in Modimagar,India/,Now many Indian -American chefs are going back to the somewhat original taste. This means adding salt to counter the overpowering sweetness.It even appears in American desserts cooked by Indian chefs.Che Deepa Shrihars at Thali, Omikase, a popup create a pumpkin pie based on Mysore pak,,a fudgey chickpea based sweet that boasts jaggery - and salr.even in India mithai is changing. Flavors such as Bischoff crackers and tiramisu are popping up in sweet shops such as the one inMumba at the Bpmbay Sweet Shop

Creating both Badam barfi and pedi are relatively easy.The first is a blend of ghee, cardamon, almond flour, sugar and salt..It's creating a soft ball stage syrup of sugar and water,The almond flour, cardimon and slated and sifted together  The almond flour and ghee is then added to this and then cooked  until the sides pull away from the pan and becomes slightly puffed. Pour this into a ghee greased pan and pat down with a spatula. The top is a Barbie pink chocolate made from ruby chocolate. This is a kind of chocolate made with red cocoa beans and it has a fruity flavor like strawberry or raspberry. It's melted in the microwave with freeze dried strawberries and then it's poured over the barfi. Cut into diamond shaped squares. You can add edible gold flecks too. Ped is made with either sweet milk ice cream mixed with saffron threads and cardamon. Four cups of whole milk powder is added .Use the ghee for greasing your hands.It's melting the ice cream in a frying pan, then adding the saffron and powdered milk.Its then poured onto parchment paper. Pinch off a goofball size pieces and roll in your hands.Flatten and then make an indentation with your thumb.Andd chopped pistachios in each well and then chill for two hours.

Diwali is full of sweets.Make these to celebrate the festival of light. They're a wonderful way to enjoy the holida

New York's Best Pizza

 Last week the New York Times Food section gave a very good and extensive guide to finding the city's best bagels. Now it's a guide for the best pizza. The city is famous for its' yummy slices , rich with sauce and cheese. WHich is the best? That's a hard answer.

Keep in mind this guide stretches to all the boroughs so you don;t have leave your own to get a tasty pie. Even if you're in New Jersey, it's an easy trip to Staten Island to get a dinner. The same goes for Long Islanders seeking a great pizza in Brooklyn or Queens. Those from Westchester and even Connecticut can visit the Bronx for an out of the world creation too. Yet it's Manhattan pizzerias that attracts the famous and ordinary alike.Greenwich Village was always known for it's excellent Italian restaurants, spillover from Little Italy. Joe's Pizzeria is one of these, located on Carmine Street.They serve a New York style pizza with a slightly chewy cheese and a wealth of pepperoni.A Staten Island favorite Joe And pat's Pizzeria has branched out to the East Village. They also serve Italian American classics liked stuffed manicotti veal alla Milanese and chicken Parmigian. Yet it's the pizzas that shine.Try their vodka sauce topped one.It has a creamy  tomato sauce that is well known throughout the city.Also try their calamari one as well. Coal oven pizza is always desirable. Try Arturos's in Greenwich Village.Their arugula and prosciutto one.It's a cross between a bar pie and a deep dish one/

Of course the boroughs are known for their amazing pizzerias.The Bronx has its' own Little Italy at Arthur Avenue. Yet go to the Morris Park section and have a slice from Emilio's.fans go made for their chicken and vodka sauce pie.For zing try their Partanna pizza which has red onions and a dusting of Calabrian chili along with pecorino cheese,oregano and the surprise drizzle of orange blossom honey. Another borough Brooklyn is also home to some great places. A visit to L & B Spumoni Gardens is well worth it ,especially for fans of the Chuck E. Cheese pies. They kind of mimic it with the fried doughy crust and gooey cheese.They also have thick, satisfying squares of Sicilian pizza and ice cold beer to wash it down. Have a dessert of their almond Spumoni too.  Astoria Queens may be known for Greek food but you can find a decent pizza there too. Go to the sweetly namedMilk flower for the personal pan style ones.Try the unusual stun Dunn which features caramelized onions along with a mix of Gruyere(!) and mozzarella along with scallions and red onions. Jersey it's will love going to Staten Island for Seppe's Pizza Bar 's pies.The place is on the Narrow facing Brooklyn, perfect for warm weather dining. Their pizza  topping has a combo of hot honey, jalapenos and pepperoni. It's a refreshing combo of sweetness and bite.

New York is a pizza city. Visit Manhattan, Take a trip to the outer boroughs for some good pie. This is not only what New Yorker's rave about but the entire world .

A Halloween Fun DInner

 Dinner is important even on a fun day like Halloween.The little ones have to eat a good dinner before trick or treating. The best bet here is make the dinner  fun. They'll want seconds and even thirds.

Hamburgers are always a good meal. They're hot and filling along with being tasty. Make them fun by turning them into jack o'lanterns. This is an easy fix.  Cut out eyes and a grin on cheese slices . Put aside as you grill the burgers.WHen the burgers are almost done layer the cheese on them .The meat's heat will slightly melt the cheese leaving to to cling on the hamburger.This will give it a round pumpkin shape. You could add a small piece of green pepper at the top for the stem.  Another idea is giving the sandwich eyes. Stick two olive "eyes" on the top of the bun. You could have a piece of red pepper sticking out of the middle for the tongue.  Mummy dogs are easy and fun to make.It's taking crescent roll dough and tearing it into strips. Wrap around any kind of hot dog, whether beef or vegan and then wrap the strips around them. You could add cheese or brush the dogs with mustard before wrapping. Bake in a375 Farenheit degree oven for about thirteen to seventeen minutes. After you can add two dots of mustard for eyes. Have different kinds of mustard for dipping.

It's amazing that even pasta can be turned into something scary. You can make spaghetti with meatball "eyes".This is taking meatballs baking them. Add  mozzarella ovals then press olives into the melty cheese. Place on the spaghetti (or whatever the  kids like). Pasta can also take a dark turn with the addition of   mushrooms cut into the shape of skulls. Use button mushrooms for this  and then gouge out two little holes for the eyes. Do two little slits under neat the eyes for the nostrils. The stem can be the teeth,. Carve little lines in them to simulate the skull's mouth. Use a  wooden skewers or small paring knife to do this. For an even spookier look serve  these over black pasta made with squid ink. (although any regular pasta works with this as does any sauce.Pasta can be turned into a brain .It's first cooking spaghetti and then baking it in a rounded pan. A mix of mozzarella and eggs is poured over to as a binder. Leave an end to end well in the middle of the"brain" then cover with breadcrumbs. Bake for thirty to forty minutes in a 450 degree Farenheit oven for half an hour. Pour  marinara sauce in the well for a lovely bloody brains look. You could serve with meat ball eyes if you want.

Make sure the kids eat well before they spend the night trick or treating.It could be jack o lantern burgers r  mummy dogs. It could be a plate of scary pasta. They'll feel better and won;t gobble all their candy if they're well fed.

Halloween Cupcake Crazy

 Nothing is as fun as a Halloween cupcake. Home bakers can have a field day with creating all sorts of fun decorations  from witches hats to mummies. Yet you start out with the right icing and topping to create an Insta ready little cake (it big cake if you want ).It just takes patience and a flair for fun.

The first thing is do you use a store bought or homemade frosting (keep in mind that frosting and icing are interchangeable words but they are different. Frostings have some ki nd of fat, - whether butter, plant butter  cream cheese, whipped cream or eggs  in them while icings are just confectioners sugar , milk cream juice or egg whites. ) Store bought frosting is denser while homemade is lighter and airier thanks to it constantly being whipped. However you can lessen the density of the store bought kind just by whipping air into it. One important tool you will need is either wax or parchment paper. Tear off a good sized sheet (about six inches long ) and cut into squares. Use them when you have to flatten the puffs of icing into a workable canvas. A n icing spatula can also come in handy when smoothing a frosting's surface and sides. If you're planning on using sprinkles  make sure you have a bowl for them. This also makes it easier to roll the cupcakes in them for decorated edgea.

Decorating is the fun part once all the cupcakes or cakes are iced.Reese's mini peanut butter  cups can double as witches hats or as the bottom of a broom, once iced. Mini ice cream cones can also work well as a crone's hat too. Just thoroughly dip these in either dark or milk chocolate , let set and them place on the cupcakes. Use black gel icing for the band around the base of the cone part and add yellow or gold icing to create a belt. A broom us made by inserting a pretzel stick in the center of a mini peanut butter cup and then using brown or dark yellow icing draw lines up and down to simulate straw. YOu can also create either white, dark ro milk chocolate spider web ls by pouring chocolate in thin, concentric circles and then attaching them .Let dry and stick on the top of  the cakes, Spiders are made just by putting two blobs or black icing together and then drawing eight legs out from the body. Use candy eyes for the eyes. You may have to use tweezers for this. A spooky cupcake might have a tombstone on top. Use Pepperidge Farms Milano cookies for this. Write RIP on them and just stick into the icing. Add a gummy work or two for more creepiness.

Halloween cupcakes are always a nice addition to any holiday party. Go wild with decorating.It wil only add to the day.

Lovely Fall Cakes

 Autumn may be known for it's home baked pies yet it's the cakes that stand out.They feature the flavors of the season , whether spicy or fruity. These are perfect for Sunday teas or even ending a holiday meal.

Maple is the flavor of the season - other than pumpkin spice. It's reminiscent of the sweet smell of turning and falling leaves.Add it to a Bundt cake for a different kind of flavor.A Bundt is perfect for the chill fall weather.It has a dense crumb and it's perfect as an afternoon snack or even breakfast with a good strong cup of coffee or tea. You could also bake a scratch maple pound cake  with a maple rum glaze on top. The glaze is a mix of dark rum, butter and the syrup.it's brushed warm over the cake and then left to soak in. for a fun party dessert try maple cupcakes with a bacon frosting, Yes bacon!  The cake is a simple scratch maple vanilla cake. The frosting is a cream cheese one and every cupcake is decorated with a few slices of homemade maple bacon.Maple bacon is made by lining up the strips on a foil  lined sheet pan. Maple syrup is brushed on each side and them brown sugar is sprinkled over the top sides. (Keep in mind this makes a great brunch side too).If you prefer cookies then think about maple shortbread.This is a wonderful marriage of butter and maple syrup.shortbread is an easy cookie to make and bake and it would be perfect after any Sunday dinner.

There are other flavors too for this season. Apple and pear reign supreme in the fruit area. Look to the French for inspiration. They bake a buttery apple cake that has a hint of rum in it.Chunks of tart apples are sunk into a rich crumb. dark rum is used but if you want to intensify the flavor then sub in apple cider for the liquor. As for the apples ,a tart sweet variety like Granny Smith work perfectly here. You could also use the Honeycrisp kind as well.  Cinnamon and apples go well  together. Try a scratch cake loaded with the two. You can also add walnuts for more flavor and crunch. for this kind of apple cake you'll only need two apples. pears are also the fruit of the season right now. A pear cake is a different and tasty treat, perfect for a weekend dessert.As with the French apple cake, pear cake has a moist buttery crumb that works perfectly with the fruit,. It's topped with a simple sprinkle of cinnamon sugar. (there;s no need for  a lush buttercream here.The pears provide all the flavor).Keep in mind that this luscious fruit can also be used in a dense Bundt cake, adding supreme flavor to a simple scratch recipe.

Cakes are the perfect fall sweet and dessert go to.They finish off a Sunday roast dinner or make for a good snack alongside hot coffee or tea. Bake one now with the flavors of the season

Favorite Halloween Treats

 What is your favorite Halloween  homemade treat?Is a a caramel dipped candy apple. A witch cupcake?Or a bat cookie

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