It’s a Cookie! No, a Cake!... Wait – It’s a Cookie Cake for Mother’s Day!!

What’s cooking? Parisian Cookie Cake 

Several days before my very first Mother’s Day, I told my husband I did not want one of those ultra-sweet cards, like the ones with the flowers and lace that his mother always enjoyed. I just wanted something simple, ...but I didn’t say that part. And thus began another early lesson in husband-wife communications.

I thought: Maybe now, I’ll just get a nice, simple card... and maybe some flowers.

He thought: Ok, so she doesn’t want a card. Maybe she doesn’t want anything.

You can imagine how this worked out, can’t you? All I will say is that it involved tears on my part and a rant on his about how Mother’s Day and Valentine’s Day were just traps for guys, and a conspiracy on the part of the card and flower and candy companies. And every year since then, he has reminded me that I’m not his mother.

Then more recently, I actually forgot his birthday. Sort of. I had presents – not yet wrapped – but waiting to be wrapped. And while I always remember his birth date, we had so much going on in our lives that I didn’t realize the date had arrived. We were at a reunion of his college friends, and one of them gleefully announced that it was my prince’s birthday, while I sat slack-jawed at the news that I had missed the boat.

He was more than kind about it – actually thought it was funny – but of course, I was mortified. So I have given him a permanent pass for Mother’s Day.

* * *

If you’re looking around for an easy dessert to make for Mother’s Day, you have come to the right place. This one feels so much like an art project that I’m sure my own mother would have loved it. Very “hands-on.” Also elegant – the original recipe comes from Le Comptoir, the pastry shop at Paris’s legendary Ritz Hotel on the Place Vendôme.  (Of course it’s French. You know, chocolate.)

 And the whole process takes me little more than an hour.

What makes this cookie cake so good?

• The texture is a mix of soft and crunchy – soft from the underlying cookie part that tastes very much like shortbread, and crunchy from the nuts on top.
• Complex flavors. Instead of white sugar, the shortbread contains turbinado sugar, which is only partially refined so as to retain some of the original molasses from the sugarcane. Thus the subtle caramel flavor. And then there’s almond butter, that contributes a light nuttiness to the dough.
• The shortbread bakes in a form that sits directly on the baking sheet, so the bottom of the cookie gets a little extra crispy caramelizing from the more direct contact with the sheet.
• The topping is a riot of chocolate, almonds, and caramel (or butterscotch), with a finish of sea salt. I mean, what’s not to like?

Kitchen Goddess note: The original of this cookie cake featured hazelnut purée instead of the almond butter, and chopped raw hazelnuts on top instead of almonds. Chef Greenspan suggested the almond butter/almonds. I’ve made it twice that way, and it’s fabulous. But I want to try it with the original flavors, using Nutella or Italian hazelnut purée and hazelnuts. I’ll let you know how it goes.

The first time I made this dish was in December. Can you tell?

Parisian Cookie Cake

Adapted from Dorie Greenspan in The New York Times.

Serves 8-12, depending on how generous you are with the pieces.

Special equipment: 9-inch springform cake pan, baker’s parchment

Ingredients

1⅓ cups(170 grams) all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

¼ teaspoon baking soda

4 ounces (1 stick/113 grams) very soft unsalted butter

¾ cup (150 grams) turbinado sugar (e.g., Sugar in the Raw)

½ teaspoon fine sea salt

3 tablespoons (54 grams) of pure almond butter (i.e., without added sugar or other ingredients), well stirred 

1 large egg, at room temperature and lightly beaten

4 ounces (113 grams) semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped

⅓ cup (48 grams) raw almonds, coarsely chopped

3 tablespoons (60 grams) caramel (or butterscotch) topping, for finishing (use more or less depending on your taste for caramel)

Fleur de sel, for finishing (I use Maldon salt, which is less expensive and easier to find). Do not leave out this salt: it adds crunch and that famous sweet-salty thing.

Directions

Preheat your oven to 350º. Line a baking sheet with baker’s parchment. Set the ring of a 9-inch springform pan (without its base) upside down on the prepared sheet. The ridge in the ring should be at the top.

In a medium mixing bowl, use a fork or a whisk to stir together the flour, baking powder and baking soda, being sure to aerate the mix. Set the dry ingredients aside.

In the bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter, sugar and salt on medium-low for 2-3 minutes, or until the texture is smooth.

Add the almond butter and continue mixing for another 2 minutes.

Spoon in about a third of the flour mixture and beat – still on medium-low – until it’s absorbed into the butter mixture.

Pour in the egg and mix on low speed until well incorporated.

Add the rest of the dry ingredients and continue mixing on low until the dry ingredients are completely absorbed.

Transfer the dough into the center of the springform ring. Use your fingers (or the back of a large spoon or an offset spatula) to get the dough pushed to the edges of the ring and evenly thick. Again using your fingers/spoon/offset spatula, gently smooth the surface of the cookie (no mashing down, please!).

Ready for the oven.

Scatter the chocolate and then the almonds across the surface of the cookie, and bake 22-26 minutes. (I have made this dessert twice in different ovens and needed almost 28 minutes the first time, 25 minutes the second time.) To test, insert a toothpick or other cake tester into an area of the cookie not covered by chocolate. If it comes out clean, the cookie is done.

Move the baking sheet to a rack and immediately – but carefully – open and lift off the springform rim. Do not move the cookie. Once the cookie has cooled to room temperature, drizzle or dot the surface with caramel. Sprinkle the top lightly with sea salt. Don’t cut the cookie until it is completely cooled, as it tends to crumble while it’s still warm.

Ready for the caramel and finishing salt.

You could serve the finished product in 10-12 wedges, as Ms Greenspan suggests; but I find that people are happier with a dessert this rich if they can have something closer to bite-sized pieces. So I like to cut it in a lattice pattern with strips about an inch wide (see the diagram at left). This allows for smaller portions and even some oddly shaped pieces on the edge. The dessert goes well with vanilla ice cream.

Wrapped in plastic wrap or in a sealed container, the cookie will keep for about 4 days at room temperature. 

 And a happy Mother’s Day to you all!

April Fool!

What’s cooking? Cauliflower Soup and Roasted Cauliflower with Raisins and Almonds

My friend Kathrin Bergin in NJ posted this less than a week ago.

I know it’s spring because the flowering trees in Texas have bloomed, and the bluebonnets are out. Yesterday, it hit 84 degrees. But when I woke up today, it was 47. And as I type this, it’s dropped to 43, with a wind chill of 36. I checked my phone for the weather conditions in those cities where my children live, and the temperature was the same as here in Allentown, PA, Philadelphia, and NYC. It’s APRIL, for goodness sake – would someone please tell Mother Nature?

My beleaguered daughter-in-law – mother of a lively 4-year old and 6-year-old – says, “the most recent snow day was supposed to be a holiday, but since we’ve had so many snow days, it was changed to a make-up day. So we had a snow day on a make-up snow day and we will continue to have snow days forever because spring has forsaken us and all hope is lost... but other than that, everything is peachy.”

So I’ve been thinking all day about what I can post that will raise my DIL’s spirits and get the warmth in my toes back. And I think cauliflower soup may be just the thing.  Back in February, I discovered a recipe from the folks at America’s Test Kitchen that is really something: a truly creamy soup without an ounce of cream.

Then while I was thinking about that soup, I recalled that I’ve not posted about another cauliflower recipe I liked from the March issue of Food & Wine magazine. They called it a Cauliflower Korma, a reference to a classic Indian dish in which meat or vegetables are braised in a yogurt sauce. The treatment in this case adds raisins and almonds and places the sauce under the vegetables, which was just unusual enough to pique the Kitchen Goddess’s interest.

The appearance of these two recipes for cauliflower confirms a suspicion I’ve had for a while, which is that cauliflower is a rising star in the food firmament. Sooo... you heard it here. The Kitchen Goddess is In. The. Know.

Cauliflower Soup

Adapted from America’s Test Kitchen.

Aside from the short cooking time – total, including prep, is less than an hour and 15 minutes – the best thing about this soup is the flavor, which comes about by having some of the vegetable cooked more than the rest. It turns out that cauliflower cooked just a little has a light, grassy flavor, while cauliflower cooked a lot longer has a warm, lightly sweet and nutty flavor. So when you add the cauliflower in two stages, you get a remarkable combination of both flavors. And when you top the soup off with fried florets and a drizzle of brown butter, you get my hubby to say, “This is really good,” instead of “Yes, but it’s still cauliflower.”

Serves 4-6.

Ingredients
1 head cauliflower (about 2 pounds), outer leaves removed
8 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces
1 leek (white and light green parts only), halved lengthwise, sliced thin, and rinsed well
1 small onion, halved and sliced thin
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
5 cups water
½ teaspoon sherry vinegar

Directions
Cut out the core and stem of the cauliflower and trim off the fibrous outer layer. Cut the trimmed stem crosswise into thin slices, about ¼-inch thick. Separate enough ½-inch florets to make a heaping cupful and reserve. Slice the remains of the head into ½-inch thick slabs.

Note that the KG does her cauliflower deconstructing in a rimmed baking sheet, thus containing the mess.

In a 4-5-quart Dutch oven over medium/medium-low heat, melt 3 tablespoons of the butter and add the leek, onion, and 1½ teaspoons of salt. Sauté, stirring often, until the vegetables are softened but not browned (7-8 minutes).

Add the water and half of the cauliflower slabs, including all of the sliced core, and stir. Raise the heat to bring the mix to a simmer, then adjust down enough to keep that simmer for 15 minutes. Stir occasionally.

Add the remaining cauliflower – except for the cup of florets – and stir. Return the liquid to a simmer and continue to simmer the soup until the cauliflower is tender, which should take another 15-20 minutes.

While the soup simmers, melt the other 5 tablespoons of butter in a small skillet over medium-high heat until it shimmers. Add the reserved florets and cook, stirring constantly, for 6-8 minutes, until the florets begin to take on a brown crust and the butter is well browned. At this point, the butter should have a slightly nutty smell. Remove the pan from the heat and use a slotted spoon to strain out the florets from the butter. Save the butter and florets separately in small bowls.

Sprinkle the vinegar over the bowl with the florets and add salt to taste. Stir. Reserve.

When the cauliflower in the soup is tender, remove the pot from the heat and process the soup in a blender for 1-2 minutes until it is very smooth. If it seems too thick, add water a few tablespoons at a time to get a consistency you like. Ideally, the soup should be just thin enough to settle back into a flat surface after being stirred.

You may want to return the soup to the pot and reheat – just remember to remove any remnants of cauliflower from the pot before you do. Season with freshly ground black pepper to taste. To serve, garnish each serving with a few of the browned florets, and drizzle on a teaspoon or two of the brown butter.

* * *

Cauliflower Korma with Blackened Raisins

Adapted from Food & Wine magazine, March 2018.

This dish uses a exotic mix of warm spices redolent of India – ginger, cardamom, and garam masala, which itself is a mix of spices. If you don’t have garam masala, you should be able to find it in the bulk spice aisle of your supermarket.

The KG loves the unusual presentation of this dish: the sauce is under the veggies. And note that this recipe also includes blackened raisins – another flavor profile that’s trending now... We are nothing if not trendy at Spoon & Ink.

Serves 4-6.

Ingredients
One large (2-pound) head of cauliflower, or two small heads
4 tablespoons (divided) canola oil, or other flavorless oil like grapeseed
kosher salt
1 large yellow onion, thinly sliced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 piece fresh ginger, about 1½ inches, peeled and finely grated (use a rasp)
1 rounded teaspoon garam masala
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
¼ teaspoon ground cardamom
pinch of cayenne pepper, or ¼ teaspoon Aleppo pepper
½ cup ground almonds, or almond meal (from bulk aisle of supermarket)
1 tablespoon honey
6 ounces plain whole-milk Greek yogurt
½ cup whole milk (can use 2%)
¼ cup raisins
¼ cup sliced almonds

Directions
Preheat oven to 350º.

Remove the cauliflower stem and trim off the tough outer layer. Slice the stem into thin (⅛-inch thick) disks. Break the cauliflower into bite-sized florets (about 1 inch across). In a large bowl, toss the cauliflower with 2 tablespoons of the oil and ½ teaspoon salt. Spread the cauliflower in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet lined with either parchment or foil. Roast the cauliflower for 40-50 minutes, until it’s tender and lightly browned. Kitchen Goddess note: If the cauliflower is tender but not browned, run it under the broiler for a minute.

While the cauliflower is cooking, add the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil to a large skillet over medium/medium-high heat. Add the onions and cook 10-12 minutes, stirring often, until they are soft and lightly caramelized. Add the garlic and ginger and continue to stir about 1 minute, or until fragrant, then add the four spices. Once the spices are well mixed in, add the ground almonds, honey, and ¾ teaspoon salt.

Stir continuously for about 2 minutes, until the almond meal clings to the onions, then add the yogurt and reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer the sauce 8-10 minutes, until it thickens and turns lightly golden. Add the milk, stirring for 2-3 minutes or until the sauce is smooth and will coat the back of a spoon. At that point, remove the sauce from the heat and season to taste with salt. Cover until ready to serve.

Set a small skillet over medium heat and add the raisins and sliced almonds. Cook, stirring – you can shake the pan instead if you prefer. The goal is to let the raisins – but not the almonds – burn a little. The raisins will puff up as they start to blacken. This will all take about 3 minutes.

To serve, pour the sauce into a large plate and spread it around with a spoon. Add the cauliflower and top the presentation with the raisins and almonds.

Kitchen Goddess note: Food & Wine recommends serving this dish with a dry Gewürztraminer.

Stay warm and hopeful – spring will come for sure one of these days!

Finger Food for Football Fans What’s cooking? Greek Almond Cookies

January is a month of football parties. And even though I grew up in Texas, I’ve never been much of a fan. So I’m often, um, less than punctual to parties where the main idea is to watch football. Which means I’m more often asked to provide dessert than appetizers.

This week, it was the BCS. A contest between a team I know almost nothing about (Notre Dame) and one that as a loyal Vanderbilt fan, I’ve always rooted against (Alabama). I’m not sure Vandy has ever beat the Crimson Tide.

Possessed! What’s cooking? Raspberry Chocolate Almond Spread

I really think I must have been possessed at the farmers’ market this week. The weather had cooled off – the morning temperature was about 66 degrees when I got out of my car at 8:00 a.m. I was maybe the first person at the market when it opened.

I’m not normally an early morning person. Late night is when I shine. But here in New Jersey, my husband and I are dealing with the one-car phenomenon, because parking in Jersey City is completely ridiculous. The main streets in our neighborhood have parking only on one side of the street, and then only if you have a “Zone 1” permit. (We do not.) You can park in front of our building, but the number of spaces available is very small versus the number of folks living in the building, and the fight for those spaces isn’t pretty. So when we bought the apartment, we made sure to get a place that came with a slot in the garage. But that’s only one.