Pasta with Arugula Pesto,Chicken and Zucchini

An idea on how to accommodate the pesto.

Cheesecake-marbled Brownies with Tonka Bean

This recipe was a hit at a party I went to a few days ago. Always on the look out for twists to a brownie batter as long as it's chewy, fudgy and decadent... I was asked if I added caramel. Nope! Why not? Next time, I'll give it a try in the cheesecake batter!!

For brownie batter
1 stick unsalted butter, cut into pieces
2 ounce unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1 Tbs cocoa powder
1/2 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1/3 tonka bean, grated
2/3 cup all-purpose flour

For cheesecake batter
8 ounces cream cheese, well softened
1/3 cup sugar
1 large egg
1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 Tbs flour

Preparation
Make brownie batter:
Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 350°F. Butter an 8-inch square baking pan.

Heat butter and chocolate in a 3-quart heavy saucepan over moderately low heat, whisking occasionally, just until melted. Remove from heat and whisk in sugar, eggs, tonka bean, and a pinch of salt until well combined. Whisk in flour until just combined and spread in baking pan.

Make cheesecake batter and bake brownies:
Whisk together cheesecake batter ingredients in a small bowl until smooth. Dollop over brownie batter, then swirl in with a knife .

Bake until edges are slightly puffed and center is just set, about 35 minutes.

Serve warm or at room temperature.

Pour les français
Brownies marbrés au cheesecake, adapté d’Epicurious

Pour environ 16 brownies

Ingrédients :

Pour la pâte de brownies :

- 85 g de chocolat noir à 70%
- 1 c à soupe cacao type Van Houten
- 1/3 fêve tonka rapé
- 90 g de farine
- 113 g de beurre non salé, coupé en dés
- 150 g de sucre de canne blond
- 2 gros oeufs
- pincée de sel


Pour la pâte de cheesecake :

- 230 g de cream cheese (type Leader Price),à temperature ambiante
- 1 oeuf
- 65 g de sucre
- 1/4 càc d’extrait de vanille pur
- 1 c à soupe de farine





Pour préparer la pâte de cheesecake, mélangez tous les ingrédients ensemble pour obtenir une crème de texture lisse. Réservez.
Préchauffez votre four à 180 C.
Recouvrez un moule mesurant 20 x 20 cm de papier sulfurisé.
Pour préparer la pâte de brownies, faites fondre le chocolat et le beurre au bain-marie. Laissez légèrement refroidir.
Battez les oeufs avec le sucre et le sel jusqu’à blanchiment.
Ajoutez 2 càs de chocolat fondu et mélangez avant d’incorporer délicatement le reste. Faites attention à garder la préparation aussi aérée que possible.
Saupoudrez de farine et incorporez-la délicatement.
Versez cette préparation dans le moule.
Ajoutez la pâte de cheesecake dessus et faites un dessin avec un couteau.
Cuisez au four pendant 30 min. A ce stade, les brownies seront encore un peu coulants au milieu. Si vous les préférez plus cuits, augmentez le temps de cuisson de 5 min, ou plus.
Laissez refroidir dans le plat avant de découper. Conservez-les emballés au frigo, et sortez-les à l’avance pour les déguster à temperature ambiante

Exquisite Matzoh Crunch

Inspired by Marcy Goldman's now classic Passover treat. I prepared some for last Saturday's Seder! Really easy and quick to prepare...Yummy!!!!!


4-6 unsalted matzohs
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
3/4 cup coarsely chopped chocolate

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line a large (or two smaller) cookie sheet completely with foil. Cover the bottom of the sheet with baking parchment — on top of the foil.
Line the bottom of the cookie sheet evenly with the matzohs, cutting extra pieces, as required, to fit any spaces.
In a 3-quart, heavy-bottomed saucepan, combine the butter and the brown sugar. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture comes to a boil (about 2 to 4 minutes). Boil for 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from the heat and pour over the matzoh, covering completely.
Place the baking sheet in the oven and immediately reduce the heat to 350°. Bake for 15 minutes, checking every few minutes to make sure the mixture is not burning (if it seems to be browning too quickly, remove the pan from the oven, lower the heat to 325°, and replace the pan).
Remove from the oven and sprinkle immediately with the chopped chocolate. Let stand for 5 minutes, then spread the melted chocolate over the matzoh. While still warm, break into squares or odd shapes. Chill, still in the pan, in the freezer until set.


Pour les français:

4-6 tranches de pain azyme (matza)
120 g de beurre( 200g normalement mais j'ai diminué les proportions)
200 g de sucre brun
200 g de chocolat rapé

Préchauffer le four à 190°. Sur une plaque à pâtisserie disposer une feuille de papier d'aluminium et par dessus du papier cuisson. Casser le pain azyme en morceaux et bien remplir tous les espaces. Préparer le caramel avec le sucre,le beurre et un peu de citron. Faire bouillir pendant quelques minutes. Verser sur le pain azyme et cuire au four pendant 15 minutes en verifiant régulièrement que le mélange ne brûle pas.Le cas écheant diminuer la temperature. Retirer la plaque du four . Laisser refroidir pendant 5 min et ajouter le chocolat. Mettre au réfrigérateur...

Introducing Flat Friend Amanda...

Recently, I received a letter from my friend's daughter from Los Angeles who's seven years old,so cute...asking me to help her with a school project. She enclosed Flat Amanda. The objective was to take the Flat Friend on an interesting hike, visit or some sort of adventure, write about it, take pictures and send her back to America.I have to admit I first had some resistance and was really too busy to spend time with some sort of flat doll...In the end,I didn't want to let my young friend down. I have to say it was a fabulous and exciting Sunday afternoon.We went to an exhibition at the Dapper Museum. At the end of our time together I took her for ice cream at "Pozzetto", the most outstandingly creamy and tasty gelato here in Paris. If you're around don't miss it. What's great is that you could choose as many flavors as you like for 3, 4 or 5 euros. We had Rasberry, Tiramisu, Pistachio,and Gianduja.

POZZETTO
9, rue du Roi de Sicile 75004
Paris
Tel : 01 42 77 08 64