Linguine with White Clam Sauce

In all fairness I like to post about recipes that I didn’t so much love.  Linguie and Clam Sauce is not something I’ve EVER made.  Occasionally I’ll order it when I go out (usually in a tomato sauce) but I have to be in the right mood.  I was grocery shopping a few weeks ago at Loblaws and was going a little nuts with the shopping cart.  I usually avoid getting a shopping cart because I overshop but that particular day I was feeling lazy and wanted a cart dammit!  Which is how I ended up with a can of clams.  They were on sale, I was feeling inspired so I bought them.

The can languished in the back of my cupboard for a few weeks until I decided to just make me some linguine with clams.  I found this recipe from Bon Appetit on Epicurious and decided to go for it.  It seemed to have a lot of yummy flavours and ingredients that I happened to have on hand.  Easy enough!

Now I won’t blame the recipe but the dish was WAY too “clam-y”.  Seriously.  I couldn’t escape the clams!   Maybe I don’t like canned clams?  Maybe I’m grossed out by their appearance?  Maybe I only like deep-fried clams?  I’m not sure!  But I do know that I did not love this dish.

If I were going to make this again (which I will not) I would probably add more garlic. I really needed another flavour to mask the clamminess.

This one definitely gets a WHOMP WHOMP.

2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley (preferably Italian)
8 garlic cloves, chopped
4 6 1/2-ounce cans chopped clams, drained, juices reserved
1/2 cup whipping cream
1/4 cup dry white wine
1 tablespoon white wine Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 pound linguine, freshly cooked
Grated Parmesan cheese (optional)

Heat olive oil in large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add chopped parsley and chopped garlic and sauté until garlic just begins to color, about 45 seconds. Add reserved clam juices, whipping cream, dry white wine, Worcestershire sauce, garlic salt, white pepper and cayenne pepper. Simmer until mixture is reduced to thin sauce consistency, about 10 minutes. Add chopped clams and freshly cooked linguine to pot and toss until sauce coats pasta thickly, about 5 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve, passing Parmesan, if desired.
Bon Appétit
February 1995

Barefoot Bloggers: Tomato and Goat Cheese Tarts

This week’s Barefoot Bloggers recipe was chosen by Anne of Anne Strawberry. What a great pick!

This was one of those recipes that I knew would turn out wonderfully.  The ingredients are super simple and work as a delicious combo.  Really, the recipe had me at “puff pastry”.  Now that I’ve overcome my silly nervousness around puff pastry I feel like my world of tartlet yumminess has been greatly improved!

I made this recipe pretty much to a T.  Only change was that I omitted the basil.  Not so much omitted as “forgot to buy” the basil.  It was one of those moments where as soon as I got in and sat on my couch I knew that I forgot to buy basil but was too lazy to go out and get some.  But I digress…

I made the tarts for dinner and thought that I would have to have two and a sald to fill my tummy.  Turns out I was fine just having one tart and some salad for my dinner.  This may have been because I was eating bits of goat cheese with some crackers while making the tarts… not sure! I had the leftovers for breakfast and it got my day off to a great start.  It was like eating cold pizza… but classier.

This is a great recipe to modify to suit your tastes.  Portobello mushrooms would be a great addition, maybe some roasted red peppers… maybe some spinach.  The possiblities are endless really.  I’m actually thinking that I should make these again next week.  These would be great as appetizers as well if you made them a bit smaller and did a few different topping combinations.  Perfect for my next book club!

Check out what other Barefoot Bloggers had to say.

Tomato and Goat Cheese Tarts

Ingredients

• 1 package (17.3 ounces/2 sheets) puff pastry, defrosted
• Good olive oil
• 4 cups thinly sliced yellow onions (2 large onions)
• 3 large garlic cloves, cut into thin slivers
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 3 tablespoons dry white wine
• 2 teaspoons minced fresh thyme leaves
• 4 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan, plus 2 ounces shaved with a vegetable peeler
• 4 ounces garlic-and-herb goat cheese (recommended: Montrachet)
• 1 large tomato, cut into 4 (1/4-inch-thick) slices
• 3 tablespoons julienned basil leaves

Directions

Unfold a sheet of puff pastry on a lightly floured surface and roll it lightly to an 11 by 11-inch square. Using a 6-inch wide saucer or other round object as a guide, cut 2 circles from the sheet of puff pastry, discarding the scraps. Repeat with the second pastry sheet to make 4 circles in all. Place the pastry circles on 2 sheet pans lined with parchment paper and refrigerate until ready to use.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet over medium to low heat and add the onions and garlic. Saute for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring frequently, until the onions are limp and there is almost no moisture remaining in the skillet. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, the wine, and thyme and continue to cook for another 10 minutes, until the onions are lightly browned. Remove from the heat.

Using a sharp paring knife, score a 1/4-inch-wide border around each pastry circle. Prick the pastry inside the score lines with the tines of a fork and sprinkle a tablespoon of grated Parmesan on each round, staying inside the scored border.

Place 1/4 of the onion mixture on each circle, again staying within the scored edge. Crumble 1 ounce of goat cheese on top of the onions. Place a slice of tomato in the center of each tart. Brush the tomato lightly with olive oil and sprinkle with basil, salt, and pepper. Finally, scatter 4 or 5 shards of Parmesan on each tart.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the pastry is golden brown. The bottom sheet pan may need an extra few minutes in the oven. Serve hot or warm.

Crepes!

I’ve always been a fan of crepes. In high school there used a “creperie” near my high school where I’d stop off for breakfast or sometimes lunch (oh how I miss my days of disposable income). My fave combination was always salami, tomato and cheese. Clearly I was into health food.

A few years later I did study abroad in Paris and fell in love with the crepe stands. For budgetary reasons I would often get a simple crepe with butter and sugar but when I was feeling all splurg-y and stuff I’d get nutella and bananas. YUM!

Crepes have always been something I made at home, usually as a breakfast item. One day I was craving crepes and decided to head over to Williams Sonoma and buy a Crepe Pan to take my crepe making to another level.  I’ve always used a non-stick pan which worked okay but my crepes never had the right colouring or crispiness to them.  After some research I discovered that a steel crepe pan would do the trick.  So I bought mine at WS and seasoned it with TLC (as in Tender Loving Care).  Well really I seasoned it with oil and heat over the course of a few hours.  Check out my pan…

The other day I wanted a simple (and cheap) dinner so I figured it would be time to break out the old crepe pan.  I don’t have a standard recipe that I use… I normally alternate between a Martha Stewart or Cooking Light recipe.  This time around I used Mark Bittman’s recipe for crepes from the mega-tome How to Cook Everything.

They turned out great!  Normally my first crepe turns out wonky but this time they were perfect.  The key is to make sure that your pan is hot enough… I test with a few drops of water.  Also, if your pan is well season you won’t need a lot of oil.  I usually just swipe a piece of paper towel through some butter and wipe the pan – that’s it.  My other trick is the wrist action.  I usually use just under 1/3 cup of batter per crepe. I lift the pan and tilt it on an angel and swirl the batter onto the pan turn my wrist quickly to make an even layer on the pan.  I usually cook the crepe until the top isn’t runny and then flip it over to brown.  The whole process takes less than 45 seconds.  Not kidding.

This time around I filled the crepes with Ham & Cheese & Broccoli.  It was a great, light dinner.  Leftovers for dessert and breakfast!

Basic crepes

(Makes 10-12 crepes, depending on the size of your pan)

1 c. flour (all-purpose or whole wheat)
Pinch of salt
1 1/4 c. milk
2 eggs
2 Tbsp. butter, melted and cooled

1. Whisk the flour, salt and milk together until the mixture is bubbly. Whisk in the eggs, and then the cooled butter. At this point, Mark and many of the crepeologists in the world would say to refrigerate the batter. I never plan ahead, and my crepes turned out just fine. No refrigeration needed.
2. Heat a nonstick skillet (I used an 8-inch skillet) until drops of water tossed in the pan skitter across the surface. You’ll probably want to adjust the heat as you go, because you want to keep the pan very hot, but not so hot as to burn the crepes.
3. Using a small ladle, add somewhere between 1/8 and 1/4 of a cup of batter to the pan. Swirl it so it covers the bottom. You’ll need to work quickly, because the batter should start to cook immediately, and if you don’t swirl fast, you won’t get it to cover the whole bottom of the pan. Let it cook about a minute, until the top of the crepe is starting to dry but hasn’t yet bubbled, then flip the crepe over.
4. Cook the second side for about 20 to 30 seconds, then remove the finished crepe to a plate. You don’t want them to be as brown as pancakes would be – just slightly golden.
5. Fill with whatever you would like: Something sweet, something savory, etc. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F, and bake the filled crepes (topped with sauce, if you are so inclined), for about 10 minutes, until the filling is warmed. Serve immediately. (Note: If you’re making crepes for a party, you can do them ahead, then fill them and heat them when you’re ready to serve them.)

(From Mark Bittman’s How To Cook Everything via The Inadvertent Gardener)

Sides: Creamy Cheddar Grits and Roasted Tomatoes with Basil

I love a good side dish but in my day-to-day cooking I get lazy with sides. I’ll just steam so broccoli and maybe bake a potato and call it a night. Sure it’s passable but not nearly as exciting as some fun side dishes.

The best sides shouldn’t be relegated to the side of the plate.  I’ve had great meals made entirely of side dishes.  One of my favourite restaurants for this is Westville in New York. They have a great rotating roster of sides which they call “Market” and you can choose several and make a meal. SO DELICIOUS. I always mean to do something like that at home but I end up having to make 3 or 4 side dishes which isn’t always feasible when I get home from work.

I digress…

I was going to make the Barefoot Contessa’s Baked Shrimp Scampi for dinner but didn’t want to go the usual baked potato route. I decided to flip through her Back to Basics cookbook for inspiration. I came across the recipe for Creamy Cheddar Grits and Roasted Tomatoes with Basil and fell in love.

I know, the combination sounds a bit odd to go with the shrimp scampi but it was DELICIOUS.  The grits were pure, creamy goodness.  They were super smooth with a good amount of cheesy flavour.  The green onions added the perfect amount of kick.  I’ve been dreaming up ways of incorporating these grits into my life ever since.

The tomatoes were a bit of a magic trick if you ask me.  This recipe turns ordinary, boring, and dare I say bland plum tomatoes in a really tasty side dish.  We won’t talk about how roasting them set off my smoke alarm about five times… it was worth it.  AND I didn’t even have basil.  Roasting really brought out an intense tomato taste.  I could have eaten about 10 tomatoes worth of this one.

Another hit from the lovely and talented Ina Garten!

Creamy Cheddar Grits
Serves 6 as a side dish

2 tsp. salt
1 cup quick-cooking grits (not instant)
1 1/4 cups half and half
2 tbsp. butter or margarine
1.5 cups old Cheddar cheese, grated
4 stalks of green onion, chopped
Black pepper to taste

Bring 4 cups of water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add the salt, then slowly add the grits in a thin steady stream. Stir constantly with a wooden spoon. Reduce heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until grits thicken, 5-7 minutes.

Add the half and half and butter to the grits and stir. Bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally. Cover the pot, reduce the heat to low, and cook, stirring occasionally for 45 minutes, until very smooth and creamy. Off the heat, stir in the cheddar cheese, green onions, and pepper. Season to taste and serve hot.

Roasted Tomatoes

12 plum tomatoes, halved lengthwise, cores and seeds removed
4 tablespoons good olive oil
1 1/2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 large garlic cloves, minced
2 teaspoons sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 450°F.

Arrange the tomatoes on a sheet pan, cut sides up, in a single layer. Drizzle with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Sprinkle the garlic, sugar, salt, and pepper over the tomatoes. Roast for 25 to 30 minutes, until the tomatoes are concentrated and beginning to caramelize. Serve warm or at room temperature.

(From Back to Basics)

Things I Want: Lap Counter

You know you want one too!

I was on one of my fave food blogs The Kitchn where I saw this post on Five Practical Kitchen Designs from Tomas Kral. Now I don’t know too much about this Tomas Kral but I fell in love with him when I saw the Lap Counter.

How cool is it?

I like the idea of being able to sit on my couch, watching The View and peeling and chopping potatoes (Editors Note: I tend to cook dinner while watching either The View or Property Virgins). I love that there are separate nooks and crannies for different things. One side could be used for trash and the other two for two separate chopping jobs.

I also must add that I love Tomas Kral’s description of this “tool”: Prepare your cuisine while on your armchair.

yes, I would love to prepare cuisine from my armchair. how.did.you.know.

I just noticed what The Kitchn had to say about this…
“This lap bowl and counter lets you work on chopping and prepping food even while seated. This could be a real practical help for those with disabilities or those who cannot stand at the counter for long periods of time.”

Ok, I guess it has a practical use for those in need but for me it’s all about easier tv watching during cooking time.

Click Here to see more about this lap counter and to check out some other cool things.

I also enjoy this:

You know, for all those times when you have to pour water and wine at once but don’t want to juggle two vessels.

Tagliatelle with Sausage, Basil, and Sun-Dried Tomatoes

This is the follow-up to my pasta-making experience.  All I have to say is oy!

I figured I’d use my fresh pasta in a recipe designed specifically for fresh pasta. Of course my buddy/food crush Mario Batali divides his pasta recipes between dried and fresh.  Easy enough.  After skimming through Molto Italiano I decided on Tagliatelle with Sausage, Basil, and Sun-Dried Tomatoes.  I liked the idea because it seemed really simple and used things that I mostly had on hand.  In the end it was maybe too simple.

I followed the recipe to a “T” and dare I say, I didn’t love it?  There was enough flavour!  It was bland and dry and overall not scrumptious!  I was disappointed.  The worst part was that I used ALL of my fresh pasta for this recipe.  ALL of it.  Go figure.  I wish I could say there were some redeeming parts of the recipe but there really weren’t.  Of course I made a lot of pasta and had to take it to work for lunch over a few days.  I didn’t love it.

Rating: ** (out of 5)

Check out what others had to say…
Eat. Drink. Think.

ingredients:
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
6 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
8 ounces sweet Italian sausage, casings removed and crumbled
6 sun-dried tomatoes, thinly sliced
5 tablespoons tomato paste
1/4 cup dry white wine
1 to 1-1/4 pounds fresh tagliatelle
12 fresh basil leaves
Grated Parmigiano-Reggiano for serving with pasta.

method:
1.Bring large pot of water to boil, add 2 tablespoons salt

2.Meanwhile, in a large 10″ or 12″ sauté pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat until hot. Add the garlic and cook until lightly golden brown, about 2 minutes. Add the sausage and sun-dried tomatoes and cook, stirring, until the sausage is cooked through, 5-7 minutes. Drain the fat from the pan, leaving about 2 tablespoons, then stir in the tomato paste and wine and cook 5 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.

3.Drop the tagliatelle into the boiling water and cook until tender (with fresh pasta, this usually takes 2-3 minutes). Drain the pasta and add to the pan with the sun-dried tomatoes. Return to the heat, toss in the basil, stir gently for about 30 seconds. Serve immediately with grated Parmagiano.

Mario Batali’s Basic Pasta Dough

Every once in a while I get inspired by the idea of a large cooking project.  On this particular day I felt like making pasta from scratch. A few years ago I commandeered my sister’s pasta maker for my own use and have had success making pasta (the two or three times I actually made it). Then a few months ago I was at the big Italian grocery store and I bought the 00 type flour thinking that I would make some pasta in the near future. The near future ended up being maybe six months later… but those are just details.

My go-to pasta recipe tends to be Mario Batali’s Basic Pasta Dough from his Molto Italiano cookbook. In the past I’ve adapted in and done the spinach version and have loved it.

The thing about making pasta from scratch is that it’s SOOOOOOO time consuming.  There is a lot of rolling and flattening and running the dough through the machine multiple times.  Don’t even get me started on the dough tearing, drying out etc.  And the yield is never that much.  One recipe makes about 1 1/4 lb of pasta!  It can be pretty frustrating.  Let’s not forget that pasta isn’t that expensive to begin with.

Why do I do it?  Part of it is kind of relaxing.  And I tend to like the craft involved in food and the feeling of seeing dozens of strands drying.  But to be honest, after my last experience I may just use my machine to make ravioli or something!

So I had my pasta drying on the rack but my mom was going to make curry for dinner.  I didn’t want my pasta to taste like curry so I moved the rack to my bedroom.  I left and went to yoga and when I came back about half of the pasta was on the floor and on my side table!  As the pasta dried it began to snap at the tension point where it made contact with the bar.  I kid you not.  I was able to rescue some of it but I almost lost it when I saw my precious pasta strewn across the floor!

Then when I cooked the pasta a few days later the recipe I chose was NOT delish.  I’ll post about that one next.

Here’s what others have to say on the matter…
Murray Hill 5 : In My Kitchen

Mario Batali’s Basic Pasta Dough

Ingredients

3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for kneading

5 large eggs

Directions

Mound the flour in the center of a large wooden board. Make a well in the center of the flour and add the eggs. Using a fork, beat the eggs together and then begin to incorporate the flour, starting with the inner rim of the well. As you expand the well, keep pushing the flour up to retain the well shape (do not worry if it looks messy). When half of the flour is incorporated, the dough will begin to come together. Start kneading the dough, using primarily the palms of your hands. Once the dough is a cohesive mass, set the dough aside and scrape up and discard any dried bits of dough.

Lightly flour the board and continue kneading for 10 minutes, dusting the board with additional flour as necessary. The dough should be elastic and a little sticky. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and allow to rest for 30 minutes at room temperature before using. Makes about 1 1/4 lbs.

Recipe copyright, Mario Batali from his cookbook, “Molto Italiano” copyright 2005

Barefoot Bloggers: Chicken Piccata

Another Thursday, another Barefoot Bloggers challenge!  When I saw that Lindsey of Noodle Nights and Muffin Mornings chose Chicken Piccata as her recipe pick I was okay with the choice.  I’ve had chicken piccata in the past and enjoyed it but on a whole I don’t eat a lot of chicken.  I just don’t love it.  Sure, I enjoy a roasted chicken or some fried chicken.  But chicken cutlets?  I can usually do without.

As part of my goal to eat happy animals I decided to get some more responsible chicken.  I don’t care if it’s called “organic” or not, I just wanted chicken that was antibiotic free, didn’t eat animal by-products and maybe just maybe saw some grass in life.  I got lazy and didn’t want to go to Whole Foods so I bought the “Traditionally Raised” chicken from Metro (a local supermarket chain).   The chicken itself was great!  It was flavourful, texture was great, it didn’t taste too “chicken-y” etc. This chicken may turn me back on to eating chicken… who knew!  It was also a hit with my mom who has the same issues with chicken that I do.  It was definitely worth the extra $$.

As for the recipe… so straightforward and delicious!  I wondered why the recipe didn’t include capers which I thought was a standard component in chicken piccata.  I didn’t add any but learned that many other fellow bloggers did.  The recipe was fine without capers.  My only issue was that the sauce was too lemon-y!  You make the sauce with lemon juice and then you put the lemon halves in the sauce!  Crazy lemon flavour.  It was delish but just a bit too much.

I didn’t make any modifications to the recipe for the most part.  I refused to buy parsley to use as a garnish.  I’m tired of wasting parsley!  I did find some dried parsley (shudder) in the spice cabinet and sprinkled some on the finished product.  Didn’t help or hurt which works fine for me.

I served this with some garlic pasta and spinach.  A great combo!  I didn’t use too much garlic so it was hint-o-garlic pasta. I would make this recipe again if I were in the mood for chicken – which doesn’t happen.  It’s a great weeknight meal and classic Ina!

Click Here to check out some other Barefoot Bloggers.

Chicken Piccata

Ingredients

• 2 split (1 whole) boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 extra-large egg
• 1/2 tablespoon water
• 3/4 cup seasoned dry bread crumbs
• Good olive oil
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature, divided
• 1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (2 lemons), lemon halves reserved
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• Sliced lemon, for serving
• Chopped fresh parsley leaves, for serving

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.

Place each chicken breast between 2 sheets of parchment paper or plastic wrap and pound out to 1/4-inch thick. Sprinkle both sides with salt and pepper.

Mix the flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon of pepper in a shallow plate. In a second plate, beat the egg and 1/2 tablespoon of water together. Place the bread crumbs on a third plate. Dip each chicken breast first in the flour, shake off the excess, and then dip in the egg and bread crumb mixtures.

Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large saute pan over medium to medium-low heat. Add the chicken breasts and cook for 2 minutes on each side, until browned. Place them on the sheet pan and allow them to bake for 5 to 10 minutes while you make the sauce.

For the sauce, wipe out the saute pan with a dry paper towel. Over medium heat, melt 1 tablespoon of the butter and then add the lemon juice, wine, the reserved lemon halves, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Boil over high heat until reduced in half, about 2 minutes. Off the heat, add the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter and swirl to combine. Discard the lemon halves and serve 1 chicken breast on each plate. Spoon on the sauce and serve with a slice of lemon and a sprinkling of fresh parsley.

Product Review: MixMyGranola

Every once in a while I’ll get an e-mail from a company pitching their products.  I’m rarely enticed enough because as you can probably tell I eat very few packaged goods and try to avoid foods with too many ingredients.

The other day I heard from Raoul at MixMyGranola. It’s a web-based start-up company based out of Florida that does custom granola mixes.

It’s a really fun idea! You basically go to their website and choose one of three granola bases (organic, vanilla or low-fat) and then you can choose amongst 50 or so add-ins. Add-ins include traditional granola fare such as dried fruits, nuts, seeds, and coconut as well as some non-traditional add-ins such as wasabi peas, yogurt pretzels, gummi bears, candy corn and some other interesting things. The granola bases range in price from $3.99 to $4.99 and the add-ins range from $0.49 to $1.99. Many of the ingredients are organic and they are all “all-natural”… not bad! You also get to name your mix.

I didn’t specifically request a certain mix and relied on the MixMyGranola gods to put something together that didn’t involve raisins. When I got home from work the fashionable tube was waiting for me.  I love getting mail so having this adorable package waiting for me was definitely a highlight.

I flipped over the vessel and noticed the nutrition facts and saw that my mix contained cranberries, goji berries, almonds and lots of LOVE.  I’ve been low on the loving for… about forever so if I’ll get some love out of my granola I’ll take it.  Not bad!

After opening the package I noticed a good add-in to granola ratio which was nice.

This product is pretty good stuff!  It’s better than your average supermarket granola for sure.  It’s not too sweet which I love and doesn’t have any wacky flavours (I hate apple cinnamon granola and things like that).  The add-ins were super fresh as well.  No rock-hard cranberries or chewy almonds. The customization aspect is what really makes this granola stand apart from others.  I make my own granola because I can never find the right combination of ingredients in store-bought granola – this is a good alternative for sure.  The one downside about this granola is the lack of clusters.  I love large clusters in my granola!  Maybe they get lost in shipping or maybe this is cluster-less granola.  If the lack of clusters doesn’t phase you then MixMyGranola is definitely worth checking out.

VisitMixMyGranola to place your order!

Sticky Toffee Cakelets

It’s rare that I see a recipe online and immediately buy the ingredients and make it.  I’m not sure what was in the air today but I was reading through The Kitchn on Apartment Therapy when I came across a discussion about dates (the food). Dates aren’t something that I usually eat, I just never have a reason to. The post was about the top 5 things to do with leftover dates. The recipe for Sticky Toffee Cakelets immediately jumped out at me.

Now, I don’t have a history with Sticky Toffee Pudding but the idea has always intrigued me. Then a few years back the Food Network had a special in conjunction with Haagen Dazs where viewers submitted their ice cream ideas. The winner ended up being the Sticky Toffee Pudding ice cream! I was in the supermarket a few months ago and found the ice cream and LOVED it. But of course the actual dessert isn’t something that I see all that often.

For some reason the idea of making Sticky Toffee Pudding was extra appealing today. I just had.to.make.it!

I’m glad I did… it was DELICIOUS! From what I understand this recipe is a nontraditional in that it uses dates and dried apricots. Makes no difference to me! It was also really easy to make with easy to follow directions. So even if you’re baking challenged this should be an easy one. The instructions say that your cakeletes will fall like a souffle. Totally didn’t happen to me. I put my ramekins on a baking sheet to bake so not sure if that changed things a bit.

I’m definitely adding this one to my repertoire. The sauce alone is worth keeping the recipe. I could drink it by the cupful!

Rating: ****1/2 (out of 5)

(adapted from The Greyston Bakery Cookbook)
Makes 4 single-serving cakes

For the cakes:
3/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup chopped dried apricots
1/4 cup pitted finely chopped dates
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
6 tablespoons packed brown sugar (1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons)
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

For the sauce:
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
1/3 cup evaporated milk or heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350° F. Grease four 6-ounce ramekins and line bottoms with parchment paper rounds.

In a bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt to blend. Set aside.

In a small bowl, combine the apricots and dates. Pour enough boiling water over the fruit to cover. Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, or by hand, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs and vanilla and mix well. Slowly add the dry ingredients. Drain the fruit and gently fold it into the mixture.

Pour the batter into the prepared ramekins, and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until puffed up high and a cake tested inserted into the center comes out with moist crumbs attached. The cakes will fall like a soufflé when removed from oven. Allow cakes to cool slightly before turning out of their ramekins. Turn each right side up on a small serving plate.

Prepare the sauce:
Combine sugar, butter, evaporated milk, and vanilla in a medium saucepan over medium heat and stir until butter is completely melted and the sugar dissolves. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes, until the sauce darkens to a deep brown color.

To serve, drizzle the warm sauce over the cakes, allowing the some sauced to pool in the center where the cakes have fallen.

• Check out The Greyston Bakery Cookbook (Amazon, $18.98)