Roasted Hazelnut Ricotta Pancakes with Blueberries

Ricotta pancakes are very moist and have lots of extra protein. Very little flour is used in making them. They freeze well and make a quick breakfast. Just take them out of the freezer and nuke. Top with fresh berries, maple syrup, honey or jam.This recipe has freshly roasted hazelnuts for added flavor. If you are not a nut person they can certainly be left out.

4 eggs separated
3 tablespoons of sugar
1/2 teaspoon of baking powder
1/4 teaspoon of kosher salt
2/3 cup of flour
1 1/2 cups of ricotta
1 teaspoon of vanilla paste or vanilla
3 tablespoons of freshly roasted hazelnuts chopped

Separate the eggs and whisk the egg whites until they reach soft peaks. In a separate bowl blend all the dry ingredients. To this bowl add the egg yolks, ricotta and vanilla. Now add in your dry ingredients and blend until the batter just comes together. Add in a third of the egg whites. Mix until the batter is lightened. Now gently add in the rest of the egg whites.

Heat a frying pan to medium high. Grease ring molds and place on frying pan. Gently spoon in the batter to fill the molds. Remove molds when the batter is set. Heat the oven to 200 degrees. Flip pancakes and remove to warm oven until all are done.

Top pancakes with butter, berries and syrup. You can also top with jam or fruit curd.

Braised Rabbit Rillette

Rillette can be made with duck, rabbit or any game. I like rabbit as it has a wonderful mild flavor. This is how to best use the whole rabbit. The loin is saved for another use. Use rillette like a pate for fillings and sauces for pasta. The best place to buy fresh rabbit is at Blue Ribbon Meats. They will portion the rabbit as you wish. They are located at the Pike Place Market. Place your order over the phone and you can just pick it up. Mix the rillette with bechamel sauce and Parmigino Reggiano. Then it is ready for use. I add little crispy bits of pancette to the mix. I can not stress how really great stock and wine must be used!

1 pound rabbit legs
1 onion minced
3 carrots minced
1 stock of celery minced
6 cloves of garlic
6 cups of home made chicken stock
2 ounce of pancette minced
1 cup of white wine
7 tablespoons of bechamel
1/4 cup of Parmigiano Reggiano
Fresh thyme, rosemary, sage and bay leaf
Kosher salt & pepper

Heat up a cast iron pot until smoking and add in some olive oil and butter. Saute the rabbit until it forms a lovely golden crust. Salt and pepper the rabbit as it is browning. Remove to a plate and add in your onions, celery and carrots. Saute until they have a little color. Add in your garlic and saute a few more minutes. Now add in the wine, spices, stock and rabbit. Bring to a simmer. Cover and place in a 325 degree oven and cook for two hours.


Remove pot from the oven and cool. Now remove the legs and take the meat off the bones. You will discard the bones. Strain the liquid and place in a sauce pan. Reduce the liquid to a sauce. Add the rabbit meat and the sautéed pancetta. Place in a jar and cool in refrigerator. When ready to use add the cheese and bechamel.

Challah

As a child, I would go to my Jewish neighbors homes. This traditional braided loaf is served for Friday night dinner. I changed up the recipe adding milk and butter. This dairy challah would not be served with meat for Friday night dinner. The traditional recipe uses oil and water. The dairy version is more tender then the pareve version. It is with fond memories that I make this bread.

3/4 cup of whole milk
2 tablespoons of honey
1 1/2 teaspoons of yeast
2 large eggs
3 tablespoons of butter
2 1/2 teaspoons of bread flour
3/4 teaspoon of kosher salt
1 large egg beaten for glaze and some poppy seeds

Warm the milk to 115 degrees and add the yeast to the milk. In a food processor add all the rest of the ingredients. Turn the processor on and add the milk with the yeast. Process the dough until it is very elastic. Place in a oiled bowl and cover. Let rise until double in size.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Now punch down and divide into thirds.
Roll each third into ropes about fifteen inches. Braid the dough and cover. Let rise again until just shy of double in size. Beat egg and glaze top of loaf. Top with a sprinkle of poppy seeds. Bake for thirty minutes or until internal temperature is 190 degrees. 

Anadama Bread

This recipe brings me back to my health food days. The dough is sticky and is a little bit tricky. I use a food processor to knead the dough and get the right consistency. The recipe is from Bon Appetit. I like this variation as it has all kinds of seeds. Once it is put together, very little effort is involved. Make sure you place a piece of foil over the loaf while baking. Otherwise it will become very dark. The bread keeps well and makes the best toast!

In a food processor place:

1 cup cornmeal
1/4 cup of mild molasses
2 cups bread flour
1 teaspoon of kosher salt
2 tablespoons of melted butter

Now in a bowl place 2 1/4 teaspoons of yeast in one cup of warm water. Dissolve the yeast in the warm water.

Now add the yeast water to the food processor and process for five minutes..

Now to the dough add:

2 tablespoons of white sesame seeds
1 tablespoon of black sesame seeds
4 teaspoons of flax seeds
2 teaspoons of poppy seeds

Mix well and place in a oiled bowl. Let rise for two hours in a warm place. I use my proofer and set it for 78 degrees. It should have doubled in size. Now punch down and let rise for another one hour. Now shape dough in log and place in a 8 x 4 pan. Let rise for one hour and fifteen minutes. When the bread has risen over the edge, brush with a beaten egg. Bake in a 375 degree oven for 50 minutes.

If you are a bread baker I highly recommend a bread proofer. They now make one for home bakers. You have to get them quick. They go out of stock as soon as they are available. They can not make them fast enough! You can make cultured butter and yogurt in the proofer too. King Arthur is the source for them.

Nero All'Arancia Gelato

I love making gelato. This recipe is very easy and comes from Sicily. The interesting thing about this recipe is that it does not use eggs or cream. The thickening is whole milk and cornstarch. It takes five minutes to make and if you have an electric ice cream maker you are set.

This recipe is adapted from a book by Rosetta Costantino. She is a wonderful chef and works in philanthropy. You must check out her works!

Place two cups of whole milk in a sauce pan and bring to a simmer. Now set aside and place four ounces of bittersweet chocolate and one half a cup of unsweetened cocoa in pan. Stir till the mixture is well incorporated. In a bowl place one cup of sugar and three tablespoons of cornstarch. Stir to mix. Now add this to the pan. You will then add one more cup of milk and 1/2 teaspoon of orange extract. Strain through a fine mesh strainer and refrigerate.

Now process in your ice cream maker and you will have traditional Sicilian gelato. I add in mini chocolate chips, but traditionally they add in candied Sicilian oranges.