And to kick it off, here are my favorite recipes from the week of March 21:
Milk Bar Compost Cookie from Momofuku for Two: Who says you have to save dessert for last? Any Momofuku recipe is bound to grab my attention, but it's the gorgeous photographs on Momofuku for Two that made me realize that I have to try making my favorite Milk Bar cookie. Trust me: chocolate chunks, potato chips, coffee, and pretzels do make one amazing cookie.
Grilled New York Cheddar Cheese Sandwich from Leite's Culinaria: Leite's Culinaria is one of my favorite sites for finding cookbook recipes. I love Amy's Bread almost as much as I love good grilled cheese sandwich, so for me a grilled cheese recipe from the Amy's Bread cookbook
is a must-try.Polenta with a Leek and Mushroom Ragu from Serious Eats: It must be a really good vegetarian recipe for me to include it in my top picks for the week, and this is no exception. This recipe had me at gorgonzola, a cheese that will make this meat-lover forget about meat any day.
Grilled Pork Chops with a Turkey Sausage Barbecue Sauce from The Food Addicts: I came across The Food Addicts for the first time this week, and I am most impressed with their photography skills. While this recipe for grilled pork chops only makes me sad to be grill-less, I will definitely be giving it a try with pan-roasted pork chops; the recipe seems like the perfect weeknight meal.
Milk Chocolate Hazelnut Panna Cotta from The New York Times: Although this recipe was published in The New York Times a few weeks ago, it gets credit from me this week because I only noticed it on their website this week. I loved the looks of it so much (who doesn't like nutella?!) that I made it this weekend with excellent results. It is easily the creamiest and most delicious panna cotta I have ever had, and so simple to make.
I tried the chocolate panna cotta in the hopes that this would be a spring-appropriate dessert that was cool and light (tasting), but still chocolatey enough to satisfy the chocolate-lovers. I was a little disappointed in the results because it turned out more like pudding - intensely chocolate, and very dense - and less milky than I had hoped. The "paste" that is supposed to emerge from the beating never showed up, perhaps because I added too much of the gelatin mixture too quickly. In retrospect, I might have been better off with a chocolate mousse.
ReplyDeleteAs a side note, for an attractive presentation, you might grease the ramekins with butter before filling them, then place them in an inch of hot water a few minutes before serving. Gently shake the formed panna cotta out onto the serving dish and top it with some raspberries to sweeten the richness.
Yes, you're right the panna cotta is more of a creamy pudding than a light, bouncy panna cotta. I actually prefer pudding to panna cotta, but I can see how panna cotta lovers may be disappointed with it. I imagine the creamy texture of the Nutella makes this fairly unavoidable. Thanks for the point on presentation; that's a great idea which I'll definitely have to try.
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