Comfort Foods and Indulgences

Last weekend I went to a wine auction and indulged in chocolate-peanut butter brownies. Needless to say I thought about them all week. On about the third day of having brownie on the brain, I figured I better make a batch for myself. Does anyone else daydream about dessert like this?

Truthfully these are really, really easy to make. It just takes time with cooling and I like to let them sit overnight in the refrigerator. This is how you get those really nice side cuts for brownies.

Using parchment paper in the pan allows you to lift them right out into a block. They are much easier to cut this way.

I am obsessed with shrimp tacos right now! We are eating them at least twice a week and even that isn't enough for me. They are such an easy meal to put together. Sometimes they are more fancy than others and other times it's just the tortilla and shrimp. 

Shrimp tacos always taste better (to me anyways) with a sweet-heat factor. For this recipe I chose pineapple and jalapeno made into a simple salsa. It makes the taco!! I think fresh corn would have been amazing in there as well. However, I did want a little complexity so I grilled the pineapple to give it that "burnt sugar" flavor, which is always amazing in any dish.

Fresh pineapples can be daunting to slice. I know many people shy away from giving it a try. But friends there is no reason to do that! This OXO Pineapple Slicer is an awesome tool that really works. I always place my pineapple in a bowl, like you see here, to catch all the flavorful juice. It slices beautifully! And the hard core remains in the pineapple. Get one if you can, your summer might not be the same without it. And if you are having a summer luau, don't even think twice about not having one of these on hand.

A brief summary of what summer represents:

• the beach
• the ice cream man
• lazy day
• sleeping outside in a tent
• staying up late
• movie’s under the stars (at Jeni’s)
• family vacation
• no homework
• s’mores
• fireworks
• Dodger stadium

S’mores, baked in a pan.  Go figure.  I found a FANTASTIC  recipe for a s’mores bar. Although the action of putting the marshmallow on the stick, setting it over the campfire, burning it up is all fun and games, these bars, baked in the oven can’t be beat.  I whipped up these, last minute, for a party that Eli was going to.  

My friend Pat Loud says that chocolate is ALWAYS the best choice for dessert at a dinner party.  What I love about Pots de Crème is that it can be made ahead (up to 3 days) and it packs a great chocolate punch.  The satiny texture takes “chocolate pudding” to a whole new decadent level. Many recipes require a baking the dishes in a hot water bath, but this recipe is much simpler and uses a cooked custard (crème anglaise) method which is poured over the bittersweet chocolate.

You can cut the recipe in half to serve 4 or increase as needed depending on how many you are serving. Small porcelain dishes or espresso cups make great serving dishes and because it’s so rich, a small amount goes a long way. Although I like to serve it with a small butter waffle cookie and my recently discovered Yoku Moku cookies from Japan (http://www.yokumoku.com), a simple dollop of cream and some chocolate shavings will deliver beautiful dessert for any occasion.