Comfort Foods and Indulgences

Plum Cobbler

Cobbler, slump, or grunt; have you heard of these desserts? Most people can recognize a cobbler, a fruit dessert baked in a casserole with a dough topping but with no bottom crust. A slump or grunt is almost the same thing except that they are simmered on the stove, resulting in a steamed dumpling-like top. Supposedly one dessert is named after how the dumplings look (they slump) and the other after the sound the bubbling fruit makes (it grunts). All three are considered New England specialties dating back to Colonial times, when they would have been made in a cast-iron pan over a fire. Luckily we now have the luxury of using a stove or oven.

Many fruits make wonderful cobblers, slumps, or grunts. Apples are very well known in cobblers, but I like mine with stone fruit, especially peaches or plums. Nectarines and cherries, or a combination of all of the above would work extremely well too. Recently I picked up a few pints of very nice red plums at Sherwood Farm in Easton, CT. Lately they have become one of my favorite farm markets selling a little bit of every fruit and vegetable. When I saw those bright red plums, I immediately knew that I was going to make one of these simple and homey desserts.

A Midnight Pizza

midnightpizza When I awoke bleary-eyed at 12:15 am last night, I rolled over to Jeff's side of the bed to discover a still-warm, empty spot. Fearing he was ill, I immediately walked to the bathroom. Empty. I walked into the kitchen and there he was, standing in the darkened room lit only by the bluish glow of the refrigerator light. His cheeks were bulging, and he was holding a big slice of leftover eggplant and caramelized onion pizza.

"Watcha doin'?" I asked.

"Noffin," he said, trying unsuccessfully, to hide the ball of pizza stuffed in his mouth.

"Doesn't look like nothin'," I said, "Looks like pizza."

"You're dreaming. Go back to bed," he said.

If ever there was a pizza worth getting up in the middle of the night, it's this eggplant, caramelized onion and prosciutto pizza with smoked mozzarella.

Favorite Find - Le Bon Garcon

lebongarcon I lost my sweet tooth long ago. Except for one thing. Caramel. I just can't resist it. That doesn't mean I always love it though. Plenty of people are trying to capture my heart and tastebuds, but few rarely capture my imagination. Le Bon Garcon is one of them. Though apparently they captured Oprah's love first. I didn't know that when I got the opportunity to try Justin Chao's creations. Originally an architecture student, he traded in the drafting table for a kitchen one and found his passion in pastry. After studying in Paris and returning to Los Angeles, he formed Le Bon Garcon, which uses Plugra butter and no preservatives in their hand-crafted and wrapped caramels. You may think you've had amazing Salted Caramel. You'd be wrong. But I wasn't surprised I LOVED that one, I mean come on. It's salt and butter, people.

I was intrigued by the Rosé (a seasonal flavor only available until 9/15), as I didn't know caramels came with other flavors and this blend of raspberry, lychee and rose essence just sounded so perfectly ethereal. And it is. Light and lingering, perfectly summery. I was going to skip the Mango, which is blended with cardamom and ginger. Even though I like all those things, I couldn't wrap my head around mango caramel; however, it is one of his signature flavors, so I gave it a shot. Holy cow! This one blew my mind. It's so intense, like a Starburst from my youth, but so much more classy and luscious and mangorific. The Macadamia was also good, but I like my caramel unadulterated by nuts. The Man thought it was great. To each their own. Even the packaging was lovely - simple yet colorful and fun. If you have a caramel lover in your life, they need to know about Le Bon Garcon. Excuse me while I go get another piece. http://www.lebongarcon.com

Homemade Pizza

There are some things in life that are so commonplace, you just assume that no matter where you live, they'll be there. Like supermarkets, gas stations, McDonald's, and pizza dough.

Every weekend of my life in Rhode Island, I went to Crugnale's Bakery to pick up 3 lbs. of pizza dough for $1. Like eggs and milk, it was a staple in our house.

Rhode Island – the state with the highest percentage of Italian-Americans – has an extraordinarily high number of bakeries, all of which sell pizza dough.

Imagine my shock when we moved to North Carolina and discovered that not only were there no Italian bakeries to be found, but people didn't even know what I meant when I asked for pizza dough.

I searched markets, delis, and bakeries:

Me: "Excuse me, do you sell pizza dough?"

Guy: "We don't sell pizza, Ma'm."

Caramel-Challah Bread Pudding

caramel bpudding This dish is so good that I had to hold my self back from eating the entire dish. A new Sunday morning favorite has just arrived. I inevitably always have left over Challah.

We start our weekend, each Friday night by celebrating Shabbat dinner. Inevitably, we always have left over challah. Eli usually gets egg in the hole on Saturday mornings, Isaac and Levi like it toasted with a little cinnamon butter smeared on top and sometimes I make croutons or bread crumbs with the left overs.

Last night, I was watching an episode of Nigella Lawson. She was making a caramel croissant bread pudding. Bingo. I was inspired to use up our challah and make something similar for breakfast. I changed it a bit yet I am sure the results are just as good as the original!

Comfort Foods and Indulgences