Comfort Foods and Indulgences

midnightpizzaWhen 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.

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tomatilloguacAs football fans gear up for Super Bowl Sunday, they'll buy more than 50 million pounds of avocados, almost all of which will be transformed into guacamole. How will all this guacamole get eaten? With chips, of course. 15, 000 tons of chips.

That's enough guacamole to cover a football field, end zone to end zone, waist deep.

Guacamole couldn't be easier to make, so skip the pre-made containers at the super market and make your own this year.

Though I love traditional guacamole, I'll be making my Roasted Tomatillo Guacamole Sunday, a palette-tingling concoction of silky avocado, tangy tomatillos, and hot serrano chili. Tomatillos (toh-MAH-tee-YOS), also known as green tomatoes, are a staple in Mexican cuisine, beloved for their tart, citric flavor, not unlike a Granny Smith apple. When selecting, look for smooth, crisp, papery skin and firm, brightly colored green fruit.

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grapemuffins.jpgPrior to blogging, I rarely made muffins. OK, I never made muffins. Now I find it difficult to go a week or more without baking some. There are so many things to love about muffins: They're easy to make. They're endlessly versatile. And, unlike many baked goods, they're portion controlled. (That is, as long as you don't eat two or three per sitting.)

While I enjoy baking traditional muffins like my Mom's Jordan Marsh Blueberry Muffins, I really love to play around with ingredients and concoct unique muffins such as Fresh Apricot and Kiwi and Coconut.

Up until a few weeks ago, however, I had never made muffins with red grapes. I mean, red grapes in muffins? Is that natural? Oh, it's beyond natural. It's extraordinary. I should know. I have made them three times within the past few weeks, including for a brunch, where they received rave reviews.

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lebongarconI 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

chocicecreamThis is a super easy, super delicious chocolate ice cream. It uses just a few basic ingredients and does not require any special equipment. Sweetened condensed milk eliminates the need for eggs and sugar and carefully supervised custards.

The texture is incredible – smooth, silky, almost mousse-like. As always, use the best possible bittersweet chocolate – like Callebaut or Valrhona.

Eagle Brand’s website features several flavor variations (click for their recipes), but this one from Cook’s Country seems to have the best balance.

I’m planning to test some fruit versions soon!

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