Serves: 6

• Ingredients

1 cup +1/4 cup buttermilk
2/3 cup quick cooking rolled oats
1 egg, lightly beaten
2 tablespoons light brown sugar
2/3 cup grated granny smith apple, juice squeezed out
6 tablespoons flour
6 tablespoons whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons oil

• preparation

In a mixing bowl, whisk together 1 cup of buttermilk and the oats. Let stand 15 minutes.
In a large bowl, whisk together the egg, and brown sugar. Squeeze juice out of apple and combine with egg mixture.
Stir in the flours, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, oil, the oats mix, and the remaining 1/4 cup buttermilk. Combine well.
Cook pancakes on a hot greased griddle, or a non-stick frying pan.
Cook the pancakes 1 to 2 minutes on each side or until they are golden.

Serves: 6

Scones keep, wrapped in plastic wrap, for 1 day. May also be kept in freezer

• Ingredients

1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for rolling
1 1/3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats, plus more for topping
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons light-brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 sticks cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1 1/2 cups diced Granny Smith apple (2 apples cut into generous 1/4-inch cubes)
2/3 cup cold buttermilk, plus more for brushing
Raw turbinado sugar, for sprinkling

• preparation

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Whisk together flour, oats, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Cut in butter with a pastry blender or rub in with your fingers. (The largest pieces should be the size of small peas.) With your fingertips, flatten butter pieces into small disks. Add apples and buttermilk, stirring until dough just comes together.

Turn out dough onto a lightly floured work surface. Pat dough into a 6-by-8-inch rectangle, and cut into twelve 2-by-2-inch squares with a floured knife. Place about 2 inches apart on parchment-lined baking sheets. Brush tops with buttermilk, and sprinkle with raw turbinado sugar and oats. Bake until golden brown, 20 to 22 minutes, rotating sheets halfway through. Let cool on sheets for 15 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Serves: 4

• Ingredients

4 large baking apples
2 teaspoons raisins
2 teaspoons soft butter
2 teaspoons sliced almonds
4 teaspoons melted red currant jelly
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 cup dark rum

• preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Cut apples in halves horizontally, remove core.
Combine raisins, butter, sliced almonds, and melted red currant jelly.
Spoon in core of apple halves.
Sprinkle a mixture of sugar and cinnamon over apples.
Pour a splash of dark rum over apples.
Bake till tender.

Serves: 6

• Ingredients

For the crust:
4 ounces butter, soft
1 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons sugar
1 egg
2 pounds baking apples

Filling: 1 cup milk
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon flour
1 teaspoon cornstarch
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 teaspoons icing sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

• preparation

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Crust:
Mix butter with flour, cornstarch, salt, sugar, and egg to make a dough.
Roll and line an 9-inch pie plate.
Peel apples. Core,slice into small slivers and arrange in crust. Bake for 20 minutes.
Filling:
In a mixing bowl, combine milk, sugar, flour, cornstarch, eggs, vanilla.
Pour over apples. Continue baking at 350 degrees for 10 to 15 minutes.
Combine icing sugar with cinnamon. Sprinkle over pie. Serve warm or cold.

Berbere is a chile and spice blend used to season many Ethiopian dishes. Because authentic berbere can be hard to find, here is therecipe.

• Ingredients

1/2 teaspoon fenugreek
1/2 cup ground dried New Mexico chiles
1/4 cup paprika
1 tablespoon salt
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground allspice

• preparation

Finely grind fenugreek seeds in an electric coffee/spice grinder. Stir together with remaining ingredients until combined well.
•Berbere keeps in an airtight container, chilled, 3 months.

Serves: 8

• Ingredients

Double Crust Pie Dough
Makes enough pastry for 1 2-crust pie

Ingredients:
2 1/3 cups All-purpose flour
4 tsp Granulated sugar
1 tsp Salt
1 cup Cool unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1 Large egg, directly from the fridge
2 tbsp Cold water
2 tsp White vinegar or lemon juice

Cooked Blueberry Filling:
4 cups fresh or frozen blueberries
1 medium apple, peeled and coarsely grated
1 cup sugar
1 Tbsp lemon or lime juice
1 tsp lemon or lime zest
¼ tsp ground cinnamon
2 ½ Tbsp cornstarch
Assembly:
1 recipe Double crust pie dough
1 egg mixed with 2 Tbsp water, for brushing
Turbinado or granulated sugar, for sprinkling

• preparation

Directions for Double Crust Pie Dough:
Combine the flour, sugar and salt. Cut butter into small pieces (you can pull the butter from the fridge 30 minutes before adding) and add to the flour, mixing it in until the dough is a rough, crumbly texture.
Whisk the egg, water and vinegar or lemon juice and add it all at once, mixing until dough comes together. Shape dough into 2 logs or discs, wrap them in plastic and chill for at least one hour before rolling.
The pie dough can be frozen for up to 6 months and thawed in the refrigerator.

For the filling, bring the blueberries, apple, sugar, citrus juice, zest and cinnamon up to a simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally, cooking until the blueberries are soft and tender, about 10 minutes. Whisk the cornstarch with a few tablespoons of cold water and add this to the blueberry filling, stirring and returning to a simmer until the filling has thickened and is glossy. Set aside to cool to room temperature. If making ahead, store the filling chilled, but bring it up to room temperature before baking into a pie.

Preheat the oven to 400 F. Pull out the dough from the fridge 15-30 minutes before rolling. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the first disk of dough into a circle just less than ¼-inch thick. Dust a 9-inch pie plate with flour and line the plate with the pastry, leaving the edges untrimmed. Spoon the blueberry filling into the crust.

Roll out the second disk of pastry slightly thinner than the bottom crust, about 1/8 - inch, but into more of a square shape. Use a knife or pastry wheel to cut long strips about ½ -inch wide (you should have between 12 and 18 strips). Lay half of the strips over the blueberry pie filling, leaving a ½ -inch between them. Gently lift alternating strip of pastry, folding them halfway back. Place a new strip of pastry perpendicular against where the strips are folded back, then fold those very pieces over the newly laid strip. Now lift the opposite alternating strips and fold them back as far as they can go (to the edge of that newly laid strip) and place a second perpendicular strip beside it. Repeat this technique moving toward one side of the pie shell, and then repeat towards the other side, until the top has a complete lattice top. Trim away the excess pastry and pinch the edges to create a fluted design. Brush the lattice top with the egg wash and sprinkle with sugar.

Bake the pie for 10 minutes at 400 F, then reduce the oven temperature to 375 F and cook for about another 40 minutes, until the pastry is golden brown. Cool the pie to room temperature and then chill until ready to serve.

Serves: 6

• Ingredients

2 cups fresh or frozen blueberies
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup ruby Port wine
1 stick cinnamon

• preparation

Bring blueberries, sugar, port and cinnamon to simmer over medium heat, stirring; simmer for about 10 minutes or until slightly thickened.
Pour into heat proof container. Let cool.
Refrigerate.
Tip: Serve over angel food cake, mascarpone or fresh ricotta cheese or ice cream.

Serves: 10

• Ingredients

3/4 cup butter
1 1/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1 egg
1/3 cup milk
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
3 cup quick oats
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup raisins
1 cup chopped walnuts

• preparation

Heat oven to 375 degrees F.
Grease baking sheet.
Combine shortening, light brown sugar, egg, milk and vanilla in large bowl and beat with an electric mixer at medium speed until well blended.
Combine oats, flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon and cream together with mixer at low speed until just blended.
Stir in raisins and nuts.
Drop rounded tablespoonfuls of dough 2" apart onto baking sheet.
Bake at 375'F. for 10-12 minutes, or until lightly browned.
Cool 2 minutes on baking sheet. Remove to foil on counter top.

Serves: 8

The Chicken Couscous is a flavorful and healthy dish with exotic spices but still simple enough to make any day of the week.

Pearl couscous, sometimes also called Israeli couscous is the same as regular couscous but just a bit bigger and sometimes comes in various colors.

• Ingredients

3 tablespoon Moroccan spice blend recipe below
4 chicken breasts about 1 1/2 lbs, boneless and skinless
2 tablespoon olive oil
1 large onion chopped
5 cloves garlic minced
1/2 cup golden raisins
14 ounce chickpeas (1 can) drained and washed
14 ounce fire roasted tomatoes (1 can)
3 cups chicken broth low sodium
1 cup pearl couscous dry
4 cups kale rinsed and roughly chopped

Moroccan Spice Blend

1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon allspice
1 teaspoon coriander
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon cardamom

• preparation

Preheat oven to 375 F degrees.
Combine all the Moroccan spice blend ingredients together. The recipe should yields about about 3 tbsp.

Season the chicken breasts with 2 tbsp of the Moroccan spice blend thoroughly. Use more as preferred.
In a large Dutch Oven or a oven safe pot, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot add the chicken breasts and sear on both sides until browned, about 2 to 3 minutes per side.
The chicken will not be cooked through at all, it will just be crispy on the outside. Transfer the chicken from the pot to a plate and set aside.

Add the onion and garlic to the pot and saute for about 3 minutes until onion softens and becomes translucent and garlic is aromatic. add the remaining 1 tbsp of the Moroccan spice blend and stir.

Add the golden raisins, chickpeas, fire roasted tomatoes, chicken broth, couscous and stir well. Gently stir in the kale. Bring to a boil, then add the chicken breasts back.

Cover the pot with a lid and place in the oven. Cook in the oven for 30 minutes with the lid on, then remove the lid and cook for an additional 30 minutes.

Serves: 4

• Ingredients

3 tablespoons butter
2 large golden delicious apples, peeled, cored and sliced
2 Cortland apples, peeled, cored, sliced
3 tablespoons sugar
1/2 cup apple cider
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon

• preparation

Melt butter in heavy skillet. add apple slices. sprinkle with sugar. Stir.
Cover and cook over medium heat, stirring from time to time, for 4 to 5 minutes.
Stir in apple cider and cinnamon.
Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until apples are tender.
Remove cover and boil until syrup begins to thicken.
To serve:
Spoon warm apples into compote dishes.
Top each serving with a small scoop of frozen yogurt.
Delicious served over Brown sugar Pound cake.

Serves: 6

• Ingredients

Cinnamon Ice Cream
1 cup whole milk
1 cup whipping cream
two 6-inch cinnamon sticks, broken into pieces
4 egg yolks
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
pinch salt

SATIN CINNAMON CHOCOLATE SAUCE

8

8 ounces semi-sweet chocolate
1/2 cup corn syrup
1/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons sweet butter

• preparation

In a medium saucepan, bring the milk, cream and cinnamon sticks to a boil. Remove from heat and cover. Leave 30 minutes to infuse, then strain. Meanwhile, whisk the egg yolks, sugar, ground cinnamon and salt until thick and the sugar dissolves.
Whisk in the strained milk and cream mixture. Pour into a clean saucepan and cook over a low heat, stirring until slightly thickened or the mixture reaches 176°F (82°C). Do not boil. Strain immediately into a bowl set over ice and stir until cool. Refrigerate until cold.
Churn in an ice-cream machine.

SATIN CINNAMON CHOCOLATE SAUCE

Combine chocolate, corn syrup, milk and cinnamon in a saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat for a minute, while stirring constantly. Remove from heat and stir in the butter.
Can be refrigerated for a week. Serve with ice cream.

Serves: 8

• Ingredients

Makes two 1-quart soufflés
For sauce:
1 cup half and half
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
1/4 cup sugar
3 large egg yolks

For soufflés molds:
1 teaspoon butter, softened
1 teaspoon sugar

For soufflés:
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
1/3 cup all purpose flour
1 1/4 cups milk
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup unsulfured molasses
2 teaspoons dark rum
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
pinch of salt
5 large egg yolks
6 large egg whites
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

• preparation

for sauce: Can be made a day ahead.
In a medium saucepan, bring half and half to a simmer. Scrape in seeds from vanilla bean; add bean. In a medium bowl, whisk sugar and egg yolks. Gradually whisk in half and half mixture. Return mixture to saucepan; stir with a wooden spoon over medium heat for about 5 minutes, until custard thickens and leaves path on back of spoon when finger is drawn across (do not boil). Strain sauce. Cover and chill until cold.

For soufflés:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Butter two 1-quart soufflé dishes. Sprinkle the bottom and sides of dishes with sugar; shake out excess. Place dishes on a baking sheet.

Melt butter in a heavy medium saucepan over medium heat. Add flour. Stir until mixture is smooth and bubbly, about 2 minutes. Gradually whisk in milk. Bring to boil while whisking continuously. Boil until thick, about 1 minute. Remove form heat. Stir in sugar, molasses, rum, ginger, vanilla extract, cinnamon, and salt. Cool until just warm, about 10 minutes. (can be prepared two hours ahead. Cover with plastic wrap, and let stand at room temperature. Whisk over low heat until warm before continuing). Mix in egg yolks.
Using an electric mixer, beat egg whites with cream of tartar in a large bowl until stiff but not dry. Fold beaten egg whites into the yolk mixture.
Divide mixture among prepared dishes. Bake until soufflés are puffed and golden, about 20-25 minutes. Serve immediately with sauce.

Serves: 8

Try our PHILADELPHIA 3-STEP Double Layer Pumpkin Cheesecake this Thanksgiving. In one layer, you get the fabulous classic flavor of cheesecake, and in the other, you get the sweet flavor of pumpkin and spices. This 3-step double layer pumpkin cheesecake takes 10 minutes of prep.

• Ingredients

2 pkg. (8 oz. each) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla
2 eggs
1/2 cup canned pumpkin
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
dash of ground cloves
dash of ground nutmeg
1 ready-to-use graham cracker crumb crust (6 oz.)

• preparation

Heat oven to 325°F.
Beat cream cheese, sugar and vanilla with mixer until blended. Add eggs; mix just until blended. Remove 1 cup batter; stir in pumpkin and spices.
Pour remaining plain batter into crust; top with pumpkin batter.
Bake 40 min. or until center is almost set. Cool. Refrigerate 3 hours or until firm.

Serves: 4

Baked in a large hot skillet, the thin eggy batter puffs up like a popover.
To serve, slide the pancake from the skillet onto a round serving platter, and present it apple side up.

• Ingredients

1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 Granny Smith apple, peeled, cored, and cut into 1/2 inch wedges
1/3 cup honey
1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
3 large eggs
3/4 cup milk
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon confectioners' sugar

• preparation

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Heat a well seasoned 10 inch cast iron skillet over high heat. Add butter. When melted, add apple wedges. Cook until softened and lightly golden, about 2 minutes. Stir in honey and cardamom, and remove skillet from heat.
In a separate bowl, whisk together remaining ingredients, except confectioners sugar, until smooth. Pour over apple mixture. Bake until puffed and brown, about 20 minutes.
Slide pancake onto a serving platter. Serve immediately, cut into wedges, with confectioners' sugar sifted over the top.

Serves: 6

• Ingredients

3 medium green apples
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon

Rum sauce:
1/4 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup cream
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
3 tablespoons dark rum

• preparation

Preheat oven at 400 degrees.
Core apples (do not peel). Put through food processor.
Cream butter, sugar and egg. Add apples and mix well. add dry ingredients.
Spoon into buttered glass dish or souffle glass dish and bake for 30 to 35 minutes in a water bath.
Serve with rum sauce.


Rum sauce:
Combine butter, sugar and cream in a saucepan.
Cook over low heat 8 to 12 minutes, then add vanilla and rum.
Cool and serve with cake.

Serves: 6

this cake and variants of it are commonly found throughout parts of the Pacific and Southeast Asia

• Ingredients

2 packages grated cassava* (2 lbs total; can be found in the frozen sections of Asian/Latin grocery stores; common Filipino ingredient)
1/3 cup of honey or coconut sugar, or 1/2 c maple syrup
1/2 tsp sea salt
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup coconut cream

• preparation

Mix all ingredients in a large bowl. Pour into greased 9x9 pan. Bake at 400 degrees for 40-50 minutes or until brown on top and tester comes out clean.
Enjoy with afternoon or morning tea.

* If you have cassava root, grate it in a food processor and boil it for about 5 minutes to be able to use it in the recipe.

Serves: 10

Garam masala will usually consist of:

Black pepper,
Coriander, Cumin, Cardamom, Cloves, Cinnamon (or cassia), Nutmeg

In variations on garam masala, ingredients may include:
turmeric,
saffron, fennel seeds, ginger, garlic,
mustard seeds,
mace, star anise, tamarind
fenugreek bay leaves
Malabar leaves
dried red chiles


Cooking With Garam Masala

Garam masala is usually added near the end of cooking so that it not only seasons the dish but adds to the aroma. Some additional garam masala may also be sprinkled on top of the dish. Traditionally, garam masala is made fresh from the component spices and used within a few days. It is often not the only spice and seasoning used in a dish.

• Ingredients

2 tbsp ground coriander
2 tbsp ground cumin
1 tbsp ground turmeric
1 tsp red pepper flakes
2 tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground black pepper
¼ tsp ground cardamom
¼ tsp ground nutmeg

• preparation

Mix all the spices in a jar with a tight lid.
Store in your spice cabinet.

Alternatively you can buy whole coriander, cumin and cardamom seeds. Toast them in a dry pan until fragrant 2-4 minutes. Let them cool, grind the spices with a spice grinder, add the rest of the spices and store in a jar

Notes:


Garam masala is a blend of ground spices used extensively in Indian cuisine. The spices for garam masala are usually toasted to bring out more flavor and aroma, and then ground. The word "masala" means "spices," and garam means "hot." However, garam masala doesn't necessarily constitute a particularly spicy blend. and you will need to check the label to see what spices are included.


Varieties of Garam Masala
There is no single garam masala recipe. The ingredients differ according to the region as well as each chef's individual preferences. Garam masala from Northern India, including the Punjab region, often has only black pepper as a hot element and mostly focuses on aromatic and sweet spices. This garam masala will be quite mild, and any heat in the dish will come from adding hot peppers.

The farther south you go in India, the hotter the garam masala is likely to be as red chiles are likely to be part of the blend. The spices also change, based on what is more common locally.

What Does It Taste Like?
Garam masala adds warmth, sweetness, floral notes, and a touch of heat from the black pepper. It is intended to be a fragrant spice as well as flavorful. While cumin, coriander, and turmeric may remind you of curry, garam masala is generally not firey hot.


What Is It Made Of?

If you are buying garam masala, you will need to read the ingredients in order to determine which spices are is included.

Serves: 24

• Ingredients

1 cup molasses
1 cup shortening
1 tablespoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 egg
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup sugar
3 1/2 cups flour

• preparation

Combine molasses, shortening, and baking soda in saucepan. Bring to boil. Cool mixture.
Add the remaining ingredients. Knead well on a working surface. Chill dough for a few hours or more, or freeze dough in several small batches.
Roll very thin,(1/8-inch thick) with a rolling pin. Cut with a 2-inch round cutter. Bake in preheated oven at 350 degrees for 12 minutes.

Serves: 20

Drizzles of lemony icing and sprinklings of sanding sugar give these simple gingerbread triangles their Christmas tree appearance and holiday flair.

• Ingredients

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled), plus more for rolling
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon coarse salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1/4 cup unsulfured molasses

FOR THE ICING:
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 1/3 cups confectioners' sugar
Sanding or coarse sugar (optional)

• preparation

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, ginger, cloves, cinnamon, and salt. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat butter and granulated sugar on medium-high until creamy, 3 minutes. Add egg and beat to combine. Add molasses and beat to combine, scraping down bowl as needed. With mixer on low, gradually add flour mixture and beat until combined. Wrap dough in plastic and refrigerate until firm, 1 hour (or up to 3 days).

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, with racks in upper and lower thirds. On a lightly floured work surface, roll out dough to a 1/4-inch thickness. With a sharp knife or cookie cutter, cut dough into small 2-inch-wide triangles. Arrange triangles, 1 inch apart, on two parchment-lined baking sheets. Bake until cookies are firm and golden at edges, 10 to 12 minutes. Let cool completely on sheets on wire racks.

Make icing: In a small bowl, combine lemon juice and confectioners' sugar and whisk until smooth. Drizzle icing over cooled cookies and sprinkle with sanding sugar, if desired.

Serves: 18

The recipe for these ultra thin ginger snaps originated from the restaurant Chez Panisse
Note that slicing the frozen cookie dough as thin as possible, the thinner the cookie, the crispier it will be, and including the 1/8 of a teaspoon of ground black pepper that the recipe calls for. Black pepper is an odd ingredient to add to a cookie.

• Ingredients

8 oz unsalted butter
1 1/4 cup + 2 Tbsp. granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 small eggs or 1 1/2 large eggs
1/3 cup molasses
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon finely ground black pepper

• preparation

Cream butter until soft; add sugar, and beat until light and fluffy. Add vanilla and eggs, and beat until fluffy. Add molasses and beat until well-mixed.

Sift the dry ingredients; add to the mixture, 1/3 at a time. Mix only until the dry ingredients become incorporated.

Line a 9" x 5" loaf pan with plastic wrap, so that some hangs over the outsides. Press the dough into the bottom of the pan. Pack it tightly, and try to make the top as level as possible. Cover the dough with the plastic overhangs. Freeze until very firm.

Unwrap and remove dough from the pan. Slice brick into thin slices, no more than 1/8". Place on a parchment or Silpat-lined sheetpan (space at least an inch apart) and bake at 350 degrees until the edges turn dark brown, 7-12 minutes. Check the oven for doneness after 7 minutes.

Serves: 12

• Ingredients

1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup lightly packed brown sugar
1 egg
1/4 cup molasses
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup raisins

For glaze:
1 tablespoon soft butter
1 cup icing sugar
5 teaspoons cream
1/2 vanilla

• preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Cream together shortening and brown sugar. Add egg and molasses. Beat well. Blend and sift together flour, baking soda, salt, ginger, and cinnamon.
Add to creamed mixture and combine thoroughly. Fold in the chopped walnuts and raisins.
Drop teaspoonfuls onto greased baking sheets. Bake for about 12 minutes.
While the cookies are slightly warm, glaze with a mixture of butter, icing sugar, cream and vanilla.

Serves: 6

• Ingredients

1 cup blueberries
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

• preparation

Combine blueberries, sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg in a saucepan.
Bring to boiling point. Boil 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Serve hot.
Delicious on ice cream or Blueberry Gingerbread.

Serves: 12

For Valentines' Day, Make heart-shaped
Linzer cookie

• Ingredients

1 cup (150 grams) whole almonds (blanched or natural)
2 cups (260 grams) all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon (1 gram) ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon (2 grams) salt
Zest (outer yellow skin) of one small lemon
1 cup (226 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 cup (150 grams) granulated white sugar, divided
1 teaspoon (5 grams) pure vanilla extract
2 large (40 grams) egg yolks
Topping:
1/2 cup (60 grams) confectioners' (Icing or Powdered) Sugar
1/2 cup (120 ml) Raspberry or Black Currant Jam, well stirred

• preparation

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C) with the oven rack in the center of the oven. Place the almonds on a baking sheet and bake about 8-10 minutes, or until lightly browned and fragrant. Remove from oven and once the nuts have cooled, place in a food processor, along with 1/4 cup (50 grams) white sugar, and process until finely ground.
In a separate bowl, whisk or sift together the flour, cinnamon, salt, and lemon zest.
In the bowl of an electric mixer (or with a hand mixer), beat the butter and remaining 1/2 cup (100 grams) sugar until light and fluffy (about 2-3 minutes). Beat in the vanilla extract and egg yolks. Finally, beat in the ground almonds and then the flour mixture. Divide the dough in half, cover each half with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until firm (30-60 minutes, or up to two days).
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
Remove one ball of dough from the refrigerator. On a lightly floured surface roll out the dough until it is about 1/4 inch (.5 cm) thick. Using a 3 inch (7.5 cm) cookie cutter (round, square, heart, etc.) cut out the cookies. Place the cookies about 1 inch (2.5 cm) apart on the prepared baking sheet.
Use a smaller cookie cutter to cut out the centers of half of the cookies on the baking sheet. Reroll any scraps and cut out the remaining cookies. Repeat with the second ball of dough. (Note: If you find the cookies are soft, place the baking sheets with the unbaked cookies in the refrigerator for about 10 minutes to chill the dough. This will prevent the cookies from spreading and losing their shape when baked.) Bake the cookies for about 12 minutes or until lightly browned around the edges. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool.
Assemble Cookies: Place the cut out cookies on a baking sheet and lightly dust the tops with powdered sugar. Spread a thin layer of jam on the bottom surface of the full cookie (top of cookie will face out). Place the cut-out cookie on top and gently sandwich them together. Using a small spoon or a piping bag, fill the cut-out with a little more jam.
The filled cookies will soften when stored. If you want the cookies to stay crisp, assemble the day of serving. The assembled cookies can be stored in the refrigerator, in an airtight container, for several days.

Serves: 8

You can make crumb crust with gingersnaps instead of graham crackers.
Cheesecake keeps, covered and chilled 3 to 4 days.

• Ingredients

Crumb-crust recipe:
1 1/2 cups (5 oz) finely ground graham crackers or cookies such as chocolate or vanilla wafers or gingersnaps
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1/3 cup sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt

1/2 made with finely ground gingersnaps
3 (8-ounces) packages cream cheese, softened
1 3/4 cups sugar
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
5 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 large egg yolks
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon ground allspice
1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
15-ounce can solid-pack pumpkin

• preparation

For Crumb crust recipe:
Stir together crust ingredients and press onto bottom and 1 inch up side of a buttered 9-inch (24-centimeter) springform pan. Fill right away or chill up to 2 hours.

Preheat oven to 350°F.
Beat together cream cheese, sugar, and flour with an electric mixer until smooth and add whole eggs, 1 at a time, then vanilla, beating on low speed until each ingredient is incorporated and scraping down bowl between additions. Transfer 2 1/2 cups filling to another bowl and beat yolks, spices, and pumpkin into remaining filling until smooth.
Put springform pan with crust in a shallow baking pan. Pour half of pumpkin filling into crust, then half of plain. Repeat procedure with remaining fillings (springform pan will be completely full), drizzling the plain so that some of pumpkin filling is still visible. Gently swirl a small spoon once through batters in a figure-eight pattern without touching crust. Bake in baking pan (to catch drips) in middle of oven 12 minutes, or until puffed. Reduce temperature to 200°F and bake 30 minutes (do not open oven). Dome a piece of lightly oiled foil over cake and continue baking until mostly firm (center will still be slightly wobbly when pan is gently shaken), about 1 hour more.
Run a knife around top edge of cake to loosen and cool completely in springform pan on a rack. Chill, loosely covered, at least 6 hours. Remove side of pan and transfer cake to a plate. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Serves: 8

The sage oil or olive oil and chopped sage definitely add another level of flavor. Don't skip this step. Use half of a small bunch of sage leaves to make the paste rub.
Baste the ham every 30 minutes
Carrots and turnips may be cooked with the ham.

• Ingredients

1 (8 to 10-pound) smoked ham, bone-in, skin on
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 bunch fresh sage leaves
1/4 cup sage oil or virgin olive oil
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut in chunks
2 medium navel oranges, sliced thin, seeds removed
2 cups orange juice
1 cup light brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup water
1/4 teaspoon whole cloves
2 cinnamon sticks
1 1/2 pounds peeled baby carrots Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F.

• preparation

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F.
Place the ham in a large roasting pan, fat side up. Using a sharp knife, score the ham with cuts across the skin, about 2-inches apart and 1/2-inch deep. Cut diagonally down the slashes to form a diamond pattern; season with salt and pepper.
Chop about 6 of the sage leaves and put in a bowl; mix with the oil to make a paste. Rub the oil all over the ham, being sure to get the flavor into all the slits. Bake the ham for 2 hours. Prepare the orange glaze while the ham cooks.
1. For the glaze: Place a saucepan over medium heat. Add cut up butter, oranges, orange juice, brown sugar, water, and spices. Slowly cook the liquid down to a syrupy glaze; this should take about 30 to 40 minutes.
2. After the ham has been cooking for about 2 hours, pour the orange glaze all over it, with the pieces of fruit and all. Scatter the remaining sage leaves on top and return the ham back in the oven. Continue to cook for 1 1/2 hours, basting with the juices every 30 minutes.
3. Scatter the carrots and turnips of used around the ham and coat in the orange glaze. Place the ham back in the oven and cook for a final 30 minutes, until the vegetables are tender, the ham is dark and crispy, and is glistening with a sugary glaze.
4. Set the ham on a cutting board to rest before carving. Serve the carrots and orange glaze on the side.

Serves: 6

• Ingredients

6 ripe pears
2 cups dry white wine
1/2 cup sugar
1 lemon
1 stick cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup orange marmalade
1/4 cup apricot jam

• preparation

Peel and core the pears.
Cut them into quarters. Place the pears in a saucepan and add the wine and sugar.
Peel the lemon and cut the peel into very fine julienne strips. Reserve the lemon for another use. Add the peel to the saucepan.
Bring to the boil and simmer for 5 to 10 minutes, or until pears are tender.
Transfer the pears and the lemon peel to a serving dish. Bring the liquid in the saucepan to the boil and add the remaining ingredients.
Bring to the boil and cook for about 10 minutes or until liquid is reduced to half.
Pour the sauce over the pears. Let cool and chill.

Serves: 6

• Ingredients

6 ripe pears
2 cups red wine
1/2 cup sugar
1 lemon
1 stick cinnamon
3 whole cloves
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

• preparation

Peel and core the pears. Cut them into quarters.
Place the pears in a saucepan and add the wine and sugar. Peel the lemon and cut the peel into very fine julienne strips. Reserve the lemon for another use.
Add the peel to the saucepan with cinnamon, cloves, and vanilla. Bring to the boil and simmer for 5 to 10 minutes, or until pears are tender.
Transfer the pears and the lemon peel to a serving dish.
Bring the liquid in the saucepan to the boil.
Reduce to half or until liquid becomes syrupy. Pour the sauce over the pears.
Let cool and chill.

Serves: 6

• Ingredients

1/2 pound pitted prunes
Boiling water to cover
2 cups red wine, not too tannic (something light and fruity like a Beaujolais or a pinot noir)
1/4 cup mild honey, such as clover
1 vanilla bean, cut in half lengthwise
1 cinnamon stick
2 strips orange or lemon zest

• preparation

1.Place prunes in a bowl and pour on boiling water to cover. Let sit for 5 minutes, and drain.
2.Combine wine and honey in a medium saucepan. Using the tip of a paring knife, scrape seeds from the vanilla bean halves into wine and add pods. Add cinnamon stick and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer 5 minutes.
3.Add prunes to simmering wine and bring back to a simmer. Cover and simmer 10 minutes. Remove from heat and add orange or lemon zest. Cover and let sit for at least 2 hours before serving.
Serve warm, at room temperature, or chilled.

Serves: 10

• Ingredients

Crust:
3/4 cup Graham cracker crumbs
1/2 cup pecans, ground
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon butter, melted

Filling:
3 8-ounce cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 1/2 cups pumpkin, canned
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoons ginger
2 teaspoon milk
1 teaspoon cornstarch
1 teaspoon bourbon
Garnish:
Whipped cream pecan halves

• preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Crust:
Combine the crust ingredients. Press firmly onto greased 9 inch spring form pan. Chill.
Filling:
Beat cream cheese with sugars until smooth. Beat in eggs one at the time.
Stir in pumpkin, spices, milk, cornstarch, and bourbon until thoroughly combined. Pour into pan.
Bake 50 to 55 minutes, or until center of cake is just set. Remove cake from oven and run a knife around sides of pan. Chill.
Garnish cake with whipped cream and whole pecans.

Serves: 4

• Ingredients

2 pink or red grapefruit, halved crosswise
1/4 cup dark rum
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp. ground cayenne
4 maraschino cherries, stemmed

• preparation

Heat oven broiler. Trim the ends of grapefruit halves so they sit flat when upright; transfer to a baking sheet cut side up. Run a knife around edges and between segments of grapefruit to loosen them.
Brush 1 tbsp. rum over each half and sprinkle each with about 11/2 tbsp. sugar.
Dust with cinnamon and cayenne; place 1 cherry in the center of each grapefruit. Broil, rotating pan as needed, until bubbling and slightly caramelized, 5–6 minutes.

Serves: 4

• Ingredients

4 Bosc or Bartlett pears
3 tablespoons pure maple syrup, plus more for drizzling
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon unsalted butter
1 recipe buttermilk pancakes batter
sour cream for garnish.

• preparation

Core pears with an apple corer.
Starting at the bottom, slice pears crosswise into 1/8 inch thick rings, and toss in a small bowl with maple syrup and cinnamon.
Heat an electric griddle to 375 degrees or a heavy skillet until very hot.
Brush with butter; wipe off excess with a folded paper towel. Place a few pear slices on the griddle, 2 1/2 inches apart. Cook for a minute. Ladle about 1/4 cup of the batter into center of each pear ring.
Using the bottom of a ladle, gently push batter over edges of pears. Let cook until pancakes have bubbles on top and are slightly dry around the edges, about 2 1/2 minutes.
Using a spatula, turn pancakes over; cook until golden on bottom, about 1 minute.
Repeat with remaining pears and batter. Serve with a dollop of sour cream and extra syrup.

Serves: 15

• Ingredients

1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 teaspoons vanilla
2 eggs
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon

• preparation

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
In a large bowl, beat sugar and butter until light and fluffy. Add vanilla and eggs; beat well. Lightly spoon flour into measuring cup; level off.
Add flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt; mix well. In small bowl, combine sugar and cinnamon.
Shape dough into 1-inch balls; roll balls in sugar-cinnamon mixture. Place 2 inches apart onto greased cookie sheets.
Bake for 8 to 10 minutes.
Immediately remove from cookie sheets.

Chocolate snickerdoodles
One-half cup unsweetened cocoa can be substituted for 1/2 cup of all purpose flour.
Bake at 400 degrees for 6 to 9 minutes.

• Ingredients

1½ cups butter, softened
1½ cups sugar, plus more for rolling
½ cup molasses
2 eggs
4 cups all-purpose flour
4 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground cloves
1 tsp. ground ginger
1 tsp. salt

• preparation

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats and set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, and salt, and set aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together butter and sugar until combined. Add in the molasses and eggs and mix until incorporated.
Slowly add in the flour mixture to the bowl of the stand mixer and mix until all is combined.
Fill a small bowl with about ¾ cup granulated sugar.
Using a medium-sized cookie scoop (or 1½ tbsp.), form dough into balls then gently roll them in the granulated sugar. Place onto baking sheets, about 2-inches apart. Repeat until all the cookie dough has been used up.
Bake for 10 minutes (they will still look soft and undercooked but they cook while they cool and you want them to stay soft and chewy so remove them!) then let cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Store in an airtight container for up to 1 week.

Serves: 6

A refreshing delicious treat from Guadeloupe made with passion fruit.

• Ingredients

12 passion fruit (maracudja)
2 cups water, boiling
6 to 8 ounces sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon powder
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
raspberry coulis (recipe follows)
sliced bananas


RASPBERRY COULIS

2 1/2 cups fresh raspberries
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice, or to taste

Puree raspberries with sugar and lemon juice in a blender. Pour mixture through a fine sieve into a bowl.
Coulis keeps 2 to 3 days, covered and chilled.

• preparation

Cut the passion fruit in halves. Remove pulp. In a large bowl, combine pulp with the boiling water. Set aside for 10 minutes. Strain the juice through a fine strainer. Add the sugar to the juice. Stir to dissolve. Add cinnamon and vanilla.
Chill the mixture before freezing in the ice cream maker. When the sorbet is thick and smooth, spoon in a decorative mold or individual molds.Freeze.
Unmold on plates.
Spoon raspberry coulis on the platter. Decorate with sliced bananas

RASPBERRY COULIS
Puree raspberries with sugar and lemon juice in a blender. Pour mixture through a fine sieve into a bowl.
Coulis keeps 2 to 3 days, covered and chilled.

Serves: 6

• Ingredients

3 cups water
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
2 cinnamon sticks
8 slices peeled ginger, crushed slightly
6 slightly under ripe peaches
1 lemon, halved
Vanilla ice cream or whipped cream (optional)

• preparation

Combine water, sugar, cinnamon and ginger in a large saucepan. Set over high heat and stir until sugar dissolves. When boiling, reduce heat. Simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, peel peaches, cut them in half and remove pits. Cut halves in half again. Rub peaches all over with cut lemon.
After sugar-ginger mixture has simmered for 10 minutes, add half of peaches. Reduce heat slightly and simmer gently until just tender, from 4 to 6 minutes.
Then remove with a slotted spoon. Add remaining peaches and repeat cooking as directed above.
When all peaches have been poached, remove ginger from poaching liquid and discard. Bring liquid back to a boil. Boil gently, uncovered, over medium-high heat until reduced to a thick amber syrup, about 10 minutes. Stir often near end of cooking. Remove cinnamon sticks.
Arrange peaches in bowls. Pour warm syrup over fruit. Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate. Just before serving reheat. Serve with ice cream or whipped cream.

Serves: 6

The habanero chile has a very high Scoville scale making it one of the hottest pepper.
The Scoville Scale is a measurement of the heat and pungency of chili peppers where each pepper is recorded in Scoville Heat Units (or famously known as SHUs).The heat of a pepper is measured using Scoville units: The scale ranges from 0 as in bell peppers all the way to over 2,000,000 as in the spiciest chile in the world, the Carolina Reaper Pepper and the Trinidad scorpion.

• Ingredients

1 cup hulled pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
3 plum tomatoes
1 small red onion, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, roasted
¼ cup finely chopped cilantro
1/2 habanero chile, stemmed, seeded and finely chopped (optional)
1 tablespoon chipotle chile en adobo, finely minced
Juice of 1 lime
Juice of ½ orange
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

• preparation

Place the pepitas in a large skillet over medium-low heat. When the first one pops, stir constantly until all have popped from flat to round, about 5 minutes. Blend in a food processor to a smooth paste, scraping down the sides a few times.

Place the tomatoes on a baking sheet under the broiler and roast until blackened and very soft, flipping halfway through, about 5 to 6 minutes per side. Cool and finely chop.

In a medium bowl, combine the seed paste, tomatoes, onion, garlic, cilantro, chipotle and habanero. Stir in lime juice, orange juice and cinnamon. Taste and season with sea salt.

Serve with warm corn tortillas or crisp vegetables like baby carrots, cucumber slices, radishes and sliced fennel.