Mya's Cupboard Brownies - Simple & Decadent

I count myself lucky in that I've always made good friends at work. Even at the jobs I hated (namely, the first two I had after college when I lived in Boston), I was blessed to find one or two people I really clicked with.

And the company where I've worked for the last 10 years has been no exception. It was way back in the early days when I was still fairly new and working at the DC office that I met my friend, Mya. Despite that fact that neither of us have lived in DC for many years and she's changed fields for an actual field (she's a farmer now - sorry about the pun, I just couldn't help it...) we are still friends.

Mya is one of those wonderful people who is smart, funny, charming, loyal, unfailing polite, and wants to do what's right. (If you guessed that she's from the Midwest, you're right!) She's also a good cook and would often invite me and my then-boyfriend-now-husband over to her group house for dinner with her housemates and their other friends.

It was at the end of one of these lively meals that I was introduced to these brownies. They made quite an impression on me... Naturally, I asked Mya for her recipe. She seemed almost surprised - in her mind, they were nothing special - just her "cupboard" brownies. But they were everything I was looking for in a brownie - moist, crumb-y, chocolatey and mild enough that I could contemplate eating half a pan of them... (that is a quality I am always looking for in a chocolate cake, too, in case you were wondering.)

She obligingly wrote out her recipe for me on an index card. It is, in fact, wondrously simple. And very quick and easy to make.

Give them a shot sometime. If you prefer something a little more intense, just add some chocolate chunks or chips and/or nuts to the batter.

Here's to old friends. And to brownies!

Cupboard Brownies

Makes a 9"x13" pan

Ingredients

* 1 cup butter, softened

* 2 cups sugar

* 1 1/2 cups flour

* 4 eggs

* 1/2 cup cocoa powder

* 2 tsps pure vanilla extract

* 1/2 tsp salt

Just a note - I recommend using organic everything if at all possible, especially for the butter and eggs (and pasture-raised eggs are way better for all involved if you have access to them.)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F and grease the baking pan.

2. Cream the butter and sugar together. Add the flour, cocoa, eggs, salt and vanilla and mix well to combine.

3. Pour the batter out into the prepared baking pan and bake for 40-50 minutes, until a toothpick or fork comes out clean. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream (I'm a real traditionalist on brownies and vanilla ice cream - they just seem made for one another - but you should, of course, use whatever flavor floats your boat.)

You might also like:

• Chocolate Raspberry Tart
• Chocolate Sour Cream Bundt Cake
• Dark Chocolate "B-Cup"Cakes
• Homemade Nutella (a.k.a. Chocolate-Hazelnut Spread)

Want even more recipes, photos, giveaways, and food-related inspiration? "Like" the Garden of Eating on Facebook or follow me on Twitter.

Cranberry Bean Gratin

I won a ton of dried beans by entering My Legume Love Affair this summer and decided it was finally time to start using them. So I set these cranberry beans (also known as Borlotti beans) out to soak the night before last.

I was not sure what I would do with them but knew I'd find something good. After searching online and in some of my favorite cookbooks, I found this recipe in Alice Waters' lovely cookbook, The Art of Simple Food.

Before we decided to move back to Woodstock, NY, we lived in the ghetto (cue Elvis music.) To be more specific, we lived in North Berkeley's Gourmet Ghetto neighborhood, just a few blocks away from Alice's famous restaurant, Chez Panisse. Although we did not go often (dining there regularly would require that we move up an entire socio-economic bracket), we ate there several times during our four years in Berkeley.

It's impossible not to appreciate the lovely food and atmosphere of both the cafe (upstairs) and the restaurant (downstairs). Fresh, flavorful, and carefully crafted to showcase the ingredients' natural beauty and delicious attributes. We also lived a short walk from another of Waters' pet projects, The Edible Schoolyard, where we always enjoyed strolling (some pix of this neighborhood gem can be found here.)

This simple gratin is homey, flavorful, hearty, and really good for you. Unlike eating at Chez Panisse, it's also quite affordable - dried beans are amazingly cheap! Serve it with a loaf of crusty bread (and lots of butter), and a big green salad and call it a meal. Enjoy.

Cranberry Bean Gratin

Serves 4

Ingredients

* 1 1/4 cups dried cranberry beans

* Coarse salt

* 1/2 onion, finely chopped

* 1 small carrot, peeled, finely chopped

* 1 small stalk celery, finely chopped

* 1/4 cup olive oil

* 4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced

* 6 fresh sage leaves, chopped

* 1/2 cup chopped tomatoes, fresh or canned

* 1/2 cup Toasted Breadcrumbs

Directions

1. Place beans in a large bowl and cover with 4 cups water; let soak overnight.

2. Drain beans and transfer to a medium saucepan; cover with water by 2 inches. Bring water to a boil, reduce heat and skim foam from surface. Continue simmering beans until tender, 30 to 45 minutes, adding more water as necessary. Season beans with salt and set aside to cool in their liquid.

3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium, heavy-bottomed skillet heat 1/4 cup of olive oil over medium heat. Add onion, carrot, and celery; cook until tender, about 10 minutes. Add garlic and sage, and season with salt; let cook 5 minutes. Stir in tomatoes; cook 5 minutes more and remove from heat.

4. Drain beans, reserving liquid. Transfer beans to skillet with vegetables; stir to combine. Pour bean mixture into a medium gratin or baking dish; season with salt. Add enough bean cooking liquid to almost cover. Drizzle with olive oil and top with toasted breadcrumbs.

5. Transfer gratin dish to oven and bake for 40 minutes, checking occasionally to make sure the gratin has not dried out. If necessary spoon a little of the bean cooking liquid into the side of the gratin, to avoid wetting the breadcrumbs.

You might also like:

• Slow-Cooked Pinto Beans With Pork Belly & Cornbread
• Smoky-Spicy-Sweet Barbecued Baked Beans
• Turnip Gratin
• Celeriac Potato Gratin
• Swiss Chard & Barley Gratin

Want even more recipes, photos, giveaways, and food-related inspiration? "Like" the Garden of Eating on Facebook or follow me on Twitter.

Chocolate Hazelnut Spread - a.k.a. Homemade Nutella

This container of hazelnuts had been sitting on our counter since Thanksgiving - a leftover from the cooking frenzy. I did not know exactly what to do with them so I let them sit for a few weeks well over a month while I pondered my options.

My friend, Ben recommended toasting them and putting them in salads. It sounded tasty so I went ahead and toasted them all. The smell coming from our toaster oven was beyond heavenly... I ate a few of the toasted nuts and was hooked on their amazing flavor.

But when I saw this recipe for homemade Nutella pop up on David Leite's (of Leite's Culinaria) Facebook feed two days ago, I knew I'd found the right way to use my toasted hazelnuts.

I was kind of daunted by the idea of making chocolate hazelnut spread from scratch until I took a look at David's simple recipe - it's really not so tough after all! It's a pretty basic mixture of ground hazelnuts and melted chocolate with a few other ingredients blended in.

I'd already toasted the nuts. The next step was to remove the skins - a little tedious (though those of you who are more evolved than I am might find it "meditative") but not hard at all.

Then into the cuisinart they went where I ground them into a paste.

Then added canola oil, a little confectioner's sugar, some cocoa powder, a dash of salt and a little vanilla extract and blended again until smooth.Then I added the melted chocolate and blended it again.

The resulting spread is divine, very rich, with a stronger roasted hazelnut flavor than Nutella. It solidified overnight but you can always warm it in a bowl of warm water or zap it in the microwave for a few seconds if you're having trouble spreading it. Below is a pic I took of it before it spent a few seconds in the microwave - still spreadable but a little more work than the stuff I heated up was.

I am storing mine in an old Bon Maman jam jar since it's got a screw-on lid and I also love the look of 'em. Use it just like you'd normally use Nutella and enjoy the fact that it is even tastier and does not have any of the additives and preservatives in the store-bought version.

Chocolate Hazelnut Spread (recipe via Christie Matheson at Leite's Culinaria)

Makes one 18 oz jar

Ingredients

* 1 cup hazelnuts

* 12 ounces milk chocolate, chopped

* 2 tablespoons mild vegetable oil, such as canola

* 3 tablespoons confectioners’ sugar

* 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder

* 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

* 3/4 teaspoon salt

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. (I recommend using your toaster oven as it's a waste of energy to heat your entire oven for this small amount of nuts.)

2. Spread the hazelnuts in a single layer on a baking sheet and toast them for about 12 minutes, checking once or twice and turning as needed, until they’ve browned a little and the skins are blistered. Wrap them in a kitchen towel and rub vigorously or put them in a yogurt container and shake hard for a few seconds to remove as much loose skin as possible. There will still be some skin clinging to the nuts when you're finished - it's okay.  Let cool completely.

3. Melt the chocolate in a saucepan over gently simmering water or in the microwave. Stir until smooth. Set aside to cool.

4. In a food processor, grind the hazelnuts until they form a paste. Add the oil, sugar, cocoa powder, vanilla, and salt and continue processing until the mixture is as smooth as possible (unless you prefer to have a chunkier spread). Add the melted chocolate and blend well. Store the spread in a glass jar with an airtight lid on the counter for up to two weeks.

You might also like:

• Chocolate Raspberry Tart
• Chocolate Sour Cream Bundt Cake
• Dark Chocolate "B-Cup"Cakes

Want even more recipes, photos, giveaways, and food-related inspiration? "Like" the Garden of Eating on Facebook or follow me on Twitter.

Lemony Roasted Broccoli With Pasta, Pignolas & Sweet Italian Sausage

My love affair with roasted Brussels sprouts rages on. I just love the way roasting brings out their sweetness, and enhances their nutty flavor. I've been so enjoying them that I decided to see if I could recreate the joyful experience with broccoli, their cruciferous cousin.

I looked online to see what temp to roast broccoli at and found this simple, yummy sounding recipe from Ina Garten, a.k.a., the Barefoot Comtessa, for lemony roasted broccoli that I modified slightly.

The prep is very simple -- you wash and cut up the broccoli into florets and chunks -- I always include the stem as it's just as tasty and nutritious as the florets -- no need to waste it! Toss with olive oil, minced garlic, lemon zest, sea salt and freshly ground pepper and spread in a single layer on a heavy baking sheet.

Roast at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes, flipping once to ensure even roasting. Et voila, you've got the most divine, sweetly caramelized, richly nutty, fragrantly garlicky, lemony treat you can imagine. It may not look like much but it will melt in your mouth.

I paired it with pasta, toasted pine nuts, a bit more lemon zest and juice, sweet Italian sausage, and sauteed red onion.

Then topped it all with a small avalanche of freshly grated Parmesan cheese.

Mmmm mmmm gooooooood. Even our two and a half year old son liked it and that is saying something these days.

Lemony Roasted Broccoli With Pasta, Pine Nuts & Sweet Italian Sausage

Serves 4

Ingredients

* 1 box of organic pasta (whatever shape you like)

* 1 large head of broccoli, cleaned, trimmed and cut into florets and chunks of a similar size

* 3/4 pound sweet Italian sausage (optional)

* 1 large red onion, sliced

* 1/2 cup toasted pine nuts

* Zest of two lemons (get organic if you can since you'll be using the skin) and the juice of one of them

* 3-4 cloves garlic, minced or pressed

* Olive oil for roasting and sauteeing

* Sea salt

* Freshly ground black pepper

* 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Place the broccoli florets on a heavy baking sheet large enough to hold them in a single layer. Toss the garlic with half the lemon zest, all of the garlic, sea salt, pepper, and 3-4 tablespoons of olive oil. Roast for 20 to 25 minutes, flipping once to ensure even roasting, until the pieces are crisp-tender and browned at the tips.

2. Bring the water for the pasta to a boil and cook according to the directions on the box until al dente. Drain and toss with a little olive oil then set aside.

3. While you're cooking the pasta and roasting the broccoli, sautee the red onion and the sausage in a saucepan, cooking until the onion is translucent and sweet and crumbling the sausage into small pieces.

4. Remove the broccoli from the oven and toss with other half of the lemon zest and the juice from one lemon. Toss with the pasta, onions, sausage and pine nuts and top with the Parmesan cheese. Serve hot.

You might also like:

• Roasted Brussels Sprouts With Garlic-Parmesan Buttered Breadcrumb Topping
• Roasted Curried Cauliflower
• Lemon-Scented Pasta With Swiss Chard & Ricotta
• Pumpkin Mac 'n Cheese

Want even more recipes, photos, giveaways, and food-related inspiration? "Like" the Garden of Eating on Facebook or follow me on Twitter.

Pear Preserves With Cardamom & Ginger

Ours was a strange, rather subdued holiday this year, colored by the loss of a family member a few days before Christmas. But there were some much-needed bright spots in seeing family and friends and watching our two and a half year-old son gleefully unwrap (with significant parental assistance) what was probably far too many new toys.

After the frenzy subsided on Christmas morning and we'd put Will down for his nap, I found myself at loose ends. The week had been draining and very sad. I needed a break from thinking about how fragile, precious and fleeting life is for us all. My in-laws had been kind enough to share some of these gorgeous pears they'd received a few days earlier with us and I thought that I might find some peace in preserving them.

After a quick search of my three favorite preserving blogs (What Julia Ate, Tigress In a Jam, and Food In Jars, in case you were wondering) for inspiration, I settled on a modified version of Julia's Ginger Pear Preserves - lured by the exotic sound of the ginger and the beautiful color of the jam. I consulted the Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving I bought this summer -- such a great reference - it includes just about everything you could ever hope to can, bottle or freeze -- and came up with the following lovely recipe.

I put on an episode of Downton Abbey which is almost as good as Pride & Prejudice when I need soothing (season 2 begins January 8th - hurray!) Then I spent a few moments admiring the simple beauty of the pears -- I love their shape, their coloring, and their smell --and got to work coring, peeling and chopping until I had a big bowl of pears awaiting further orders.

Then I zested and juiced this neat little row of citrus fruits that had been slowly desiccating on our counter. I was glad to find a good use for them before they passed the point of no return...

And ground up a bunch of cardamom seeds with the mortar and pestle. I love the strong, aromatic smell of cardamom - it's so unique - a hint of eucalyptus and citrus and cloves and something else that defies description. They may be little but these seeds are mighty potent -- if you don't store them carefully, your whole spice drawer will end up smelling like them.

Then I grated some ginger with my handy-dandy Microplane zester.

Measured out sugar and vanilla extract, added the citrus zest and juice, sprinkled in some cinnamon and put it all up to simmer on the stove.

Once the pears had all softened, I used the immersion blenderto get rid of any lumps, leaving a smooth, sweet, spiced mixture behind.

While I waited for the mixture to reduce enough to pass the sheet test, I put my canning pot on to boil and sterilized a bunch of pint and half-pint jars, lids and bands. I ladled the hot jam into the sterilized jars, applied the lids and screwed on the bands, boiled them for 10 minutes, and then set the jars out to cool overnight.

It's been a few years since I've created a label for any of my canned concoctions but I found time to whip up this little design during one of Will's naps last week. I knew I wanted to keep it simple so I drew the outline of a pear and wrote out the name of the preserve, then scanned both things and played around with them in Photoshop until they seemed to fit together.

Wishing you and yours a happy new year. May your 2012 be as sweet and as spicy as these pear preserves. And don't forget to hug the people you love as often as you can. I promise you won't regret it.

Pear Preserves With Cardamom & Ginger - adapted slightly from the Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving

Yields between 5-7 half-pint jars

Ingredients

* 5 1/2 cups diced, peeled, cored pears (about 8 pears)

* Grated zest and juice of 3 limes or tangerines

* 2 1/3 cups sugar

* 1 Tbsp grated ginger

* 1 tsp ground cardamom seeds

* 1 tsp ground cinnamon
* 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

Directions

1. Sterilize jars and lids in boiling water canner.

2. Combine all the ingredients in a large saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Boil, stirring frequently, until the mixture thickens, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat and test to see if it has reached the gel stage. If the preserves fall from the spoon in a single sheet, it is at the gel stage. If your mixture has not reached the gel stage, return the pan to medium heat and cook, stirring constantly, for an additional 5 minutes. Repeat gel stage test and cooking as needed.

3. Ladle the hot preserves into hot jars leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Remove any air bubbles. Wipe the rims. Center the lids on the jars. Apply bands until the fit is fingertip tight.

4. Process the jars in a boiling water bath canner for 10 minutes, adjusting for altitude. Turn off the heat and let the jars sit for 5 minutes then remove the jars and let cool in a draft-free spot overnight. Check the lids for seal after 24 hours - they should not flex up and down when the center is pressed. Store in a cool, dark place for up to one year.

Alternatively, if you don't want to mess with the canning, you can skip the whole jar sterilizing and boiling water bath process and just store in clean, air-tight jars in the refrigerator for up to a month.

You might also like:

• Lemon Pear Bread With Pecans
• Pear Walnut Bundt Cake
• Apple Rhubarb Chutney

Want even more recipes, photos, giveaways, and food-related inspiration? "Like" the Garden of Eating on Facebook or follow me on Twitter.

Kale & Brussels Sprout Salad With Toasted Almonds & Parmesan

This salad is my new love. We met through our mutual friend, Polly, who brought it to a holiday party my family and I attended recently. I have to admit that it was not love at first sight.

My initial impression was "that there's a whole lotta roughage" but before the first bite had even made it all the way to my tummy, we were as thick as thieves.

Polly's husband, Wayne, affectionately refers to this salad as "nature's barbed wire" and while I can't deny that you'll fulfill your daily fiber requirements within about three mouthfuls, I assure you that you'll be going back for seconds. And probably thirds. If there's any left at that point, that is.

Although it took me 30 years to learn to like some vegetables (beets), I've always loved Brussels sprouts so I was delighted to find yet another way to prepare these delicious petits choux.

And there's probably not a local foods enthusiast alive who is not happy to find another good way to use up some kale. Am I right or am I right?

The kale I picked from our mini hoop house (above) was not Tuscan but it tasted good, nonetheless. Maybe this salad is even better with the Tuscan variety - feel free to experiment and let me know what you find.

The first step is to make the dressing. You want to give it a chance to let the flavors meld and develop a bit -- probably best to make it half or even a full day in advance if you can.

With that in mind, I made a double batch of dressing (cause I know I'm gonna want to eat this salad again very soon...) I like to make dressing in one of these glass jam jars and LOVE that you can buy these cute, little, red Luminarc lid to make it easy to store things in them.

Once, the dressing is ready, you can get down to business with the rest of the ingredients. I used my handy dandy little Kyocera mandolin to shave the Brussels sprouts up nice and thin - as usual, it worked like a charm.

Don't skimp on the nuts, cheese or dressing. They provide important rich, nutty, crunchy complements to all the hearty greens and the acidity and bite of the dressing.

This hearty winter salad that eats almost like a meal. The recipe is lightly adapted from the Bon Appetit original.

Brussels Sprouts & Kale Salad With Toasted Almonds & Parmesan

Serves 6-8

Ingredients

* 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

* 2 Tbsp Dijon mustard

* 1 Tbsp minced shallot

* 1 small clove garlic, finely grated

* Sea salt and pepper

* 1/2 cup olive oil

* 1 bunch Tuscan kale, center stem discarded, leaves sliced thinly

* 12 oz. Brussels sprouts, trimmed and shredded

* 1/3 cup almonds with skins, toasted and coarsely chopped

* 1/ cup grated Pecorino, Parmesan or Romano cheese

Directions

1. Combine lemon juice, Dijon mustard, shallot, garlic, 1/2 tsp. salt, and a pinch of pepper in a small bowl. Stir to blend; set aside to let flavors meld. Mix the thinly sliced kale and shredded Brussels sprouts in a large bowl.

2. Slowly whisk remaining olive oil in cup into lemon-juice mixture. Season dressing to taste with salt and pepper. Add the dressing, cheese and almonds to the Brussels sprouts and kale mixture and toss to coat. Season lightly with salt and pepper and serve.

You might also like:

• Roasted Brussels Sprouts With Buttered Garlic-Parmesan Breadcrumb Topping
• Shoestring-Style Brussels Sprouts
• Wilted Russian Kale Salad With Balsamic Vinegar & Orange Zest
• Red Cabbage Slaw With Cilantro, Lime & Honey
• Dinosaur Kale With Cherry Tomatoes & Garlic

Want even more recipes, photos, giveaways, and food-related inspiration? "Like" the Garden of Eating on Facebook or follow me on Twitter.