Pie's Cousin

I'm getting super psyched for pi(e) day! I'm not a fan of math, at all, but I am a huge fan of the other type of pie and I'm getting ready for 3.14.15 with pie's cousin, a tart. I was thumbing through my Martha Stewart's Pies & Tarts book and stopped on this recipe. Chocolate, almonds, honey and fleur de sel. Such a perfect set of ingredients, especially when melted, toasted and topped on a flaky, crusty, gold puff pastry. I think the best part about this tart is that unlike a lot of pies, it takes a matter of minutes to prep and make, it's so easy and unfussy. Two qualities I look for in my desserts.

I love how this tart looks so rustic and has such a great variety of textures. Smooth, melted chocolate, toasty and crunchy almonds, sticky honey and lightly crisped flakes of puff pastry. I thought I'd prefer to eat this warm right out of the oven, but I was pleasantly surprised the next morning when I ate a piece. With the cooled, jelled chocolate it was just as good. But my very favorite method of eating this dessert is aside a nice scoop of chocolate ice cream.

Chocolate-Almond Tart with Fleur de Sel

1 box store-bought puff pastry, thawed

1 egg, lightly beaten

Sanding sugar

2 ounces semi-sweet chocolate

Honey, for drizzling

Fleur de sel, for sprinkling

2 Tablespoons toasted almonds, coarsely  chopped

Unfold dough on a parchment-lined rimmed baking sheet. Trim the edges, if needed, to form a 10-inch square and fold in each edge to form a 1-inch border. Pierce center of the shell all over with a fork. Brush edges with beaten egg and sprinkle with sanding sugar. Refrigerate until firm, about 30 mins.

Prehet oven to 450 degrees F. Bake until pastry is puffed and golden brown, 15-20 minutes. Using an offset spatula, press down on middle of shell (leave border puffy). Cover center evenly with chocolate. Drizzle with honey and sprinkle with salt. Return to oven and bake just until chocolate is melted, about 2 minutes. Sprinkle with almonds and cut into 4 squares. Serve with ice cream, if desired, and drizzle with more honey.

Chocolate Chip Red Velvet Muffins

Chocolate and red velvet...two of my favorite things. Because of this, it's safe to say Valentine's day is my kind of holiday. An excuse to eat these sweets for a solid week? Yes please! Sweets aside though, I must admit I do love all the red and pink hearts, roses and fun little Valentine crafts that come along with this holiday. A day set aside to show all your loved ones how much you care about them is always welcome here, whether it's with roses, chocolates, words or a homemade treat like these muffins.

Chocolate Chip Red Velvet Muffins

3 Tablespoons unsalted butter

2 ounces bittersweet chocolate

2 cups whole wheat flour

1/3 cup cocoa powder

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon baking soda

2/3 cup sugar

3/4 cup milk

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1 ounce red food coloring

2 large eggs

1 1/2 cups chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. In a double boiler melt butter and chocolate until smooth. Let cool to room temperature. In a large bowl, combine flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, salt and baking soda; whisk. In a separate bowl, stir together sugar, milk, eggs, vanilla and food coloring until combined. Pour chocolate mixture and milk mixture into flour mixture and stir until just combined. Gently fold in chocolate chips; batter will be sticky. Fill 12 muffin cups with batter. Bake for 5 minutes, reduce oven to 375 degrees F and bake for 10 minutes or until tested with a toothpick. Let muffins cool in pan 5 minutes before removing to a cooling rack.

A Taste of Winter

One thing I truly enjoy about winter are the beautiful snowy scapes it brings along with it. We haven't seen too much snow  so far but the storm that happened over Thanksgiving was so stunning that I have to share these photos with you. This is one of my favorite spots, Sprout Creek Farm, looking like a snowglobe.

Sweet Potato Soup

I have to share this sweet potato soup with you because it was absolutely exquisite. I'm picky about how I like my sweet potatoes cooked and am officially convinced they are perfect in soup form. I made this dish for the NY Times a couple weeks ago and ate it twice a day for five days. The Belgian-style beer makes this dish, giving it that subtle hint of yeast. Florence Fabricant tops the soup with toasted mini marshmallows, giving a fun little nod to the classic sweet potato casserole topped with marshmallows.

Get the recipe here

An Oh My Veggies, Meatless Thanksgiving!

I photographed this delicious, vegetarian, Thanksgiving menu that the wonderful ladies at Oh My Veggies are sharing. The spread includes traditional sides with a twist, gravy and a main dish!

Click on the dish titles to get the full recipes and even more photos. We hope you have a Happy Thanksgiving!

Lentil and Roasted Root Vegetable Strudel

Vegan Green Bean Casserole with French Fried Onions

Slow Cooker Rosemary Garlic Mashed Potatoes

Caramelized Onion Gravy

Wild Rice Pilaf with Brussels Sprouts and Sage Vinaigrette

Pumpkin Cheddar Stuffing

Autumn-scape

This time of year there is so much beautiful color outside, so sometimes it's nice to let that color be the star and work with neutrals on the inside. Meagan Camp styled this beautiful, non-traditional,  autumnal tablescape keeping this in mind. Soft, creamy white linens, neutral serveware, warm woods, splashes of gold and a few outdoor elements like these branch clippings and pumpkin make for a sophisticated, fall setting. This is a dinner party I would love to be invited to!

Meagan pulled pieces from Hammertown, Target and Hudson Made soaps for a little gift for your guests.

Tri-Tip

Last week my images of this amazing tri-tip recipe were in the New York Times. The article is written by Kim Severson and hits on some interesting facts about cuts of meat and introduces the tri-tip to us east-coasters, as it seems to be quite rare out here. This California Beef Rub recipe that comes along with it made the meat, hands down. It is made up of coffee, salt, peppers, brown sugar, cloves, garlic and cinnamon. Such an interesting and bold mix of flavors- I loved it.  You can roast this or grill it- if you can, I strongly recommend the grill.

California Beef Rub recipe

Santa Maria Tri-Tip recipe