I've fallen behind again!

But never fear: the nice thing about a blog is you can kind of noodle around. I'm still missing posts on Christmas and my New Year's party, but you are all pretty much caught up. Palm Springs was wonderful. We hiked for the first time out there! Dean, as always, kicked my ass, but I did okay. The show was a great success for our pals, and Ruby's was balm to the soul.

AND, I have two NEW recipes to share, neither of which I've made, but both of which are intriguing. Who would have thought to put beans in a cookie? Who would have thought to put lemon and olives in a cookie? Yet these two bloggers (101 Cookbooks and Lottie + Doof, respectively) have done just that. I'll make these soon (plus my long-awaited Hungarian Treats, which are next on the list, but that recipe is private, I believe). And I will catch up! Well, that's what I keep telling myself anyway.

Marathon Cookies (from 101 Cookbooks)

K here - I don't like dates - I'd use dried cranberries or blueberries.

101 Cookbooks says: My guess is that you could substitute spelt flour or all-purpose flour if you don't have whole wheat pastry flour on hand, or have difficulty finding it.

2 cups rolled oats (not instant oats)
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 tablespoon aniseed, crushed in mortar and pestle (or spice grinder)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
zest of one lemon
1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
one 15-ounce can white kidney, great northern, or navy beans, rinsed & drained
1/4 cup olive oil
1 cup natural cane sugar (or brown sugar)
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/3 cup chopped dates
1/3 cup sesame seeds

Preheat your oven to 350F degrees and place a rack in the top third. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

Pulse the oats in a food processor (or blender) until they resemble a raggy flour. Transfer the oats to a large mixing bowl and whisk in the flour, aniseed, baking powder, baking soda, lemon zest and salt.

Pulse the beans and olive oil in the food processor until they are creamy. Add the sugar, egg, and vanilla extract and pulse until smooth. Scrap down the sides of the bowl once or twice along the way.

Pour the wet ingredients over the dry ingredients and stir until the ingredients start to come together. Sprinkle the dates across the top of the batter and stir until everything just comes together.

Place the sesames seeds in a bowl. Make each cookie with a scant 1/4 cup scoop of dough. Roll each scoop of dough into a ball then coat it with sesame seeds. Set each ball on the prepared baking sheet and with the palm of your hand flatten the dough just a bit (see photo). Repeat with the remaining dough, leaving at least an inch or so between each cookie - they'll spread a bit, but not much. Bake for about 15 minutes or until the sesame seeds around the bottom start to get golden.

From Lottie + Doof, now:

Sweet Lemon and Black Olive Wafers (recipe from The New Portuguese Table by David Leite)

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup mild oil-cured black olives, rinsed quickly if particularly salty, pitted, and coarsely chopped
1/4 cup granulated sugar, plus more for coating
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
2 tablespoons grated lemon zest
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Pinch of kosher salt
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 large egg, beaten
Preheat oven to 375°F.

Stir together the flour, olives, sugar, baking powder, zest, cinnamon, and salt in a medium bowl. Whisk together the oil and egg, pour the mixture into the dry ingredients, and mix with your hands until the dough no longer looks dry and holds together when squeezed, 1 to 2 minutes.

Fill a small bowl with sugar and set nearby. Pinch off 1 rounded tablespoon of dough, roll it into a ball, and coat it well with sugar. Place it in one corner of a sheet of parchment cut to fit your baking sheet, place another piece of parchment on top, and using a rolling pin, roll the ball into a 3 1/2 to 4-inch circle, a scant 1/16 inch thick. The edges will be ragged; that’s how they should be. Repeat with 5 more wafers on the same sheet. Lift off the top sheet and slip the parchment with cookies onto the baking sheet.

Bake until the wafers are edged with brown and pebbled on top, 10 to 12 minutes. Slide the parchment onto a wire cooling rack. Repeat with the remaining dough. Once cooled, the wafers will keep in an airtight container for several days.

***Maybe it goes without saying, but make sure you like the taste of the olives you use in these cookies. They should be mild, and not bitter at all and not too salty. I went to our Whole Foods and tried a bunch to find the right one.

K here - would you serve these as appetizer? A little sugar/salt thingy? Or dessert, with basil ice cream? Who knows? What on earth would these taste like? More to come on this devious little cookie that I'm now obsessed with!

Off to Palm Springs tomorrow

I still have not forgotten about the end of last year posts. But I'm off for a few days to Palm Springs, where Dean and I go every year. It's the Palm Springs Modernism show and Dean helps our friends set up their massive booth each year. I live for these four days. It's just so great to get away and hang with friends. Best of all, we stay at Ruby Montana's Coral Sands Inn. You have to google this. You'll die when you see Ruby's. Here are some pix from last year's trip. See you when I get back.

Remembering Dad

February is one of those months. There is finally relief and recovery from the holidays. There is Valentine's Day, which is bizarre in its own right. Dean and I like to do stuff for each other on OTHER days. But there is also the month of Dad. He died on Feb 4, 2000. He was just 4 days shy of his birthday, which is Feb 8. How old would he have been? I think he was born in 1928, so that would have made him 70. Yes, that's right. Wow - I used to know this stuff like the back of my hand. Now, not so much! Here's a pic of Dad in the 70's. He had just lost a lot of weight and was so happy with the results. This is probably one of the happiest photos I have of him. To me, it's precious.

And, while I'm at it, a recipe! These are the best brownies ever - I've made them several times. The ganache topping is so easy and to die for. Dad would have loved them. They are a Valentine's treat for sure. Once again, they come from Deb over at Smitten Kitchen. If you have not checked her blog out, now's the time: www.smittenkitchen.com.

After Dad's birthday, I'll resume posting about Xmas and New Year's 2009. All for today...

Peanut Butter Brownies - from Smitten Kitchen
Adapted from Butterwood Desserts, West Falls, New York via Gourmet, October 2007

Makes 32 brownies, more or less, depending on how you cut them

These “brownies” are more blondie than cakey, with an excellent peanut butter-chocolate contrasts and fantastic edges, for those of you into that sort of thing. Have a glass of milk handy.

For brownies
2 sticks (1/2 pound) unsalted butter, softened
1 3/4 cups sugar
1 cup creamy peanut butter
2 large eggs plus 1 large yolk
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips (9 ounces)
1/2 teaspoon salt, see note**

For ganache
1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips (9 ounces)
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened

Make brownies: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F with rack in middle. Butter a 13- by 9- by 2-inch baking pan, then line bottom of pan with parchment paper and butter parchment.

Beat together butter and sugar with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until mixture is light and fluffy, then add peanut butter and beat until incorporated. Beat in whole eggs, egg yolk, and vanilla. Reduce mixer sped to low, then mix in flour until just combined.

Mix in chocolate chips (1 1/2 cups) then spread batter in baking pan, smoothing top. (It will be thick, almost like cookie batter.)

Bake until brownies are deep golden, puffed on top and a wooden pick inserted in center come out with some crumbs adhering, 40 to 45 minutes.

Cool completely in pan on a rack, about 1 1/2 hours.

Make ganache: Put chocolate chips (1 1/2 cups) in a heatproof bowl.

Bring cream to a boil in a small saucepan, then pour over chocolate chips and let mixture stand for one minute.

Gently whisk in butter until it is incorporated, chocolate is melted, and a smooth mixture forms.

Spread ganache on cooled brownies and let stand until set, about 15 minutes.

Brownies keep in one layer in an airtight container three days, and we hope much longer if hidden waaay in the back of the freezer.

New York City Part Last - and Mom

Mom came to the show - did I mention that? My dear Aunt Wez (sitting behind her) took care of her. It was an amazing experience. Mom's seen me perform 1000000000 times, but she'd never seen the Christmas show and the last time she was in NYC was 1971? Maybe? Although, she's from Jersey City and worked in NYC for years. Even lived there for a time before marrying Dad. So it was a huge thrill for her to be 'back' in her city. It was an even bigger thrill having her there!