Espresso Brownies

Cook Time: 35 min
Level: Easy
Yield: 36 bite-size brownies

Ingredients:

Nonstick vegetable oil cooking spray

1/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons water

1/3 cup vegetable oil

2 large eggs

2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons espresso powder

1 (19.8-ounce) box brownie mix (recommended: Duncan Hines)

3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

1 tablespoon unsalted butter, room temperature

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Spray a 9 by 13-inch baking pan with nonstick spray. Whisk 1/3 cup of
water, oil, eggs, and 2 tablespoons espresso powder in a large bowl to
blend. Add the brownie mix. Stir until well blended. Stir in the
chocolate chips. Transfer the batter to the prepared baking pan. Bake
until a toothpick inserted into the center of the brownies comes out
with a few moist crumbs attached, about 35 minutes. Cool completely.

Meanwhile, dissolve the remaining 2 teaspoons of espresso powder in
the remaining 2 tablespoons of water in a medium bowl. Whisk in the
vanilla. Add the powdered sugar and butter and whisk until smooth.
Pour the glaze over the brownies. Refrigerate until the glaze is set.
Cut into bite-size pieces. Arrange the brownies on a platter and
serve.

Chocolate Zabaglione

Cook Time: 6 min
Level: Intermediate
Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients

* 1/4 cup whipping cream, or heavy cream
* 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
* 8 large egg yolks
* 2/3 cup sugar
* 1/2 cup dry Marsala
* Pinch salt
* 1 pound fresh strawberries, hulled and quartered

Directions

Add cream and chocolate to a heavy small saucepan. Cook over low heat,
stirring often, until the chocolate chips are melted and smooth. Set
aside and keep warm.

Whisk the egg yolks, sugar, Marsala, and salt in a large glass bowl
until blended. Set the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water, but do
not allow the bottom of the bowl to touch the water. Whisk the egg
mixture over the simmering water until it is thick and creamy, about 4
minutes. Remove from the heat.

Using a large rubber spatula, fold the melted chocolate mixture into
the egg mixture.

Divide the strawberries among 6 coupe dishes. Pour the warm zabaglione
over the strawberries and serve.

From: foodnetwork.com

ITALIAN DOLCI 101

GRANITA – is an Italian water ice with a coarse texture, the crystals broken up by stirring with a fork.

SEMIFREDDO – meaning "semi-frozen", this Italian light ice cream has a smooth creamy texture that never sets completely. Semifreddo can also refer to any chilled or partly frozen dessert, possibly containing ice cream, sponge cake, cream and fruit.

ZABAGLIONE (zabaione) – is one of the lucky accidents of the culinary world. It came into being in the seventeenth century when a chef in the court of Savoy mistakenly poured sweet wine into an egg custard. Today it is eaten on its own or served as a sauce over fruit, cake or pastries.

GELATO – is the Italian name for an ice cream made with egg custard and sugar.

PANNA COTTA – "cooked cream", is a rich creamy dessert set with leaf or powdered gelatin.

PANFORTE – is a medieval recipe from the twelfth or thirteenth century, a specialty of Siena where nearly every shop seems to feature it. This rich cake is sold in huge wheels of both blonde and dark panforte (the latter made by adding cocoa) and will keep for about two weeks.

CASSATA – strangely, there are two Italian desserts sharing the same name. One is an ice-cream dessert. The other hailing from Sicily, is a cake made with ricotta and candied fruits and covered in marzipan that is traditionally colored green.

ZUCCOTTO – is a traditional Florentine dessert, its shape inspired by the rounded roof of the local duomo. It consists of a sponge filled with layers of chocolate, mascarpone, fruit (traditionally candied fruit) and nuts.

TIRAMISU – meaning "pick me up" in Italian – a reference, no doubt, to the generous shot of brandy in this rich dessert. It was created in the 1960s in a Treviso restaurant and has rapidly become popular in many other countries.

ZUPPA INGLESE– the name of this dessert, which is similar in construction to the English trifle, does not literally translate to "English soup," as might be assumed. The zuppa has the same linguistic background as the English "sops" and refers to bread (or cake) soaked in wine.

from Simply Italian by Sophie Braimbridge - my favorite Italian cookbook :)

Panna Cotta with Fresh Berries

Cook Time: 7 min
Level: Easy
Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients

* 1 cup whole milk
* 1 tablespoon unflavored powdered gelatin
* 3 cups whipping cream
* 1/3 cup honey
* 1 tablespoon sugar
* Pinch salt
* 2 cups assorted fresh berries

Directions

Place the milk in a small bowl. Sprinkle the gelatin over. Let stand
for 3 to 5 minutes to soften the gelatin. Pour milk mixture into a
heavy saucepan and stir over medium heat just until the gelatin
dissolves but the milk does not boil, about 5 minutes. Add the cream,
honey, sugar, and salt. Stir until the sugar dissolves, 5 to 7
minutes. Remove from the heat. Pour into 6 wine glasses so that they
are 1/2 full. Cool slightly. Refrigerate until set, at least 6 hours.

Spoon the berries atop the panna cotta and serve.

Toasted Pound Cake with Mascarpone and Amaretto

Cook Time: 5 min
Level: Easy
Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients

* 1 pound cake (10 3/4 ounce), cut crosswise into 12 slices
* 3/4 cup apricot preserves
* 3 tablespoons almond flavored liqueur (recommended: Amaretto)
* 2/3 cup mascarpone cheese
* 1/4 cup sliced almonds, toasted

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Place the pound cake slices on a large heavy baking sheet and toast in
oven for 7 to 10 minutes until the slices turn golden brown.
Alternatively, toast the pound cake slices in an electric toaster
until golden.

Stir the apricot preserves and amaretto in a small bowl to blend.

Place 1 cake slice atop each of 6 plates. Spoon the mascarpone cheese
atop the cake slices. Arrange the remaining cake slices offset atop
the bottom cake slices. Spoon the apricot mixture over. Sprinkle with
the almonds and serve immediately.

Chocolate-Hazelnut Tart

Cook Time: 1 hr
Level: Easy
Yield: 4 to 6 servings

Ingredients

* 1/2 cup sugar
* 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
* 3 eggs, beaten
* 1 1/2 cups peeled, chopped, and toasted hazelnuts
* 8 ounces bittersweet chocolate chips (about 1 cup)
* 1 cup corn syrup
* 2 tablespoons butter, melted
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 1 store bought frozen pie crust, defrosted

Directions

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

In a large bowl, mix together the sugar and the flour. Add the eggs,
hazelnuts, chocolate chips, corn syrup, butter, vanilla, and salt.
Stir well. Pour the mixture into the pie crust. Bake for 1 hour.

Cool the tart for at least 30 minutes before serving.

Turkey with Herbes de Provence and Citrus

Cook Time: 3 hr
Level: Intermediate
Yield: 8 to 10 servings

Ingredients

* 1 (14 to 15-pound) turkey, neck and giblets reserved
* 1 orange, cut into wedges
* 1 lemon, cut into wedges
* 1 onion, cut into wedges
* 6 fresh rosemary sprigs
* 6 fresh sage sprigs
* 6 fresh oregano sprigs
* 7 tablespoons unsalted butter
* 2 tablespoons herbes de Provence
* 1 tablespoon olive oil
* 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
* 1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
* 6 cups canned low-salt chicken broth (approximate amount)
* 1/3 cup all-purpose flour

Directions

To make the turkey: Position the rack in the lowest third of the oven
and preheat to 400 degrees F.

Rinse the turkey and pat it dry with paper towels. Place the turkey on
a rack set inside a large roasting pan. Place the orange and lemon
wedges, onion, and 2 sprigs of each fresh herb in the main turkey
cavity. Tie the legs together to hold the shape of the turkey. Stir 2
tablespoons of butter, the herbes de Provence, oil, and 1 1/2
teaspoons of each the salt and pepper in a small saucepan over medium
heat just until the butter melts. Rub the butter mixture all over the
turkey and between the turkey breast meat and skin. Place the turkey
neck and giblets in roasting pan. (Recipe can be prepared up to this
point 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate. Let stand at room
temperature 30 minutes before roasting.)

Cover the turkey breast with foil. Roast for 20 minutes. Pour 3 cups
of broth into the pan and stir to scrape up any brown bits on the
bottom of the pan. Add the remaining sprigs of fresh herbs to the pan.
Roast the turkey for 40 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 350
degrees F. Remove the foil from the turkey; pour 1 more cup of broth
into the pan. Continue roasting the turkey until a meat thermometer
inserted into the thickest part of the thigh registers 165 degrees F
to 175 degrees F or until the juices run clear when the thickest part
of the thigh is pierced with a skewer, basting occasionally with pan
juices, about 1 hour and 30 minutes longer. Transfer the turkey to a
platter and tent with foil. Let stand 30 minutes while preparing the
gravy.

To make the gravy: Strain the turkey pan juices from the roasting pan
through a sieve and into a 4-cup glass measuring cup; discard the
solids. Spoon off the fat from atop the pan juices. Add enough chicken
broth, about 1 to 2 cups, to the pan juices to measure 4 cups total.
Melt the remaining butter in a heavy large saucepan over medium-high
heat. Add the flour and whisk for 1 minute. Gradually whisk in the
broth. Simmer until the gravy thickens slightly, whisking often, about
10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Serve the turkey with the
gravy.