Donut hole bread pudding

Many people find their favorite restaurant desserts to be so intimidating that they wouldn't even think of creating them at home. Bread pudding is a restaurant favorite, and surprisingly easy [ok "not difficult"] to make for friends and family. You can make bread pudding with just about any kind of bread product you can think of including leftover dinner rolls, sandwhich bread, even your favorite muffin. The trick is to dry the bread out long enough so that the custard can soak into it without turning it into mush.

This version, as you might have guessed, uses day-old donut holes.

For janusfiles

Ingredients
3/4 cup dried blueberries, cherries, cranberries or any combination
1/2 cup Grand Marnier
1/4 cup club soda
3 extra large eggs
1 1/4 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

4 cups glazed donut holes, quartered and dried on a rack overnight

Special equipment
Soufflé dish or individual ramekins

Method
Soak the berries in the liqueur and soda in a medium bowl, covered with plastic wrap, at room temperature 4 to 6 hours [or overnight]

Heat oven to 350º. Line a roasting pan with damp kitchen towels.

Whisk the eggs, sour cream, sugar, cinnamon and vanilla extract together in a large bowl. Fold in the reconstituted berries and dried donut hole cubes. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to sit at room temperature 1 to 2 hours, or until the donut holes have absorbed the custard. Meanwhile, put a large pot or kettle of water on the stove, lid on, and bring to the boil.

Generously butter the soufflé dish [or ramekins]. Spoon the donut hole mixture evenly into the prepared dish[es] and clean the edges with a damp [paper] towel. Put the dish[es] in the roasting pan. Slide the middle rack partially out of the oven and place the pan on the rack. Carefully pour the now-boiling water into the pan to a depth of about 1 inch, making sure none of the water comes over the side[s] of the dish[es]. Slide rack back into the oven. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until the pudding[s] is puffed and set to the touch. Remove the dish[es] from the water and allow to cool 15 to 20 minutes.

Donut hole bread pudding should be served warm. If it has cooled too much, heat, covered, 8 to 10 minutes in a 350º oven. To test, stick a small knife into the center of the pudding for 30 seconds, remove and feel the blade. If it’s not warm keep the pudding in the oven a little longer.

Serve portions with whipped cream or ice cream.

Chicken under garlic sauce

Ingredients
1 large head garlic
1 chicken, [3 1/2 lbs.] cut into breasts, legs, thighs and wings
2 tablespoons olive oil
Generous 1/4 cup Cognac
3 cups chicken stock
Three stems pristine rosemary
1/2 lemon
Generous 1/2 cup heavy cream

Method
Separate garlic cloves and peel. Pat chicken pieces dry and season liberally with salt and pepper.

In a heavy skillet with a lid, heat oil over moderately high heat until shimmering but not smoking and brown chicken in batches, without crowding, transferring to a bowl. Pour off fat from skillet. Arrange chicken, skin sides up, in one layer in skillet. Add Cognac and heat over moderately low heat until warm. Carefully ignite Cognac and heat, pushing and pulling the skillet until flames have subsided.

Add stock, garlic, and rosemary. Squeeze juice from lemon half [careful to watch for seeds] into chicken mixture and add lemon half. Simmer mixture, covered, 25 minutes, or until breast pieces are just cooked through. Transfer breast pieces with tongs to a deep platter, cover and keep warm. Simmer remaining chicken, covered, 5 to 10 minutes more, or until tender and cooked through, and transfer with tongs to platter.

Remove lemon half, squeezing any liquid into skillet, and discard lemon and rosemary. Purée cooking liquid with garlic and pour through a sieve into casserole or skillet. Boil liquid until reduced to about 1 cup and stir in cream and salt and pepper to taste. Return chicken to skillet and simmer until heated through, about 3 minutes.

Transfer chicken to serving platter, pour sauce over it and serve family-style.

Tom's Tacos

Ingredients
Hard corn taco shells or soft corn or flour tortillas

One or more of the following sorted in separate ramekins, muffin tin compartments or small bowls: 
Filling of your choice [see Cook's note]
Favorite cheese, shredded
Julienned lettuce, green or purple cabbage or spinach with a splash of vinegar
Diced peppers or chilies
Fresh chopped tomato, salted
Chopped or sliced raw or cooked onion
Sour cream with a squeeze of lime juice
Mayonnaise thinned with a bit of lemon juice
Favorite Salsa
Guacamole
Pico de gallo

Cook's note:

Ground beef, chicken, turkey or pork/sausage seasoned with you favorite taco seasonings

Sloppy Joe filling
I like the traditional flavors of chilie powder and cumin that taco seasoning affords, but a nice change up would be your favorite Sloppy Joe recipe

Whole deli chicken, shredded, salted and kept warm

Black beans: drain a can of black beans and spoon into a saucepan. Add the juice of one lime and two garlic cloves that have been sliced. Cook unitil hot and mash to desired consistency.

Fried corn
A tasty vegetarian option that partners well with the corn–flavor of the shell and many fillings.

Grilled fish
Firmer fish and steaks tend to work better for tacos, but feel free to experiment with your favorites. Flake or chunk the fish into bite sizes that will fit in your shell

Method
When I’m layering tacos, I like to put the cheese in first, especially if I’m adding a hot filling like ground beef or black beans. The heat melts the cheese and aids in keeping the ingredients in the tacos and not in your lap. After that, it’s whatever I feel like adding, sometimes just some cabbage topped with sour cream or mayo. Let your love of your favorite ingredients and your imagination help in creating your perfect taco.

Apple-cherry sauce

A great side dish with pork or poultry

Ingredients
2 pounds favorite apple, peeled, cored and cut into 1/2 inch dice
1/4 cup unsweetened apple juice
1/4 cup cherry preserves
Scant 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
Splash of Kirsch or Calvados, optional

Method
Combine diced apples and unsweetened apple juice in heavy large saucepan. Bring to boil, stirring occasionally. Cover, reduce heat to low and simmer until apples are very tender, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes.

Remove from heat [add liqueur if using] and mix in cherry preserves and salt. Using potato masher or fork, mash mixture to chunky puree. Sauce can be prepared up to 2 days ahead [cover and refrigerate].

The sauce may be served hot, warm, at room temperature or cold

Nonna’s lasagna

The recipe and name was inspired by some of the very best lasagnas I’ve had in and around Chicago

This lasagna uses homemade noodles, which results in a lighter dish, but dried noodles will also work fine.

You can make the sauce ahead of time … and the whole thing freezes beautifully.

Ingredients

For the sauce:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1/2 sweet onion, chopped
2 pounds ground chuck
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
Freshly ground pepper
1 can [29 ounces] tomato puree
2 cans [28 ounces each] crushed tomatoes
1 tablespoon dried basil
10 sprigs fresh basil
1 teaspoon sugar
2 teaspoons grated Romano cheese

For the Ricotta filling:
1 container [32 ounces] whole-milk ricotta, drained in colander over sink or bowl 1 hour
2 eggs, slightly beaten
3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup coarsely chopped parsley
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Zest of 1 lemon
Juice of 1/2 lemon
Up to 1 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon sugar
Scant 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
Freshly ground pepper

For the noodles:
1/2 teaspoon salt
Fresh lasagna noodles [see recipe below] OR 1 package [16 ounces] dried noodles

For assembly:
4 heaping tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
Generous 1/4 cup shredded mozzarella

Method
For the sauce, heat the oil and butter in a Dutch oven or stockpot over medium heat; add onion. Cook until onion is fragrant, about 1 minute.

Stir in the beef, breaking it up with a spoon over medium-low heat, until browned, about 10 minutes. Add the salt, garlic powder and pepper to taste; cook, stirring occasionally, about 2 minutes. Stir in the tomato puree and the crushed tomatoes. Stir in the dried basil. Increase heat to medium-high; heat to a boil. Stir in the basil sprigs and sugar. Stir in the Romano cheese. Lower heat to a simmer; cook 1 hour.

Meanwhile, for the ricotta filling, break up the ricotta into small pieces in a large bowl; mix in the beaten eggs, mozzarella, parsley, Parmesan, lemon zest, juice, salt, sugar, cinnamon and pepper to taste, stirring until smooth [do not over-mix]. Taste for salt, sugar and/or lemon, as needed.

Heat oven to 350°

For the noodles, heat a roasting pan or large pan of water to a boil; add salt. Cook noodles until al dente, 3-4 minutes, in batches if necessary [dried will take about 10 minutes]. Remove noodles with tongs to a baking pan, keeping them flat; add a bit of the cooking water to keep pasta supple.

Pour one-fourth of the sauce on the bottom of a 13 x 9 inch buttered baking dish. Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon of the Parmesan; cover completely with one-third of the noodles [overlapping is fine]. Add another one-fourth of the sauce; add half of the ricotta mixture. Add 1 tablespoon of the Parmesan; top with 2 tablespoons of the mozzarella. Cover with one-third of the noodles. Add another one-fourth of the sauce; top with remaining ricotta mixture, remaining 1 tablespoon of the Parmesan and remaining 2 tablespoons of the mozzarella. Cover with remaining third of the noodles. Cover with remaining sauce. [You may have leftover noodles].

Cover pan with foil; bake 30 minutes; uncover. Bake until top is bubbly, about 15 minutes. Set aside to rest 20 minutes before cutting.


Fresh lasagna noodles

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups flour
3/4 cup semolina flour
1 teaspoon salt
3 extra-large [not jumbo] eggs plus 1 egg yolk
1 tablespoon each: olive oil, water

Method
Sift flours into a food processor; sprinkle the salt over the flour. Set aside. Whisk the 3 whole eggs in a small bowl; whisk in the oil and water. With the machine running, pour in the egg-oil mixture slowly; add egg yolk as mixture begins to form into a ball. Process until dough is a buttery color and forms a smooth ball, about 30 seconds. [Do not over-mix]. Remove dough from food processor; knead dough about 1 minute. Form into a ball. Wrap with plastic wrap; let rest 10-30 minutes.

Place dough on a lightly floured surface; divide into four equal pieces. [Keep unused dough wrapped in plastic while you work]. Lightly flour one of the dough pieces and form into a disc; feed it through a pasta machine roller set at the thickest setting [No. 1]; repeat. Fold the dough strip into thirds or quarters to create a square; feed dough through pasta machine six times, flouring as needed and decreasing thickness by one setting each time, ending at No. 5 or No. 6, depending on the thickness desired.

Cut dough into 13-inch-long strips while soft; dry strips on a rack or on a board at least 15 minutes. Repeat with remaining pieces of dough. Use immediately, or dry completely, at least 24 hours; store in a large zip top food storage bag for up to 3 days.