Katty’s Perfect Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies (CCCs)

 

I think I did it again! I made a true pumpkin version of my CCCs. They keep their crispy outside/chewy inside texture, but add the flavors — and even a touch of color — of fall. Yes, even a bit of bourbon. 🥃

KATTY’S PERFECT PUMPKIN CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES (CCCs)

1 stick butter (salted), softened
1½ cups all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon ginger
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon cloves
1/4 cup white sugar
1/4 cup turbinado sugar
¾ cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
1 egg yolk
1 tablespoon bourbon
2 tablespoons pumpkin puree
3/4 cup chocolate chips
sea salt to sprinkle as a finishing touch

Cream the butter and the sugars until light. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Combine egg yolk, pumpkin, bourbon and vanilla. Mix with butter/sugar just till incorporated. Scrape down the bowl again.

Sift flour, baking soda, salt and spices into a separate bowl. With mixer on low, slowly add dry ingredients. Mix only until combined: do not overmix. Fold in chocolate chips.

If you can wait (!), refrigerate the dough overnight, or better still, for 24-36 hours. People say it makes ’em better.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Adjust racks to lower and upper thirds of the oven. I used an ice cream scoop to portion the dough. Space them 2 inches apart. I made 19 big, beautiful cookies with a remainder of dough that didn’t quite make one more. But tasted so yummy raw! Shhhh. Our secret.

Mishu supervised and approved!

 

Creamy, Fussy Hummus

Now that you have light, airy focaccia in your recipe repertoire, how about some creamy, fussy hummus to dip with it? I made hummus differently years ago. Here’s the new, improved ultra-creamy version. It just takes a few more steps. And it’s worth it!

CREAMY, FUSSY HUMMUS
2 15.5 oz. cans chickpeas – reserve liquid from one can, then drain and rinse all the chickpeas
1 tablespoon baking soda
1 teaspoon epazote
2 cloves garlic, pressed
zest and juice of two lemons (this gave me more than 1/3 cup, but less than a half cup of juice)
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 cup tahini
2 tablespoons lemon olive oil, more to garnish when you serve
3 tablespoons reserved liquid from the chickpeas can (aquafaba)
2 ice cubes

Zest and squeeze two lemons. Press two cloves of garlic into the lemon juice. This’ll take a bit of the bite out of the garlic.

Meantime, cover the chickpeas with water in a pan, add the baking soda and epazote. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat, cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Then drain the cooked chickpeas and rinse with cool water.

Add the chickpeas back to the pan. Add garlic, lemon, zest, salt, cumin, tahini, olive oil and reserved liquid from the can. Use a stick blender to whip into creamy deliciousness. Once well blended, add one ice cube at a time and whip it up some more.

When you plate the creamy, fussy hummus, drizzle with a bit more lemon olive oil and a sprinkle of paprika. Serve with veggies, focaccia or crackers to enjoy. Cheers to good health and even better taste!

 

Focaccia

So many things to make and dip into — and in walks focaccia to say, “I can help with that!” I recently baked someone else’s recipe, then used it as a template for my own dough. It’s so easy and so good! Let’s do it!
FOCACCIA
1 cup warm (not hot) water
1 teaspoon light brown sugar
Dissolve sugar into warm water. Then add:
1.5 teaspoons yeast
Give the yeast about 15 minutes or so to activate.
While you wait, combine:
1 1/4 cups bread flour
1 1/4 cups 00 flour (I use King Arthur 00 pizza flour)
1/2 teaspoon sea salt

At the 15-minute mark, add:
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Then add the combined dry ingredients and stir till a sticky dough forms. Shape it in your hands for a minute or so to form a ball, then coat with olive oil and let rest in a bowl large enough so it can double in size. Cover with plastic wrap and let it rise for the next couple of hours.

When it’s time to bake, generously coat a 12″ cast iron skillet with olive oil, then turn the dough into the pan. Pat it into the pan so it covers the bottom. Use your fingers to dimple the surface, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt. Add whatever other toppings you like.

So far, I’ve just added rosemary, but you could add tomatoes, olives, onions, peppers. Some people get creative and elevate focaccia to an art form! Cover the pan with plastic wrap and let it rise another 30 minutes. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F and bake for 30 minutes after the final rise. Slice, find something tasty to dip into (hummus, anyone?) and enjoy.

 

Katty’s Lavender Pink Lemonade

Trying to stay cool? I’ve got just the pink drink for you — lavender pink lemonade! Next time, I’m doubling the recipe. It’s so damn good!

KATTY’S LAVENDER PINK LEMONADE

Simple syrup:
First. make a simple syrup:
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup water
Stir, bring to a boil, then remove from heat and add:
1.5 tablespoons dried lavender
peels from 2 lemons (washed, no kidding, HA HA)
3 raspberries, smooshed
2 strawberries cut into small pieces (I used a potato masher to smoosh them further in the pan)
Let this steep in a covered pan for 45 minutes or so. Meantime, get a pitcher and …

Juice 4 large lemons. This yielded 1.25 cups of lemon juice for me.
Pour juice over a sieve into a pitcher.
Once simple syrup is ready, pour it over a sieve into the pitcher.
Add three cups of cold water.
Combine and enjoy over ice!

Stay cool, amici! The summer of 2022 is one for the books for sure — one I look forward to closing!
>>^..^<<

 

Katty’s Fancy Turkey Burgers

Remember those turkey burgers Oprah once raved about? I fondly remember a funny thread about turkey burgers that were moist and didn’t suck on the (now defunct) food lovers’ site, Chowhound. Having made these, I recommended them. The original poster kept complaining about how turkey burgers are dry and lack flavor. Well, these are moist and delicious! That guy should’ve listened! HA HA.

If you’ve ever searched for the famous recipe online, you’ll note it calls for FOUR POUNDS of turkey. That’s likely more than most of us need to make. So, using that recipe as a starting point, I skinnied it down to use just one pound. Perfect for “now and later” burgers for you and a friend (or your mom, same diff).

I meant to buy a Granny Smith apple, as the original recipe calls for. As is my way, I went to the store and forgot to buy one — and didn’t realize till it was time to make dinner! So I substituted a donut peach. I think apple, peach or pear would all work nicely in the recipe. So whatever you feel like finely chopping a half cup of, there you go.

KATTY’S FANCY TURKEY BURGERS
adapted liberally from a much more famous recipe
And you get a turkey burger! And YOU get a turkey burger!

1-2 teaspoons (who measures? enough to coat the bottom of a small pan) avocado oil — could also use olive oil or corn oil
1 scallion, thinly sliced
1 stalk celery, finely chopped
1/2 cup donut peach*, chopped the same size as the celery (*or Granny Smith apple or pear)
1 pound ground turkey
1 teaspoon sea salt
black pepper
1 teaspoon Cholula chipotle hot sauce (or hot sauce of your choice)
zest of one lemon
juice of just a quarter of the lemon
1 tablespoon Major Grey’s chutney (barring this, you might add apricot or mango jam — you’ll just miss the ginger component)
handful of parsley, finely chopped

Sautée scallions, celery and fruit (peach, apple or pear) in bit of oil over medium heat till softened. Remove from heat and let cool a bit as you gather the rest of the ingredients. Combine turkey, salt, pepper, hot sauce, lemon juice, zest, parsley and chutney with the sautéed ingredients from the pan. Don’t overmix. Divide into four equal portions, then form patties. Cook over medium heat about 3.5 to 4 minutes per side.

We enjoyed ours on toasted Thomas’ Light Multi-Grain English Muffins with lettuce and a bit of mayo.

In case you’re not following Katty’s Kitchen on social media, you may have missed I’m on a path toward better health and lower cholesterol. While I didn’t think it would be quite as delicious as it turned out to be, I’m happy to tell you I was so wrong! So, if you didn’t think turkey burgers were your thing, try this recipe. Even my mom said, “We don’t have to eat hamburgers” after we had these. Cheers to happy, healthy eating! Stay cool, amici!

 

Satsuma Mandarin Sour

Inspired by seasonal fruit and fellow gin drinkers, I shook up my own satsuma mandarin sour. Vermont’s Barr Hill Gin, with botanicals of juniper and raw honey, makes it extra special EXCELLENT. While satsumas are in season–winter, the season of our discontent–look for fruit with leaves still attached. This shows they’re not just picked and handled with care, but also fresh and of the highest quality. You can store them at room temperature or in the fridge.

SATSUMA MANDARIN SOUR
1 oz freshly squeezed satsuma mandarin (about one piece of fruit, you can cut off the ends for a garnish)
1/2 oz freshly squeezed lemon juice (about half a lemon)
1/2 oz honey syrup (a 1:1 ratio of water to honey–my favorite variety is acacia from Smiley Honey)
2 oz Barr Hill Gin

Combine in a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake, strain, enjoy–orange you glad you did? AH AH AH!

Hope you’re staying cozy like this comfort kat!

 

Eggnog Snickerdoodles

My mom has proclaimed these cookies “better than snickerdoodles.” She’s not wrong. Try them!

EGGNOG SNICKERDOODLES
Adapted from the New York Times

For the cookie dough
3 1/2 cups plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
1 large egg plus two yolks, at room temperature (tip: place eggs in warm water as you gather ingredients)
2 tablespoons rum (I used Cruzan 9 Spiced Rum–highly recommend!)

For rolling
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cream of tartar and baking soda. Set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, using the paddle attachment, cream together the butter, 1 3/4 cup sugar and the Kosher salt on medium high till smooth and fluffy, about 3-4 minutes total. Stop and scrape down a few times during this cycle to ensure everything’s evenly incorporated.

Set mixer to medium. Add each egg/yolk one by one and combine thoroughly before adding the next. Add rum. Beat another minute or two.

Set mixer to low. Add flour mixture gradually, in 3-4 batches. Beat till combined. Set dough aside for about 10 minutes before prepping to bake.

In a small bowl, combine nutmeg, cinnamon and 1/4 cup sugar for rolling. I used a scoop just under 2 tablespoons (1 oz) to portion the dough.

• 

  What size scoop?

• 

  This size scoop! >>^..^<<

Roll each cookie in spiced sugar. Transfer to cookie sheets, three across. Bake for 7 minutes, then switch racks/positions and bake for 7 more. They’ll be slightly puffed. Let cool on the cookie sheet a bit before moving to wire racks to cool completely. Makes 32 delicious cookies–AH AH AHHHH!

That’s 3 + 29 delicious cookies. Nevermind the apples!!!

 

Clams Casino

Clams casino: a New England classic featuring local littlenecks, red bell pepper and the goodness of bacon. Sadly, as you’ll often find with clam sauce and clam chowder, so many places just don’t get it right. Problem solved! Now you can make them to perfection in your own home. That’s what we did yesterday. And now we can follow our own simple (and simply delicious) recipe for years to come.

CLAMS CASINO
2 slices thick-cut bacon
1 tablespoon butter, salted
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 dozen littlenecks, shucked
1/4 cup red bell pepper (about 1/3 or so of the pepper), finely chopped
1 shallot, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1/4 cup dry white wine (we used Chardonnay)
2 tablespoons grated Pecorino Romano
sea salt or Kosher salt to taste
freshly ground black pepper
pink peppercorns (If you have them, they add nice flavor. Add just a bit, smashed between your fingers.)
3 tablespoons panko
Some chopped fresh parsley would be great in here, but we got lazy and didn’t feel like chopping anymore.

Preheat oven to 500 degrees F. Line a baking sheet or pizza pan with foil. Place clams in pan.

Add bacon to large skillet over medium heat. Cook, remove from skillet, leaving bacon drippings in the pan. Blot with a paper towel, then finely chop.

Add about 1 tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon oil to the pan. Then add red bell pepper, shallots and garlic. Sautee till shallots are tender and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add wine. Cook down about 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Sprinkle Pecorino Romano and panko, stir to combine. Add chopped bacon.

Mound stuffing with a spoon atop each shucked clam. Bake for about 8-10 minutes till topping is golden. Serve with fresh slices of lemon to squeeze over the top. And over the top is just how I hope this dish rates with you when you make it. Buon appetito!

 

Creamy White Bean Soup

Here’s a new favorite soup, adapted liberally from this America’s Test Kitchen video. To serve, I garnish with a combination of finely chopped bacon and a blend of finely chopped herbs in Meyer lemon olive oil from Seven Barrels.

CREAMY WHITE BEAN SOUP
adapted liberally from America’s Test Kitchen

Soup
extra virgin olive oil to coat the bottom of your pot
1/2 a large sweet onion, diced
1 rib celery, chopped a bit finer than the onion
2 cloves garlic, sliced
2 cans small white beans or canellini beans (I used Goya)
2 tablespoons Pecorino Romano, grated
1/2 a lemon, squeezed
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
sprigs of fresh thyme
2 tablespoons salted butter

Herb oil
Maybe 1/4 cup or so (I don’t measure) of Meyer lemon olive oil
Handful of fresh parsley
A few sprigs of fresh rosemary
Chop very fine, add to lemon olive oil. Let sit so the flavors meld.

Garnish
2 or 3 pieces of your favorite bacon, cooked and diced fine

Coat a large stockpot with extra virgin olive oil, burner on medium heat. Add celery and onions. Cook 6 to 8 minutes, till softened and onions are translucent.

Next, add thyme, sliced garlic and cayenne. Cook till fragrant, about a minute or so.

Add two cans of beans and their liquid. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover and cook 6 to 8 minutes more.

Remove thyme. Add Pecorino Romano. Remove from heat; blend for 2 minutes with an immersion (stick) blender. Yes, your arm and/or finger will get tired from blending. Weird. No worries, the feeling goes away!

Add 2 tablespoons salted butter and 1 cup chicken broth. Blend one more minute.

Next, whisk in 1 more cup of chicken broth. Cover and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Stir in freshly squeezed lemon juice.

To serve, garnish with a drizzle of herb oil and a tasty row of chopped bacon. Enjoy!

 

Roasted Potatoes Pizzaiola

Sometime during the plague, I started buying these cute, colorful creamer potatoes from the Little Potato Company. Even the description on the bag is cheery.

Beyond their cheerful colors and harmonious flavor, they do have such a nice, almost fluffy texture.

I saw Lidia Bastianich making baked stuffed potatoes on TV. I liked the idea, and had sausage on hand, but she was stuffing baked potatoes. I wanted to take her idea and run in my own direction. So I roasted these colorful little potatoes and made my own topping, based on what I had in the fridge and the flavors I like. Here’s my summer potato project. I know it’s fall now, but hope you love it as much as we do! We’ve been enjoying it weekly!

ROASTED POTATOES PIZZAIOLA

The little potatoes
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. However many potatoes you want, quarter them and coat them in olive oil. Add Kosher salt to taste and, if you have it, Penzeys California Seasoned Pepper and chopped fresh rosemary. I always make extra so I can have more the next day!

Put ’em in the oven for 15-20 minutes, then turn them and let them cook for 15-20 minutes more. The goal is for them to be a little crispy outside, fluffy inside. Have a bite and see.

While the potatoes are in the oven, get started with the topping.

The sausage topping
1/2 a sweet onion, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
5-6 oz. baby bellas (or mushrooms of your choice)
10 cherry tomatoes, quartered
1/2 a ball of fresh mozzarella, cubed
2 hot sausage patties (or half a pound of your favorite sausage)–mine is Longhini
fresh basil for garnish, if you have it (parsley’s nice, too)

Coat a large skillet with olive oil, turn heat to medium. Add the sweet onion and bell pepper. Let these cook till the onions start to get a bit golden. Then add the sausage, breaking it up as you go. Next add the mushrooms and tomatoes. Right before it’s time to serve, add the basil (or parsley) and the fresh mozzarella. You just want to warm the mozz up so it starts to get stretchy and do its thing.

Then it’s time to put it all together. Plate your potatoes, top with sausage topping. Maybe a little extra basil or parsley, if you’re feeling fancy.

And remember–ricorda …

Hope you’re safe and healthy. Eat your potatoes and stay good!