It's beginning to smell alot like like Christmas!

Huh? Did you look again? I am a total ginger freak, as many of you know. Troy, my now Husband, once bought me a pound box of chocolate covered ginger for Valentine's Day when we were courting.

Lately, I have been jonesing for the spicy, sweet stuff, purchased some candied ginger from Berkeley Bowl West, made some really delicious Apricot Ginger Jam a month or so
back, and Friday, while hanging around Whole Foods Market, I spied some lovely dark brown ginger snaps in the bulk section. They were little crisp cookies, only about an inch and half big, but once I popped one into my already salavating mouth....my taste buds came alive in spicy goodness! These little cookies were really full of flavor and I tried like hell to ignore the little ginger devil on my shoulder prodding me to go back for more than a sample.

Finally, while looking for compost bags, I could ignore it no more and went back to get a few for myself to bring home. At $9.99 a pound, though, these lovely little morsels were expensive for my limited budget, so I just bought a small handful to keep to myself. Sorry Troy, and Lucia........no ginger goodness for you!

Anyhow, today, I got to thinking that I can probably make these for myself. So, while Troy was sleeping, and Lucia was watching Good Luck Charlie, and of course after I took our big doggie boy Angus to the courts to run off some energy, I got to recipe development.

I got out my Mother's Ginger Cookie recipe, Mama used to make this dough for Gingerbread Men at Christmas. Just the idea of getting out these spices makes my heart
swell for her and my time together on cold, crisp California December afternoons at holiday time. She liked her cookies soft,(like Troy likes his cookies) but I like my cookies crisp and chewy, so I knew that I had some recipe development to do.

After doing some online research, and a few trial and errors, Here is what I came up with.

Crispy Double Gingersnaps

3/4 cup shortening
1/4 cup splenda
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1/4 cup molasses
2 cups white wheat flour
2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp sea salt, finely ground
3 tsp cinnamon
1 TBSP ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/4 cup candied ginger, finely chopped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, cream together shortening, sugar and Splenda. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl. Add the egg, and beat until light and fluffy, then stir in the molasses.Scrape down the bowl again.

In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, salt, spices and baking soda. Add to the egg/butter mixture and stir until just blended. Scrape down the sides once more.

By hand, stir in the candied ginger.

With a small ice cream scoop, mine is a professional scoop with a purple handle marked "40", scoop the dough flat, and then roll into a ball. Place on the prepared cookie sheet, 3 across, and four down.

Flatten the dough with the palm of your hand and bake for 10-12 minutes.

Let cool completely on a wire rack.

Notes about this recipe:

*If you use butter instead of shortening, your cookies will be soft and not crisp.
*Normally I swap out Splenda for all sugar in my recipes,because my Husband Troy
is diabetic but in this case, if you really want crisp cookies, using sugar is
necessary.
*Alternatively, if you prefer a sweeter cookie, you can roll the dough balls in
finely granulated sugar before putting on the cookie sheets and flattening.
*If a really spicy cookie is what you are craving, try adding 1/4 tsp finely
ground black pepper to this recipe. It really adds a bit of a kick!

Hot Cross Buns

Spring has spring around our house, and even though it is still pretty darn cold at 5am when I rise, the sun soon spreads across the street to enlighten our neighbor's amazing green victorian and the pretty garden that surrounds it. It is one of my many pleasures that I enjoy in the few quiet moments (it seems) before Lucia awakens and the house becomes swathed in the sound of cartoons and eight year old hubub. Lucia and I spent the last week together,going to the TCHO chocolate factory for a tour and tasting, traveling down the coast to Harley Goat Farms to meet the goats, which by the way, are very much like dogs, rubbing against us and staring into our eyes dreamily as we scratch behind their ears. Pretty darn sweet little beings. Bonus that their milk makes one of my very favorite cheeses! This one The Monet, made with edible flowers also from the farm, Lucia and the other kids on the tour actually got to make.....super cool and yummy!

This year with our regular attendance at Church Without Walls, I have been more reflective in the history of the season, and was inspired to mark the week in a traditional way. Easter Sunday, we go to a big joined service with another local church and then continue the celebration with a potluck brunch afterward, egg hunt et all. So, not only did I make Hot Cross Buns for our little family to enjoy this Easter morning, but 40 more to share at brunch. Hot Cross Buns, it seems, first appeared in pre-Christian times when the Saxons baked them to honor the goddess Eostre (the root of Easter), marking the cross to symbolize the quarters of the moon. In later times, when Christianity was in full bloom, Hot Cross Buns are eaten hot or toasted with the cross standing to symbolize the crucifixion of Christ. According to Elisabeth David, Protestant English monarchs saw the making and consuming of the buns to be a dangerous hold over of the Catholic belief, baking the dough with holy communion water. The government in England tried to ban the making and sale of the buns, but they had become so popular that Elisabeth I instead made a law to allow production and sale of Hot Cross Buns, only at the Christmas and Easter holiday. This was my first time making Hot Cross Buns, and as I always do, I researched recipes and history to the enth degree. First it was Marion Cunningham's Breakfast Book, but though I love most of her writings, this one, using dry milk, did not seem right. Then I looked at Elise's recipe on her lovely site, Simply Recipes and this was closer to what I envisioned....but I did adapt the recipe pretty substantially to my own taste. In the end, I wrote a hybrid from numerous versions, and I am pretty happy with the result. I hope that you will be too. Citrus Hot Cross Buns 4 cups all-purpose flour 2 packages active dry yeast (2 1/4 teaspoons each) 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom 1/8 tsp ginger zest of one tangerine 3/4 cup milk 1/4 cup Straus butter, melted, 1/3 cup sugar 1/2 teaspoon sea salt, finely granulated 3 eggs 1/3 cup dried apricots 1/3 cup dried cranberries 1 slightly beaten egg white 1 1/2 cups confectioners sugar zest of one tangerine Juice of three tangerines In a mixer bowl, combine 2 cups of the flour, the yeast, cinnamon, and cardamom. In a separate bowl, combine milk, butter, sugar, and salt, and heat to 120° F. Add to dry ingredients along with eggs, and beat at low speed until combined. Beat at medium speed for 3 minutes, then add dried fruit and enough remaining flour to make a soft dough. Turn out onto a floured surface, and knead for 3-5 minutes, or until smooth and elastic. Cover and let rise 1 hour, or til doubled.

Punch dough down; divide into 18 pieces. Shape each piece into a ball; place on greased baking sheets. Cover and let rise till double (30-45 minutes).

Brush rolls with egg white, then bake in a preheated 375° oven for 12-15 minutes. Remove from baking sheet and cool completely on a wire rack. Combine the confectioners sugar, tangerine zest and tangerine juice. Put into a ziplock bag and snip off a tiny piece of one corner. Pipe a cross onto each roll, making sure each roll is COMPLETELY cool or the icing will run. Let the icing harden.

Makes 18 rolls

BAD RAP Blog: Grateful - For everyone who steps outside of their comfort zone

BAD RAP Blog: Grateful - For everyone who steps outside of their comfort zone

Chez Panisse Biscotti to celebrate the 40th Anniversary!

It is not a secret that I love Alice and all that she has brought to our table. She is a true visionary and been unwavering in her quest for good, clean, fair and delicious food for first her friends and then those who could afford to eat at her legendary restaurant Chez Panisse, and now for us all and especially our children.

It is really hard to believe that it has been 40 years since she wanted to bring her friends around the table to cook for them and support herself doing it. I can relate.

As it happens, my Husband's job was eliminated at the end of July, so we really cannot afford to participate in any meaningful way in all the events going on this month in benefit for The Edible Schoolyard Foundation, but I decided this afternoon, we would do my small bit to join in, and I think that it is so simple and delicious, that Alice would really approve.

I decided to bake the famed Chez Panisse biscotti from Alice and Lindsey Shere's book to celebrate on our own. Published in 1985, Chez Panisse Desserts is a classic, but not dated. The recipes are timeless and the results delicious. See for yourself. THe recipe says that it makes 4 1/2 dozen biscotti, but all said I had three dozen when I was done. I didn't have any grappa in the house, so I used up the tiny bit of madeira left in the bottle from V. Sattui Winery. The original recipe calls for anise extract and anise seed....both of which I did not have on hand, so I added 2 tsp of almond extract to enhance the almond flavor. I also only had salted butter in the house, so I used it. The recipe below reflects my substitutions, but it maintains the integrity of the original recipe "Aunt Victoria's Biscotti" on page 199. I think that Alice and Lindsey would approve and agree that the results are delicious.

Almond Biscotti

1/2 cup whole almonds, toasted and chopped coarsely
1/2 cup Strauss Family salted butter
3/4 cup organic sugar
2 free range, organic eggs
2 tsp almond extract
2 tsp maderia, V. Sattui makes an excellent local one
2 cups organic white wheat flour
1 1/2 baking powder

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.

Cream the softened butter by hand until lightened. Add the sugar, a little at
a time beating well after each addition. Add the eggs, one at a time until the mixture is smooth. Stir in the madeira and almond extract, beating well.

Mix the dry ingredients together and then add into the wet ingredients a little at a time until just mixed. Stir in the chopped, toasted almonds.

On a lightly floured board, make two logs of dough equal size and approximately the length of the cookie sheet that you have lined with parchment. Lay each long log carefully onto the prepared baking sheet.

Bake about 25 minutes, until just barely browned on the bottom and the logs just set.

Cool the logs on a rack for 5 minutes and then with a bread knife, slice the logs diagonally about 1/2 inch thick, carefully laying each slice back onto the baking sheet.

Return the sliced biscotti back to the oven for 3 to 5 minutes to continue to bake until very lightly browned. Turn the slices, then turn off the oven and let the slices dry for another 5 minutes before removing the sheet to a rack to cool completely.

Store in a tightly covered container if you can keep from eating them all immediately!

Blackberry Raspberry Buttermilk Crunch Cake

Here is a lovely summer recipe that will work with any fresh berries from the farmers market. Please remember to only buy organic berries and to wash them well.......berries are number one on the "dirty" list and hold pesticides like no other fruit of vegetable. Or better yet, grow your own!

Anyway, this recipe is adapted from a recipe that first appeared in the San Francisco Chronicle, which I have adapted to be much more healthy and suitable for my Husband Troy, who is diabetic.

I encourage you to try it. The berries really shine and it can be eaten at any time of day, as it is not too sweet. It would be lovely paired with some fresh vanilla bean ice cream, or even a berry sorbet to bring it to the next level!


Blackberry Crunch Cake
Serves 24

Nut Crunch
• Oil to coat pan
• 1 cup all-purpose flour, plus more for coating pan
• 1 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 10 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup finely chopped nuts, preferably pecans or walnuts

Cake
• 2 cups white wheat flour
• 2 cups wheat flour
• 4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 8 ounces (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 1/2 cups splenda
• 4 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
• 4 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 3 cups fresh blackberries/raspberries, washed and picked over

Instructions:
Have all ingredients at room temperature unless otherwise stated. Center a rack in the oven, and preheat oven to 350°. Lightly spray or butter a 9-inch springform pan and coat inside of pan with flour, tap out excess flour.

For the Nut Crunch:
In a small bowl, stir flour, brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg together. Add butter, and with your fingertips or a pastry blender, mash in butter until well blended. Stir in chopped nuts with a fork. It will be like a nutty soft paste at this point.

For the cake:
Stir flour, baking powder and salt together in a large mixing bowl and set aside. Combine milk and vanilla extract in a small bowl and set aside. In a large bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar until creamy, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the eggs, slowly at first until blended. Continue to beat until light in color and fluffy in texture, 1 to 2 minutes. Reduce mixer to lowest speed, and alternately add the flour mixture in thirds and milk mixture in two portions until batter is well blended; scraping down the bowl with a spatula when necessary. Spread two-thirds of the batter over the bottom of the prepared pan. With fingertips, crumble 1/3 cup of the nut crunch evenly over the batter and scatter the blackberries evenly over the top. Spread the remaining batter over the berries - it's okay that the batter will just barely cover the berries. Scatter the rest of the crunch evenly over the batter's surface.

Bake for about 60 minutes, until golden and a wooden toothpick inserted into the center comes out free of cake. Place cake on a wire rack, and with hands covered to avoid a burn, remove the pan's ring.

Set aside to let cake cool completely before serving.

Per serving: 328 calories, 5 g protein, 41 g carbohydrate, 17 g fat (8 g saturated), 69 mg cholesterol, 188 mg sodium, 2g fiber.