Look what arrived in the mail, just in time for Presidents' Day: a batch of Mamie Eisenhower's Marble Cookies. Baked with love and sent with care by my very own First Lady, my mom. Sweet, nutty and a little flaky (I refer to the cookies) Mamie's marble cookies presage the wining streak of chocolate cookie victories of her successors, notably Hillary Clinton, Laura Bush, … [Read more...]
BERTHA’S NUTCAKE
Here's a long overdue shout out to Debbie Goldsmith, a longtime Assoc. Food Director at the Good Housekeeping Institute. Debbie sent in this recipe a while back during our black walnut enthusiasm period, which in turn was sparked by another SpecD reader, Susan Kirkpatrick. So without further ado, I give you this moist, nut-studded, crowd-pleasing recipe, which came tagged … [Read more...]
LIPTAUER CHEESE SPREAD
Liptauer Cheese is my mother's favorite spread and we served a creamy batch of it at our Gemütlichkeit holiday dinner party (more about that in a future post). The unusual combination of flavors makes for a "Wow, this is really good, what's in it?" reaction. Which is what we all aim for at dinner parties, right? Liptauer Cheese is a traditional German cream cheese dip. I … [Read more...]
GINGER LEMON HONEY JAM
It's December 21, the home stretch of holiday gift jam-making. Time to whip up a batch of Ginger Lemon Honey Jam. This one is a real zinger. Bits of candied ginger float in a honey citrus gel flecked with lemon and orange zest. A morning eye-opener indeed. Great on Greek yogurt too, if you're looking for more ways to consume jam. As my friend Trista says, "You can't buy … [Read more...]
SIMPLE ORANGE MARMALADE
Making orange marmalade doesn't have to be complicated. This recipe is simple - the only caveat is a kitchen scale is needed. (OXO makes this fine one available on Amazon.) This marmalade recipe is based on the traditional three part formula: equal weights of oranges, sugar and water are called for. By sticking with this ratio the recipe can be scaled up or down, including … [Read more...]
FINANCIERS WITH MARMALADE AND ALMONDS
Having lived on Wall Street for the past six years, occupying before it was "Occupied" so to speak, I've been meaning to share this Financier recipe for a while. Sort of like madeleines but different, Financiers are airy little almond cakes that can be further flavored with more nuts or marmalade, as they are here. It's been said they take their name from their gold brick … [Read more...]
BAKED PUMPKIN SPAETZLE
It seems time to get back to the basic tenets of this site. Spectacularly Delicious is dedicated to recipes with a proper name that require specialized equipment to either prepare or serve, call for unusual or hard to find ingredients and often take a long time to prepare, resulting in a splendid presentation with a marvelous taste. In short, spectacularly delicious. … [Read more...]
GREEN TOMATO INDIA RELISH
If you're looking for relish recipes, you've come to the right place. Corn relish. Mexican Corn Relish. Zucchini Relish, Fennel and Onion Relish and Christmas Relish. Even Blueberry Relish with a Brokeback Mountain theme. Alas, it's been brought to our attention that we don't yet have a recipe for "regular" relish, more accurately known as India Relish. So here goes. So … [Read more...]
STUFFED CABBAGE CAKE / CHOU FARCI GATEAUX
It's hard to get too worked up about stuffed cabbage, at least for me. Hearty, homey, tasty -- yes. But elegant? Not so much. Until now. This stuffed cabbage cake, or better still, Chou Farci Gâteau, takes a modest meal and elevates it to true star stature. And it's not all that hard. Instead of individually stuffed rolls, the braised meat is built up in layers of … [Read more...]
MOSTARDA DI CREMONA
So I've been on a Jane Gardam binge lately, reading everything of hers I can get my hands on. Her writing is addictive, her stories filled with all-too-human characters and happy small surprises. (Start with Old Filth; and no, it's not what you think.) In The Hot Sweets of Cremona she introduces us to Mostarda di Cremona, "bright fruit things" displayed in an Italian … [Read more...]