Passion Fruit Sorbet (& an announcement!)

The morning after we got back from vacation (which, I admit is now officially about 3 weeks ago), Eugene decided to run out to the store to pick up a few supplies for the weekend.

"Make me a list," he said, as he hopped around trying to put on a sock.

I grabbed my BlackBerry and wrote him a list of things I figured we'd need: eggs, buttermilk (for pancakes), turkey ham, salad greens, whole wheat bread, calamine lotion (for my UV rash), lemons, frozen passion fruit puree, and "anything else that looks good." I sent it to his e-mail and he glanced at it before leaving.

"Calamine lotion?"

"Just check if they have it!" I whined, scratching my incredibly itchy arms.

"And frozen passion fruit?"

"Yeah, it should be in the freezer with all the Spanish stuff." (::scratch scratch::)

He looked at me uncertainly, but grabbed the keys and headed out.

About 30 minutes later, he was back with two heavy bags. "They didn't have calamine lotion," he said as he dropped them on the floor in the kitchen.

"And what about the passion fruit?" I asked, scared to get my hopes up.

"Oh yeah," he said. "They had that. I got two different brands since I didn't know which you'd like."

At this, I quite literally jumped up with joy. "Oh BOY!!! Oh BOY! This is fantastic!"


I dug around in the bags until I found the two flat frozen packages of golden pulp. As anyone who has ever strained fresh passion fruit pulp from the fruit by the teaspoon can attest, having actual cups and cups (and cups!) of the stuff makes one feel very, very rich.

Coming home from vacation absolutely sucks. I mean there are just no other words to describe how terrible it feels to come back from a blissful week on a perfect little hot and sunny island to the melting sludge and biting wind of late winter in New York City.

But, I've learned that a healthy supply of tart and creamy passion fruit sorbet really does helps a lot. One spoonful (ok...ok...about 7 spoonfuls) of this sorbet eaten straight out of the ice cream maker, and I felt like I'd been whisked back to sunny Vieques (minus the security lines and the terrifying puddle jumper flight).

This sorbet could not be easier to make, and scoops up absolutely beautifully. It's also very affordable. About two dollars for the passion fruit puree, plus the water and sugar that you probably already have at home, will give you 4-5 cups of sorbet. Compare that with the $5 Ciao Bella and Whole Foods and everyone else charges for their tiny pints, and you've got some major savings.

So major in fact that I have no plans of EVER buying those tiny pints again! (I actually announced these intentions on Twitter the other day, much to the chagrin of the Ciao Bella twitter person who tried to convince me otherwise.)

Speaking of passion...

Most of you have already heard me blabbing on and on about this on Twitter and Facebook but in case you haven't, we have some news. Eugene and I are super happy to announce that we're engaged!!!

Awesome, huh? Eugene asked me to marry him on a Wednesday a few weeks ago under a star-filled evening sky in Vieques. It was beautiful and romantic (and actually quite funny as there was a nosy--albeit adorable--English sheepdog named Zach who absolutely insisted on sticking his face in Eugene's as he was down on his knee proposing).

Like most girls, I'd daydreamed and wondered about this moment for years, and was thrilled when it finally happened. Since then, we've been very silly and giddy about the whole thing; I have a little dance that I like to do every now and then, and we love calling each other fiance and fiancee--it doesn't get old!

You know how much I love to plan parties, so I can imagine you know how excited I am to plan our wedding and (even more importantly!) our new life together. I've only just started thinking about things and we haven't set a date yet, but we do know three things for sure. It will definitely be next winter. It will definitely be in New York. And I will DEFINITELY be making my own cake.

I plan to document the planning and ideas here (and am also open to suggestions and recommendations!), so I hope you won't mind listening in. I promise I won't go all 24/7 wedding blog on you though...that's just so not my style. ;)

Anyway darlings, wish me luck! And in the meantime...I hope you enjoy this delicious sorbet!


Yup! That's the ring! ;)

Passion Fruit Sorbet
Makes 4 1/2 cups

1 and 3/4 cups granulated sugar
2 cups water
2 1/2 cups frozen passion fruit puree, defrosted.

In a small saucepan, combine sugar and water and bring to a boil stirring until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and let cool completely.

Add in passion fruit puree and combine well. Pour into the base of your ice cream machine and freeze according to manufacturer's instructions. Transfer to an air-tight container and freeze for an additional 4 hours (or overnight) before serving.

Store in air-tight container in the freezer for up to 2 weeks.

Ingredient Note: Frozen Passion Fruit puree can be usually be found in the freezer section of most major grocery stores or latin markets, sometimes labeled by its Spanish name "Maracuya" or "Parcha." Goya and La Fe are two major manufacturers and a package typically sells for 2-3 dollars.

Tuna, Parsley & Radish Salad

Sometimes I think I'm at my most creative the week before vacation. It's one of the few times when I diligently take stock of everything that I have in the refrigerator and pantry, and think of ways to use it all before we leave. The rush is not to use the things before they wilt and die, but rather to use everything period. I like to leave the fridge nearly clear so that there is no risk of anything going to waste in our absence, and so that we can start fresh upon our return.

A few days ago, I was thumbing through the March issue of Real Simple magazine on the train home from work when I came across a nice looking tuna salad billed as the "brown-bag lunch of the month." The ingredients called for radishes, celery, parsley, and some seasonings; all ingredients which are usually rolling around my fridge begging to be used. I made a mental note to remember the combination of ingredients.

This morning on Day 6 of our thwarted vacation (we were supposed to have left for Puerto Rico last Wednesday but the snow had other plans), I woke up hungry. We are finally (God-willing) getting on the plane tonight, so the fridge is really down to the bare bones

"I'm going to make some food now," I said to Eugene as I rolled out of bed. Pulling out a few cans of tuna, a handful of radishes, and one huge bunch of parsley, I got to work. Though the original recipe only called for 1/4 cup of parsley, I, inspired by the wonderfully fresh and nutty tabbouleh salad we had at Ilili the other day, decided to finely mince the entire bunch and use it all (stems too!). I think parsley is all-too-often relegated to the role of garnish when it really is wonderful enough to stand alone. (Anyone who loves chimichurri as much as I do will likely agree!)


I chopped the radish into little matchsticks and diced a whole red onion. I used four 5oz cans of tuna that I rinsed with fresh water first (if you don't like the "fishy" smell of canned tuna, that's a great way to eliminate it before using in a recipe. I zested and juiced an entire lemon, drizzled in some olive oil, and topped it all off with a shower of freshly cracked black pepper and sea salt. I skipped celery because I didn't have any, but I did add a heaping teaspoon of dried oregano.

The finished salad is beautiful, with lots of green and gorgeous hints of red from the radish. I served it with toasted slices of whole wheat and pumpernickel bread and a little ramekin of mayonnaise on the side for spreading on the bread. I love the flavor of mayonnaise with my tuna, but I didn't want one of those heavy tuna salads we're all so accustomed to eating.

This salad keeps well overnight, so--just like Real Simple suggested--it's a great one to try if you're looking for a healthy lunch option the next day. My recipe below makes about two to four servings, depending on how much you usually eat. Eugene, left to his own devices, would probably eat the entire bowl himself. And then ask for more.


Speaking of lunch, I've recently become quite smitten with Elizabeth Bard's new book, Lunch in Paris (a love story! with recipes!). I devoured the book in two days and have been recommending it to everyone. I absolutely loved her writing and was actually sad when it ended. Those of you who loved Molly's A Homemade Life or Kim Sunee's Trail of Crumbs (another favorite!) should absolutely look out for it next time you're at the bookstore.

****
New to Always Order Dessert? Consider subscribing to my RSS feed, follow me on Twitter, or sign up to receive my once-a-week e-mail updates by filling in your address in the box on the right. And if you ever need any entertaining or cooking advice, please don't hesitate to e-mail me.

Tuna, Parsley, and Radish Salad
Serves 2-4 (inspired by a recipe in Real Simple, March 2010)

Four 5-ounce cans of tuna, drained and rinsed
12 small radishes, julienned (about 1 cup)
1 small red onion, diced (about a 1/2 cup)
1 bunch of parsley, minced entirely (including stems)
1 teaspoon dried oregano
zest and juice of 1 whole lemon
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
Sea Salt
Freshly Ground Black Pepper

1/4 cup mayonnaise, Toasted whole wheat or pumpernickel bread, for serving

In a large bowl, combine the drained tuna, julienned radishes, diced red onion, minced parsley, oregano, lemon zest, lemon juice, and olive oil.

Toss to combine. Season with sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper to taste.

Serve with toasted bread and mayonnaise on the side (mayonnaise can be spread on the bread or mixed into the salad by each individual if desired).

Can be refrigerated in an air-tight container for up to 24 hours.

On new dishes, spicy tea, and lazy cake

I'm a little bit in love with my new dishes. Whirly white and purposely unglazed on the outside, they're a dream to hold. I found the first plate on the clearance rack at Bed, Bath & Beyond for 3 dollars, and brought it home to use as a photo prop. For weeks I kept this one plate stacked on top of all my others, instinctively pulling it out whenever I was serving myself. The stacks and stacks of hand-painted brown plates I'd owned for ages went (mostly) undisturbed while I washed and rewashed my favorite plate.

And then on my birthday, I realized what I had to do. I turned my cherished plate over and I looked up the pattern (Mikasa "Swirl White"). The results popped up quickly and I was a little bit horrified to find that it was a much pricier set than I'd expected. After a few days of searching for the best deal, I fell upon a delicious sale that would cut the price of the plates down to about half. Still spendy, but I pounced and ordered myself a service for eight.


They arrived at my office a few days ago in eight matching navy blue boxes that Eugene helped me carry home Saturday morning. The afternoon was spent arranging the new plates and mugs and sweet little whirly bowls in my newly-lined red cabinets.

Because, why can't kitchen cabinets be pretty?

For years I was bored with the old bumpy white cabinets that had been painted and repainted in a dingy shade of blah. So I hunted around, and found some gorgeous faux-lizard skin paper in a brilliant glossy shade of red at only 5 dollars a sheet. I brought this home and cut it down to size, then affixed it to the backs of the cabinets using Elmer's spray adhesive and a credit card. Back at Bed Bath, I found a matching red grip liner paper to cover the bottoms of the cabinets and provide a protective soft cushion for my plates and glasses. A few more snips with my scissor and the cabinet was suddenly pretty as a schoolgirl in a frilly red dress.


My ultimate plan is to remove the cabinet doors so that the pretty red is permanently on display. Of course, open kitchen cabinets call for a bit of editing so I pulled out all my old dishes and mugs (I'm planning to either sell or donate to Housing Works), along with a few random plates and cups that I no longer want.

I bought two large woven totes in a lovely shade of espresso, and filled them with all the ramekins, jars, mini casserole dishes and small appliances that were cluttering up the cabinets. I placed one of these on each of the top two shelves, and then rearranged the remaining glasses and dishes from top to bottom in order of use (with the most-used plates and mugs at eye level, and the less used wine glasses, soup tureens, and canning jars up at step-stool height).


I recently had a bunch of prints made from some of my favorite food photographs (available for sale here, if you'd like to buy your own!) and decided to tuck a few of these in the cabinet behind the plates. I'd never thought to hang pictures inside my cabinets before, but once I did it, I was absolutely smitten and ran around the apartment trying to see where else I could hang a couple pictures.

(Eugene is going to be mightily surprised the next time he goes to grab a pair of a boxers...)


The final result is so pretty that Eugene keeps walking in on me leaning against the kitchen sink just staring up at the cabinet admiringly. When we get back from vacation next week, I'll pull out the drill and take the cabinet doors off, fill and sand the screw holes with wood filler, and paint over the whole thing. I also bought new floor tiles (black and white checked, of course) and our Super has agreed to lay them down for a very reasonable price. I can't wait for the finished results! (And don't worry because I will be sure to share!)

My love affair with these new mugs has left me looking for excuses to use them, and so I thought I'd share my new favorite excuse with you: a hot vanilla ginger infusion.


To make it, simply simmer about two inches of sliced fresh ginger, a half vanilla bean, and a few cardamom pods in 3 cups of water for a half hour. (You can add cinnamon sticks or orange peel or star anise to the ginger, if you prefer.) I then turn off the heat and let it cool to room temperature for about 15 minutes (you can let it go longer too; that's just the minimum so I can get a nice steep going). When I am ready to drink, I heat it up to a boil again quickly before straining and pouring into a mug. I sweeten it with a bit of sugar or honey or--if I'm feeling virtuous--Splenda, and then I add a splash of cream.

The end result is spicy and soothing; perfect if you have a cold (or are simply trying to warm up during one of these frigid afternoons.) I tend to stay away from caffeinated tea, but if you're a fan, I bet this would also be a lovely with a bag of English Breakfast added to the cup.


One tiny warning: this tea absolutely SCREAMS for a piece of cake.

I didn't have any on hand yesterday, and so despite the fact that we were heading out for Valentine's Day dinner in just two hours, I soon found myself whipping up a lazy-easy blueberry buttermilk cake (using one bowl, one measuring cup, and more handfuls than called for of winter-friendly frozen wild blueberries). I pulled the cake out of the oven and was finishing my last bite of my first piece (I didn't even let it cool before cutting it!), before I realized this was the official first cake to be served on the new plate.

Quite a nice start, I'd say.



****
New to Always Order Dessert? Consider subscribing to my RSS feed, follow me on Twitter, or sign up to receive my once-a-week e-mail updates by filling in your address in the box on the right. And if you ever need any entertaining or cooking advice, please don't hesitate to e-mail me.

5 Quick & Easy Valentine's Day Desserts

Up until Tuesday night, I thought I was going to be spending this Valentine's Day reading trashy novels and sipping fruity cocktails by the luxurious pool at the Intercontinental Hotel in San Juan, Puerto Rico. And then it started to snow. And it snowed and snowed, and then...our flight was canceled. After a few days of trying to reschedule flights, it became glaringly apparent that we would be spending this week here in New York. Temporarily ignoring the half-packed suitcases crowding our living room floor, Eugene and I instead scrambled to make last-minute Valentine's Day dinner reservations. I love to be in the kitchen, but I'm sure you'll understand that after having spent the past six months looking forward to a week of having other people pamper and wait on me, I sure as HECK wasn't about to make dinner.

The best places that I would have loved to celebrate in were all booked, naturally, and while we considered taking a chance on a few places I'd never heard of, I finally told Eugene that I'd had my fill of disappointment this week and really didn't want to chance it. So we went for the sure thing: we made reservations at Ilili where I celebrated my birthday just a couple weeks ago. That meal was spectacular and so we decided to trust them with our Valentine's Day (and with my tender and seriously bruised expectations).

If, like me, your plans fell through this year. Or if you've simply been too busy to give it much thought. Here are five great ideas for luscious desserts that are absolutely perfect for sharing (and which all come together rather quickly and unfussy-ly).

And if it's just going to be you on Sunday night, I can wholeheartedly assure you that these desserts are also perfect for not sharing. (Trust me; before Eugene came around, it was just me and #3 for many many years.)

Have a sweet one!


1. Coconut Flour Brownies
Coconut flour replaces the traditional kind in this recipe for a moist and cake-like brownie. The hints of coconut are present in every bite, and are a perfect complement to the rich dark cocoa. Serve these a little warm, and paired with a generous scoop of ice cream for a perfect sweet ending (or beginning!). Get the recipe.




2. Cocoa Espresso Truffles
These luxe and creamy truffles are a cinch to make and can be prepared well in advance. Pile a few of them into a pretty bowl and curl up on the couch to share them after dinner, or bring the bowl to bed with you. These bite-sized treats are spike with just a hint of espresso so their is no chance of anyone drifting off to sleep too soon. Get the recipe.



3. Flourless Chocolate Orange Almond Torte
This little cake is perfectly sized for sharing with that special someone. Scented with lusty hints of almond, olive oil, and fresh winter citrus, it's not your average flourless chocolate cake. And the bonus? If you're really in a hurry, you can combine all the ingredients and "bake" it in the microwave for a decadent dessert in just 5 minutes. You know, should you find yourself distracted with other things while getting the meal ready. Get the recipe.


4. Cherry Almond Frozen Yogurt
While this one does take a little bit more advance planning than the others (it needs time to freeze, after all), this cherry almond frozen yogurt can be made a few days in advance and scooped out whenever you're ready to serve. People tend to gravitate towards hot desserts during Valentine's, but sometimes I think it's nice to have a little something ready to cool things off. During the summer, I make this frozen yogurt with fresh sour cherries, but in the winter, frozen or jarred sour cherries will work just as nicely. Get the recipe.



5. Star Anise & Vanilla Bean Poached Pears
These plump little pears are absolutely gorgeous. Poached in a sultry combination of white wine, anise, and vanilla beans, they settle onto the plate in a soft and quivering little pool of flavor. I like to serve them with a bowl of dark chocolate ganache to drizzle with abandon. One pear is enough to share, or be greedy and demand your own. And make sure to bring an extra spoon for the chocolate. That in itself can be quite the adventure. Get the recipe.

Lebanese Milk Ice Cream & Dinner at Ilili

My birthday this year fell on a Thursday, which gave me the perfect excuse to arrange for bookend celebrations the weekend before and after. Last Sunday, wrapped in my vintage mink collar, I joined my parents and Eugene's for an early birthday dinner at Ilili, an opulent Lebanese restaurant in Murray Hill recommended to me by the fabulous Erika of The Pastry Chef at Home. Due to an Eastern European superstition observed strictly by Eugene's mother, we were careful to avoid any mention of the phrase "Happy Birthday," and instead focused on the parade of impeccable dishes that appeared on our table in a seemingly unending succession.

Since there were six of us, we each chose two mezze to share, plus an extra order of my personal favorite: fried kibbeh, those crisp little footballs of bulghur and seasoned lamb that I've craved like clockwork every few months since they were first introduced to me by an otherwise unmemorable date some six or seven years ago.

We passed the many dishes around the large round table with abandon, helping ourselves and then reaching out again for second and third bites between satisfied moans. The kibbeh were perfect, of course, but I also loved the spicy braised sausage, the crisp sheets of pastry topped with ground lamb and what I suspect were hints of cinnamon and allspice, and the fresh tabbouleh salad that I unashamedly helped myself to from Eugene's father's plate. There were marrow bones, too, and crisp nuggets of liver, but I couldn't really eat more than a tiny bite of each. Say what you will, but I freely admit that I don't have much of a tolerance for offal. My father is like me on this, but the rest of the party enjoyed them, while I happily focused on dipping freshly baked puffs of pita into a broth-rich bowl of Araq-steamed clams.

My main was a lamb burger so flavorful it nearly knocked my previous favorite burger--the pair of explosive pork and beef sliders at Fatty Crab--from its long-cemented top spot. Instead of wine, we ordered from the inventive cocktail menu. I fell in love with a sparkling passion fruit and cilantro-mint vodka concoction; Eugene stuck with St. Germaine, gin, and muddled-basil. The passion fruit cocktail, by the way, smelled just as good as it tasted. So good that I actually spent the first three minutes just sniffing it.


Dessert, which unbeknown to you has actually been my point all along (but really, isn't it usually?), was a bit of a complicated affair. See, the thing is that I arrived at the restaurant with a plan. I'd spent quite a bit of time researching the menu and had discovered that in the dessert section, they offered either a trio of sorbets or a trio of ice creams. The problem was that I wanted a combination of sorbet AND ice cream. Specifically, I wanted to try the much-lauded "milk" ice cream, a fragrant combination of rose water and orange blossom; the apricot ice cream, and the passion fruit sorbet (of course). I'd been planning to use my birthday as leverage to have the waiter agree to combining the two for me.

The only problem was that I forgot that it was Restaurant Week! And during Restaurant Week, they require that either everyone or no one order from the special menu. Personally, I hate Restaurant Week menus. I find them limiting and annoying, and I'd much rather spend a little more to get what I actually want than sticking to a reduced-price menu with restricted offerings. Ilili, to its credit, had a rather expansive Restaurant Week selection on offer (take note, OTHER places), but I still had to go off-menu to order the Kibbeh, and the dessert option unfortunately limited us to just ONE flavor of ice cream with no (gasp!) passion fruit sorbet option.

Fortunately, I worked it out. I explained to the waiter exactly what it was that I wanted--even revealing to him my aforementioned plan and the fact that it was my birthday, and he worked with me. He told me to order a regular dessert from the Restaurant Week menu, and told me that he would try to get the manager to buy me the special ice cream-sorbet concoction I wanted. In the end, it worked out even better than I imagined since I ended up with not just one dessert, but four. I got the "candy bar," a clever little brownie-caramel-cookie bar, my Lebanese apricot and milk ice creams, a bowl of fragrant honey-drenched dumplings, and my coveted passion fruit sorbet with a candle on top.

Now that, dear readers, is how we do birthdays here at Always Order Dessert.


Everything was incredible, but what captured my imagination most was the fragrant milk ice cream. Arabic ice cream (or bouzat haleeb) is a much different affair than the rich custardy treats popular here in the US. Simultaneously light and creamy, the ice cream has a bit of an elastic quality because it's thickened with sahlab, an orchid tuber extract typical throughout the Middle East. Flavored with rose and orange blossom, the ice cream is floral without tasting soapy, and after that tiny scoop on Sunday night, I was determined to recreate the experience at home.

True sahleb is nearly impossible to find in the US. It only seems available in a sugary powdered drink form, and I read somewhere that it's actually illegal to export from Lebanon. Fortunately, readily available cornstarch is a decent substitute and though you won't get quite the same elastic quality, the rich mouth-feel will be very close. Mastic is much easier to fine (online, at least) but it's an optional ingredient. What you do need is a bottle each of rose water and orange blossom (or orange flower) water.

These are easily obtained in the Middle Eastern/Asian aisles of most well-stocked supermarkets or from Middle Eastern specialty grocers. Latin grocers should also carry them since Latin grandmothers tend to love to splash that water around babies and doorways to ward off evil spirits and such (ask for "Agua de Azahar" for orange blossom and "Agua de Rosa" for rose water). The bottles are rarely more than 1-3 dollars each and they last a long time since you never want to use more than a couple tablespoons in a recipe unless you're hoping to end up with a bowl full of cologne.

We ate at the restaurant on Sunday. I made this ice cream on Monday. And, I confess, I've been eating a scoop of it every single night since. The ice cream freezes beautifully and scoops easily. While you're shopping for ingredients, grab a bag of pistachios too. A few crushed and sprinkled on top will complete the dish. Serve it alone or with chocolate cake or as the dessert course in a middle eastern themed dinner party.

Any and every way, it's a showstopper.

Ilili
www.ililinyc.com
236 Fifth Avenue
New York, NY 10001
P: 212-683-2929




****
New to Always Order Dessert? Consider subscribing to my RSS feed, follow me on Twitter, or sign up to receive my once-a-week e-mail updates by filling in your address in the box on the right. And if you ever need any entertaining or cooking advice, please don't hesitate to e-mail me.

Lebanese Milk Ice Cream
This floral ice cream is flavored with rose and orange blossom waters, and has a creamy mouth feel unlike anything I've ever tasted. Thickened with cornstarch instead of eggs, it's a practically "foolproof" ice cream that freezes and serves beautifully.
Makes about 1.5 pints.

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1 1/2 cups whole milk
3/4 cup sugar
1.5 tablespoons orange blossom water
1.5 tablespoons rose water

Pistachios for garnish (optional)

1. Whisk together the cornstarch and cold heavy cream in a bowl until it's smooth and well-combined with no lumps. Set aside.

2. Combined the milk and sugar in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally until the sugar is full dissolved (about 2 minutes). Remove from the heat and gently pour in the heavy cream and cornstarch mixture, stirring to combine. Return the pan to the stove over medium heat and let cook, stirring constantly in one direction until the mixture thickens. Continue to let cook for an additional few minutes, tasting it occasionally until you can no longer detect the taste of cornstarch. Once the cornstarch is completely cooked and the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, turn off the heat.

3. Add the tablespoon and a half of rose water and the tablespoon and a half of orange blossom water and stir in until well combined. Pour the mixture into a large bowl and press a piece of plastic wrap against the surface (this will help prevent a skin from forming on it while it cools). Chill in your refrigerator for 3-4 hours until completely cool (you can make this up to 24 hours in advance).

4. When ready to freeze, pour the mixture into your ice cream maker and process according to manufacturer's instructions. Once the ice cream has frozen to the consistency of soft-serve, pour into an air-tight and freezer proof container and freeze for at least 4 hours (again, overnight is also OK) before serving.

If desired, serve topped with a sprinkle of crushed pistachio. The ice cream will keep in a sealed container in your freezer for up to 2 weeks.