Persimmon Pudding

originally from Hazel Stitt

adapted by Sisi Damner

serves 12 easily

2 cups sugar

2 cups flour

2 cups mashed persimmons

2 cups raisins

2 cups chopped dates (Dole package is 8 ounces chopped)

2 cups chopped pecans (or walnuts, if preferred)

1 tablespoon baking soda

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 cup milk

3 tablespoons melted butter, cooled

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Grease and flour a 10-inch bundt pan (or a 9-inch cake pan, 3 inches high).

Mix together the sugar, flour, persimmons, raisins, dates, pecans (or walnuts), baking soda and baking powder. It will seem strange that there are no eggs in this recipe, but trust us. It works without them! Mix in the milk and melted butter that has cooled.

Bake it in your prepared cake pan for one hour. Cool and invert onto serving dish. Serve with hard sauce or lightly whipped cream.

This pudding is similar to the old-fashioned steamed persimmon puddings that my grandmother would always serve at Christmas. I think this one is lighter and tastier.

It can be frozen in the cake pan, tightly wrapped in foil.

Affogato (Ice Cream with Espresso)

by Mary Lonergan

serves 2 (can be doubled, tripled, ...)

2 scoops of your favorite vanilla ice cream

1 shot of decaf espresso

Place one scoop each of ice cream in 2 nice-looking dishes or cosmo glasses. Pour espresso over the ice cream. Serve. Repeat if you are still hungry.

We have convinced most of the restaurants in our neighborhood to make this for us as an alternative to the desserts on their menus.

Plum Sauce for Ice Cream

inspired by a dessert at Bistro Jeanty in Yountville, California

created by Maud Hallin

serves 12 as a sauce for ice cream

10 dried prunes, pits removed and cut into quarters

1 cup red wine

1 star anise

1 cinnamon stick

10 cloves

juice of 1/2 lemon or lime

2 tablespoons sugar (or to taste)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 to 2 tablespoons armagnac (California brandy is o.k.)

Marinate prunes in red wine to soften for 15 minutes or longer. Bundle anise, cinnamon and cloves in cheesecloth or a metal tea ball. Add to prunes and wine and cook slowly, covered, for about 30 minutes. Reduce liquid over high heat until thickened to a good sauce consistency. Add lemon, sugar and vanilla. Let cool and then remove spice bundle. Just before serving, heat armagnac in
microwave for 15 seconds, ignite and pour over sauce.

Serve with vanilla ice cream, sponge cake or whatever. Sauce keeps for a week in refrigerator. Can be made during September with old-fashioned Santa Rosa small dark plums (the French, classical type). Freezes easily.

Tarte Tatin

from Cuisine.tv

adapted by Judy O'Shea

serves 8

5 firm apples, peeled, halved and cored

12 tablespoons soft unsalted butter

1 vanilla pod

1 cup sugar

1 recipe of home-made pie pastry for IO-inch pie

The day before serving: In a 10 inch, well-buttered, deep-dish pie plate, either Pyrex or metal, preferably with straight sides, wedge the apple halves on end "glueing" them together with the softened butter. You can add or subtract an apple half to get it good and wedged; make sure you use ALL the butter. Cut the vanilla pod in two and scrape out the seeds, mix with the sugar and pour over the butter and apples. Put the pie plate on the lowest heat possible ON THE STOVE TOP. Leave it undisturbed for an hour or more, depending on the size and texture of the apples. Test with a fork to be sure they are tender and the butter and sugar melted and lightly caramelized. When the apples have cooled, refrigerate until the next day or until the caramel is firm.

The day of serving: Prepare the pastry, but don't assemble until just before serving. Using the dimensions of the pie plate, cut a circle of pastry and bake at 375 degrees until lightly browned.

Just before serving: Put the pie plate with the apples on the stove top at moderate heat for 5 to 10 minutes until the sugar is well caramelized. WATCH this closely, burning is easy! Place the tart pastry on top of the pie, the pie plate on a large dish towel, a serving dish on top and using the edges of the towel to hold the whole business together, invert the tart.

Serve with vanilla ice cream or Chantilly cream (1 cup of heavy cream, 2 teaspoons powdered sugar and 112 teaspoon vanilla whipped into peaks).

This is the famous French Tarte Tatin. It's very simple, can be done ahead and assembled at the last minute. Sounds complicated, but not at all. DON'T change this recipe. It sounds weird, but it works. Most Tarte Tatin recipes are tough since the sugar burns before it caramelizes. Because the apples are almost whole, the sugar melts slowly so this tart doesn't burn.

Egg and Cheese Breakfast Casserole

from Melissa Halsted

via Anne Halsted

serves 12

1/2 cup flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

10 tablespoons butter, divided

12 eggs

1 8-ounce can green chile peppers, chopped

1 pint cottage cheese

1 pound grated jack cheese

1 teaspoon salt (or to taste)

tomato salsa for garnish

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Grease a 9 by 12-inch pan with vegetable oil spray.

Mix flour and baking powder together. Melt 8 tablespoons of butter, beat eggs lightly and add flour and baking powder, then mix well. Add the other 2 tablespoons of butter, chile peppers, cottage cheese and jack cheese. Mix until just blended and add salt.

Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes, then at 350 degrees for 35 to 40 minutes.

Serve garnished with tomato salsa.

So easy and so good! Everybody seems to like this simple dish!

You can do half this recipe in a 9-inch pie pan. Also, for more bite you can use canned jalapeno peppers or 8 medium roasted poblano chiles.

Goat Cheese Soufflé with Red Peppers and Chanterelles

from The Best of Fine Cooking Fresh

via Mary Lonergan

serves 6

1 1/4 cups heavy cream

1 small sprig fresh rosemary and more chopped rosemary for garnish

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

2 medium red bell peppers, cored, seeded and finely chopped

1 medium shallot, finely chopped

1 cup finely chopped fresh chanterelle mushrooms (about 2 ounces)

kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, and more for the souffle dish

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

4 large egg yolks

1 cup (about 4 ounces) crumbled goat cheese

6 large egg whites

Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Butter a 1 1/2 or 2-quart soufflé dish.

In a small saucepan, heat the cream with the rosemary sprig over medium heat just until it boils. Remove from the heat and let steep for ten minutes. Discard the rosemary sprig.

Heat the olive oil in a 10 to 12-inch skillet over medium heat. Add the red peppers and shallot. Sauté, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables begin to soften, about six minutes. Add the mushrooms and continue to saute, stirring frequently, until everything is tender, 2 to 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper; remove from the heat. Add the cooked vegetables to the soufflé dish,
covering the bottom.

Melt 3 tablespoons of butter in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat. When foamy, stir in the flour and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, for 2 to 3 minutes. Whisk in the heated cream. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt (or to taste) and several grinds of pepper. Increase the heat to medium and whisk until the mixture bubbles and thickens. Remove from the heat. Whisk in the egg yolks one at a time until well blended. Stir in the cheese (the mixture needn't be completely smooth).

With a mixer, beat the egg whites in a large bowl with a pinch of salt on high speed until medium-stiff peaks form. Stir a small amount of the beaten egg whites into the cheese mixture to lighten it and then gently fold the cheese mixture into the remaining egg whites with a rubber spatula (it's fine to leave a few clumps of egg white). Pour the mixture over the vegetables in the souffle
dish.

Lower the oven temperature to 375 degrees. Put the soufflé dish on a rimmed baking sheet and bake until golden and just slightly wobbly in the center, 30 to 35 minutes. Sprinkle the souffle with a bit of chopped rosemary and serve immediately.

Delicious served with a green salad for brunch or lunch. When serving, make sure you dig into the vegetables at the bottom of the dish.

Shiitake, Fontina, and Prosciutto Fritatta

originally from Bon Appétit

adapted by Sisi Damner

serves 8

4 tablespoons butter, divided

1 cup thinly sliced shallots (about 4 large)

1 3-ounce package thinly sliced prosciutto, slivered (about 3/4 cup)

8 ounces shiitake mushrooms, thinly sliced

12 large eggs (or the equivalent of Egg Beaters)

2 cups packed, coarsely grated Fontina cheese, divided

1/4 cup chopped Italian parsley

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Melt 3 tablespoons of butter in a 12-inch nonstick ovenproof skillet over medium heat. Add the shallots and saute them for about 2 minutes. Add the prosciutto and saute until almost crisp, about 3 more minutes. Add the mushrooms and saute them until they are brown and tender, about 6 minutes. Cool the mushroom mixture in the skillet for 10 minutes.

In a large bowl, whisk the eggs and add 1 cup grated cheese, parsley, salt and pepper. Stir in the mushroom mixture. Melt the remaining 1 tablespoon butter in the same skillet over medium heat. Pour the egg mixture into the skillet and cook without stirring until the bottom and sides are set, about 10 minutes. The top will be undercooked.

Bake the frittata in the oven until the top is set, about 20 minutes.

Preheat the broiler and sprinkle the remaining cheese on top of the frittata. Broil until the cheese is bubbly, about 2 minutes.

This can be made ahead and served at room temperature or served directly from the oven.

This frittata is delicious served as a side dish, a brunch dish with sausages on the side or a luncheon dish with a lovely green salad.