April Fools or a Very Convenient Truth?

Has Al Gore launched a line of organic, vegan frozen foods? Or is this an April Fools day trick? You be the judge.

La Fonda del Josh

I am yet to go to the new, revised La Fonda del Sol, but after watching Josh DeChillis make octopus with almonds, his new resto has bumped to Top 3 on my list.

Passover Coke

Ever wonder about Kosher for Passover Coca Cola? All the answers...

Bacon TakeDown

Sunday eve was the Bacon TakeDown. Cathy Erway has the full report.  If this photo intrigues, you may want to read more.

Génoise Cake

This morning, Ruth Reichl twittered about a kitchen goddess.  I wasn't disappointed when I followed her link.  Ribboning and specifics of folding are demystified! Trifles and Petit-Fours: here I come!

Creamy Caramel Pudding

New to The Dish’s Dish, I was very excited to receive my first cooking assignment!  The week before, Jill showed me a scrumptious looking recipe in Food and Wine Magazine for a low-cal Creamy Caramel Pudding—one of their “Best Healthy Recipes of 2009”.  Unfortunately, after two failed attempts by Jill to make the pudding (one careful attempt, and one ambitious attempt at making pudding while simultaneously checking email and doing research) she was ready to pass the job to me.

Fairly confident in my pudding skills, I thought I could get this recipe right.  I measured precisely, kept a close eye on the clock, and patiently strained all four cups of pudding through Jill’s child-sized sieve.  As vigilant as I tried to be, the pudding turned out to be a disaster.  While a nice caramel color developed, it tasted like burnt sugar.  The texture was grainy at best, even after my diligent sieve-ing, and the pudding completely separated while chilling in the fridge.  Needless to say, it was not my best performance.

Here is a color photograph, multi-media journey through my battle with, and ultimate defeat to, Creamy Caramel Pudding….

Everything started off great.  My water and sugar was bubbling away on the stove, and I was confident it would turn to caramel.


As soon as the mixture began to "deepen in color", I removed the pot from the stove in order to incorporate the milk. I was careful not to overcook the caramel because Jill reported a burnt flavor in her last batch.



This is where it began to fall apart.  As the milk and caramel cooked together, the texture became grainy.  With the addition of the cornstarch, the pudding did thicken, but the texture was off, and a taste test revealed the same burnt flavor.



After running it through the sieve, the final product looked almost like the magazine photograph, just, grainier. And worse, I suppose is the correct word.



I emailed Melissa Rubel, Food and Wine Magazine Recipe Developer and creator of this recipe, asking for help.  She kindly replied, not exactly sure what the problem was, but walking me through the critical parts of the recipe.  So I pose the question, what went wrong?? Was the milk too cold? Sugar cooked too fast?? Too much cornstarch??  These were all suggestions made by Culinistas, restaurant owners, and avid home cooks.

I'm eager to hear your responses, in hopes of getting this pudding right!

Butterlane Redux

A friend with a penchant for cupcakes was in town several days ago.  Having had Butterlane a few weeks earlier, I was eager to show off my savvy of the best cupcakes currently available in NYC.  Since I'd had the danties delivered to me the first time around, it was my first visit to the charming storefront in the East Village.  Butterlane makes cupcakes; no distractions. They allow for frosting tastes up at the desk and will happily explain the difference between French buttercream and American.  There are small design touches that make the mini-store very inviting: a wall of flowered paper and the white wood.  There's a bench outside if you'd like to linger.

But the cupcakes are so good that it wouldn't matter if they were sold from a fifth floor walk up.  Though we tried nearly every frosting - and loved Key lime and American chocolate - we opted for  blueberry with chocolate and strawberry with vanilla.

Sexy Burgers: Paris vs Padma

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GoodWorld Goodbye for Good

Some pics from our farewell dinner last night at Good World. My brother and Taylor were in tow to help snap pics as well as partake in burger heaven.

The menu - what was left of it.

Fellow Mourners

The Potato Pancake

Fries

The Main Event. My Burger.

A Cross Section.

My Brother's Last Bite.

So long, farewell; Auf Wiedersehen, goodnight
I hate to go and leave this pretty sight

So long, farewell
Auf Wiedersehen, adieu
Adieu, adieu
To you and you and you

Goodbye GoodWorld

One of the best burgers in NYC will be no longer in a matter of days.  Good World, the Scandinavian spot at the Southern end of Orchard Street will say goodbye over the weekend to make way for condos. My favorites were always the burger, the peel and eat shrimp and, of course, the potato pancake.

Exclusive-ive-ive-ive... Lula's Sweet Apothecary

I sat down with Bythe Boyd and her partner Derrick over the weekend to discuss their vegan dessert shop in the East Village.  "As a vegan, you always want what everyone else has," says Mrs. Boyd, which was part of her reason for opening Lula's Sweet Apothecary in autumn of 2008.  She says that as a vegan, she constantly finds herself saying, "I wish they'd veganize that."  Such was the case with the concept of an old-fashioned fountain shop.  She was obsessed with the idea of it and when no one else had done it, she decided to take matters into her own hands.  Though neither she nor her partner have any professional background in culinary techinique, they are both vegan (and thus always testing and  tweaking vegan recipes) and had previously owned a vegan food truck in Philidelphia that specialized in veganized burgers and fries.  The truck was called Viva Las Vegan and though it was successful, both were hankering to return to New York.  For months, Derrick traveled to Manhattan from Philly each day looking at spaces until he finally found the sweet sliver of a spot on East 6th Street, just one block from Tompkins Square Park.



The shop is dotted with nostalgic touches like penny candy jars (above), metal shovel spoons and working seltzer bottles from New York's own Seltzer Man.  What you won't find in the shop is trans fats, artificial flavors or coloring or high fructose corn syrup.  There are no stabilizers and each flavor is made in small batches every morning.  The ice 'creams', made with soy milk, coconut milk and nut milk (often cashew) as their bases and sweetened with organic cane juice and maple syrup, are miraculously delicious.  The nut milks are made from scratch.  I tried the strawberry, ginger snap, cake batter, and cinnamon pecan - all of which I adored.  Even a friend visiting from the land of cheese, dairy, and fat (ie France) loved the Lula 'scream! My favorite was Derrick's Irish Sundae: Irish Stout ice cream (made with Brooklyn Brewery beer) topped with hot fudge, crushed peanuts, and a little dollop of soy whipped cream.

What makes Lula's so special is that the owners are truly behind the vegan cause.  They opened Lula's with "the health and well-being of animals, humans and the environment in mind."  When I asked them their opinion of Stogo - another recently opened vegan dessert shop - Blythe said that she was just happy for vegans to have more options.

The S&P

... the S&P Chocolate at Mast Brothers, that is. Two heavily bearded Brooklyn brothers? Coolhunting reporting on the imported Italian wrapping? Things could go very wrong.  And, while I found the straight chocolate bars to be fairly flat in flavor, the Salt & Pepper bar is something to try. It's a very unique bar in a sea of chocolate bars flooding the market these days.  I highly recommend it as a treat best enjoyed alongside Parmesan crisps and perhaps a little quince.

2 Degrees of Kevin Bacon

Did you know that if you eat at Stogo, you'll be only 2 degrees from Kevin Bacon? Check it out.... Kevin Bacon (Kyra Sedgwick's hubby) --> Rob Sedgwick (actor, brother of Kyra & founder of Stogo) --> YOU. It's even rumored that Bacon comes by for the mint chip whenever he's in the East Village.

Irving Mill Sunday Supper

I enjoyed a Sunday Supper at Irving Mill over the weekend.  With family in tow, we opted for the communal Supper.  It's a $60 option that serves 2-3 people.  It comes with soup (Rabbit Consommé) and salad (Spinach + Chicory) served family-style and followed with a choice of chicken, fish or steak.  Everyone had to agree on one of these options since it comes out as one big platter for sharing.  This is not the flexible DISH structure ;-)  I forgot to take photos of the first dishes but both were very tasty.  The soup was a little salty and the salad very rustic.  But hey, it was family meal.  We added a Roasted Eggplant bruschetta to the first course which was a delicious square of pizza bianco slathered in ricotta before being topped by the eggplant ($6).  We chose the Loup de Mer (aka seabass) as our main.  It came with red quinoa, walnuts, a hint of lime and a smear of edamame purée. 

We also ordered the Irving Mill Burger (which came with cheese).  It was also quite tasty though not anything too special.  I loved the cupcakes we got for our Supper dessert - chocolate with orange buttercream.  My brother's girlfriend and I gobbled ours up and then duked it out for who would get to eat the one in front of the man in the middle. 

I highly reccomend doing this Supper option, available only on Sundays.  It's a wonderful familial experience (even without your blood relatives) fused with the luxury of eating out.

Asian Sammies

I was after a good Asian sandwich over the weekend. I first went to Num Pang. Packed. Later I made it to An Choi.  The kitchen was closed but I managed to snag a portabello bahn mi as well as one with chicken.  They came with a few shrimp chips on top in the bag - a nice touch.[gallery link="file" columns="2"]

At $7.50 a piece, they made the perfect bite before a lazy Sunday afternoon Sunshine Theater screening.  I only wish there were a few more chips and a blazing Vietnamese sun to accompany every mouthful.

A Razor, Un Cuchillo Brillante

This weekend, A Razor, A Shiny Knife is hosting a Mexican fiesta.

Here are the details; please rsvp with them if you'd like to join in:

6p lessons & 7p dinner on Friday, Saturday, Sunday, March 20th-22nd
Price: $100 a person for a variety of cooking lessons and demonstrations which prepare a 5 course meal paired with drinks.

Lessons:
Knife sharpening and basic skills (feel free to bring your own knives)
Activa YG and bonding dairy proteins
The many uses of a pressure cooker
Gellan Spherification

Menu:
Hamachi Crudo with Crème Fraîche Sherbet, Chorizo Powder, Aji Amarillo and Passion Fruit Caviar
Huitlacoche and Black Truffle Queso Fundito
Taco Flight
- Pork Belly
- Lamb Belly
- Tuna Belly
Roasted Pork Loin with Serrano and Lime Glaze, Plantain and Queso Blanco Stuffing and Jicama Salad
Tequila and Agave Glazed Whole Foie Gras with candied Poblano and Cashews
Chocolate Nib Tea
Mole Cake with Flan and Hot Almond Whipped Cream

To read more about the founder of A Razor, check this out.

Artichoke

I tried Artichoke last night - the slice shop on 14th that's been getting rave reviews for the past half a year. I liked the pizza okay... but it's not New York pizza.  The slice is thick (but not Sicilian... unless of course you ordered Sicilian) and the topping did a good job of seeping into the bread.  I ordered the artichoke slice - it was a white slice.  The topping was rave-able but the crust is nothin' compared to the Lahey pizza I had at Co. on Sunday.  That's true mastery of pie.  This is good - but good the way I did it... late night on a weekday before heading home to conk out.... No line whatsoever...



I'm not writing off Artichoke quite yet.  Maybe the slice I got was a little old? ...And I am interested in trying the crab slice.  But you won't see me waiting more than five minutes in any line.

Itzy Bitzy Macarons at Long Last!

I've been pining away for Itzy Bitzy macarons for a few months.  Today, I finally got to taste test a couple. I got a hold of the Black+White and the Chestnut Green Tea (a flavor I've actually attempted to make before).

In both versions, the cookie and cream are the closest to true French macarons I've had.  Biting into an Itzy Bitzy mac, the cookie breaks, falling into the cream; but instead of cutting through it, the two elements fuse together making each bite complete. Each component is less vibrant than, say macarons from Madeleine, but they together make a more French feeling bite.  It's almost a more effortless perfection.  Black + White is a subtle nod to Oreo in taste. I liked this one very much but felt the true genius (and Pierre Hermé osmosis) came in the Chestnut Green Tea variety.  It's pretty dead-on Hermé.  They are available at Tafu and at the Brooklyn Flea for now, but flavors change monthly so unless you live nearby one of the venues, join the rest of us begging Itzy Bitzy to get her own storefront!

Breakfast Pie @ Co.

Post Rangers win on Sunday, my buddy and I stumbled over to Co. for a celebratory brunch. I've already talked about Co. - and about how tasty it was - but yesterday's pie choice was hands down the best.  And, with it being 3:45pm on a Sunday and all... it was actually mellow in the dining room.  So we could enjoy our food and enjoy each other company simultaneously!

The Special Pie: Bechamel, Mozzarella, Shaved Asparagus, Black Pepper, and Two Eggs Over Easy.

Scuderia

Across the way from Da Silvano on Sixth Ave, Mr. Silvano Marchetto's daughter has recently opened Scuderia.  It's decidely for a younger generation, with cartoon-y accents in the overall breezy space.  Menu items are less expensive than across the street and servers and hosts smile and treat you with courtesy and tact.  There's nothing stuffy about Scuderia and it's easy to find yourself having a really fun time.

I only got iPhone pics; but this is the dining room.

The food turned out to be pretty tasty.  The best of our selection was the pizza - we chose the pesto and pinenut variation.  The brioche fish sammy was good but nothing spectacular and we felt the kitchen had really skimped on the grilled vegetables.  The thing is, the service was so pleasant and the space so nice (save the din, which was inescapable) that I would gladly go back and explore the menu a little more.

One interesting thing I noticed as we were passing our menus back to the waitress were the Scarpe di Scuderia: The Shoes of Scuderia.  Leyla Marchetto has collaborated with artist Joshua Peters to make 12-per-season, hand-painted sneaks.  Check out the ones he did for her daddy:

Cool? Yes.  Worth $895? I don't know... does it get you free pizza at Scuderia for life?

One last pic to get you really excited to go to Scuderia... The Dish tagged the bathroom! (In chalk)

Exclusive-ive-ive-ive... Stogo

Can vegan ice cream really be good?  It seems like an oxymoron.  But according to Rob Sedgwick (above), it is! That is, if he's the one making it, along with his partner, Steven Hirschhorn, and Malcolm Stogo, 'scream consultant and founder of the Ice Cream University.   I didn't love everything, but I would say the majority of flavors are very tasty.  If you know how to order here, Stogo is not only a true blessing to those uninterested in dairy but it's gathered a following of lactose-loving fans as well.  Maybe that's because Sedgwick himself isn't vegan - he just likes a quality product.

Some aspects of the business are pure whimsy:  brother of Kyra named the parlor after his recipe developer and put a line over the first O in Stogo just because.  However, shenanigans aside (they also opened up shop in the middle of winter -huh?!), most of the flavors are pretty great.  Goji Berry and Mixed Berry were stand-outs to me as were the flavors made decadently with coconut milk.  I especially like Coconut Chocolate.   Strawberry and Piña Colada were very flavorful, too.  Not only is the frozen dessert dairy-free, but also, it's made with only unrefined sugars such as agave and brown rice syrup.  Some had slightly off consistencies... the Chocolate Chip Cookie and Mango Berry.  But word on the street is that by summer there'll be soft serve, which even the connoisseurs of this niche are clamoring for!

159 Second Ave

212.677.2301

The BLT Pasta Salad

They are tart, juicy fruit with a savory edge. I don't know how I could've hated tomatoes when I was younger. I'd only eat them in pasta sauce or a BLT sandwich.

Here is a delightful recipe incorporating both ideas. The adult version to old favorites.

(Exact measurements not necessary. Can be served warm.)

Ingredients:
1 Box Spiral pasta, cooked al dente
1 pt Cherry tomatoes, halved, raw
1 pt Cherry tomatoes, halved, roasted in oven with a few spoons olive oil and sea salt
10 slices Center cut thick sliced bacon, cooked flat on a cookie sheet till crisp, then cut into 1" pieces
Baby basil or simply the smaller basil leaves, keep the leaves whole
Arugula sprouts (use a lot, they taste lighter than I originally thought and so good for you)
Pecorino romano, shredded
Balsamic dressing:
Balsamic vinegar
dijon
Fruity extra virgin olive oil
Tellicherry Black pepper, coarse grind
Sea salt (I like himalayan pink for this recipe)

Toss ingredients together. Season to taste with salt an pepper. Drizzle with dressing. Serves 8.

Dumpling House

A friend of mine recently moved to the Lower East Side and had been raving about Vanessa's Dumpling House.  He told me the location and I couldn't believe that it was unfamiliar to me.  I'd lived in the Lower East Side from 2003-2005 and had oft frequented a dumpling house on the same block as the haunt he was mentioning.  In fact, I'd written up my favorite shack for Time Out.  When he and I finally made it to his dumpling mecca, I was flabbergasted - it was in the same spot as mine.  My mind instantly jumped to a take over; had mine gone out of business due to health code violations (it was a very tiny hole in the wall) and this shiny, expanded version had come to take it's place?  As I walked through the doors though - and into the throngs of hungry-hungry-hipsters - I saw the trusted Chinese dumpling magicians behind the long counter to whom I'd grown accustomed at my dumpling house.  Indeed, Vanessa's was my Dumpling House.  It's an expanded rendition.  I guess a lot can change in 4 years.  Word can spread and people can capitalize on a formula that works.  When I was a regular at DH, there was a mixed clientele.  If I went early in the morning or during the weekday, I'd be surrounded by Chinese.  I would always get cut in line because I wasn't speaking Chinese.  If I went at night, on the weekend, I'd be in the company of a few hipsters living in the area.  These days, it is mobbed by every kind of LES hipster - starving artists and NYU kids alike.  Luckily, though the food has gone up in price quite a bit percentage-wise (50¢ sesame pancake up to 75¢), each dish is just as good.

I am partial to the vegetable dumplings in soup and the chive and egg pancake, which is a Chinese breakfast burrito of sorts.  It's only good fresh and on this last visit, it had clearly been made a few hours earlier.  Heating it in the oven if this happens to you will do the trick.  The seasame pancake (the giant circle of fried dough cut into wedges) is tasty as ever and they've added a Peking duck variation, which is quite delicious for the pennies you pay.

All in all, even though my Dumpling House is history, I am glad that Vanessa's has risen from it's grave.  VDH offers the same quality and authentic flavor for a similar cheap as it's previous iteration.  It's probably more sanitary now and they certainly get you in and out more quickly.  Sometimes change isn't a bad thing.

Little Giant Brunch

Little Giant recently announced that they'd be opening early for Brunch.  That means that the feeding frenzy begins now at 10:30am.  Get there early because lines get long fast.  And with food this mouth-watering, it's not difficult to see why.

Fisherman's Breakfast: poached eggs, crispy cod cakes, spicy buttermilk sauce, roasted potatoes

Pig in a Poke: Grits topped with poached eggs and andouille sausage

Biscuit and Gravy: the famous LG biscuit, poached eggs, pork sausage patty made in house and garlic-herb gravy

There's also tons more to fill up on: French Toast that comes with banana gelato and toffee sauce, Truffle Grilled Cheese, and the Trucker's Breakfast (a slew of savories to test your date's manliness) are all great ways to start a Sunday (or close out a Saturday night hangover).

Spicy Mina

A few weekends ago, I tagged along on my friend David's chaat tour.  David does excellent food tours all over the five boroughs each month.  I met the crew (upwards of about 30 enthusiastic people) out at Spicy Mina in Queens.  That's right: 30 people - most who reside in Manhattan  - had trekked out to Queens on a frosty, blustery Saturday because David said so.  Promised at Spicy Mina was authentic Indian cuisine - chaats and tandoris and naan galore.

Pakora - a must try appetizer

Samosa Chaat

Okra!

Chickpeas!

Dal!

Cauliflower!

And my favorite: Fried Dal!

Have Mina cook whatever she wants for you - just tell her you trust her.  Your food might take a while, but that's because she's cooking everything from scratch.  So our food wasn't limited to chaat at this stop on David's tour - but no one said a word.

Spicy Mina

64-23 Broadway; Woodside Queens

718.205.2340

Scallop Sliders

This past weekend I went to Snacky's (Bedford and Grand in Williamsburg, Brooklyn), it's become my favorite weekly tradition mostly because of the Octopus Salad and the "Popsies." The popsies are divine little sliders on a potato roll with a spicy mayo, they are always piping hot and delicious. I love a good slider, always have, but I started to think about what a seafood compartive to the meat slider would be. You know to change it up a bit. What I came up with is something that is well...quite something. Take that meat!



Scallop Sliders with Apple Brandy Sauce

5 Scallops

10 shitake mushroom caps

20 baby leaves of spinach

1/4 cup apple juice

1 shallot (finely diced)

1/4 brandy

3 tbsp. cream

5 tbsp. olive oil

Clean Mushrooms and Spinach set aside. Finely dice the shallots set aside. Prep Scallops and season with salt and pepper. Heat pan with 3 tbsp. olive oil. Sear Scallops for 3-4 minutes per side depending on size. Set aside. In the same pan saute mushroom caps with remaining olive oil till tender, reserve. Saute shallot in pan and deglaze with brandy. Reduce for 1 minute then add apple juice. Reduce for 1 minute and add cream. Season with salt/pepper. Add spinach till wilted. Remove spinach and reserve sauce. Split each scallop in two. Layer with spinach and mushroom cap and place a toothpick in for holding. Serve warm with the reserved brandy sauce.

Exclusive-ive-ive-ive... The Richardson Changes Up the Menu

The Richardson - a great cocktail lounge in North Williamsburg - is offering up some tasty additions to the menu come next week. Check out the items below... and then go taste them! They've got a pretty stellar cocktail program (with talent and hunkiness behind the bar to boot) as well as beer and whiskey line-up that will go great with the new nibbles.

Pretzel Bowl - Martin's pretzels.  classic PA dutch style.  5 pretzels & a side of mustard.
Pickle Bowl - McClure's Pickles, classic.
Cannellini Bean Toast - a white bean salad on crispy toasts.
Westfield Capri Toast - "dope ass goat cheese from MASS".
Gallego Toast -  a soft, Spanish cow's milk cheese.
Tuna Salsa Cruda Toast - a salad of high-quality, Italian tuna, artichoke, black olive & parsley.
Beer Drinker's Plate - 1oz Cabbot Clothbound Cheddar, 3 Martin's Pretzels, a side of mustard & 1 McClure's Pickle bowl

Butterlane Cupcakes

I stopped getting excited about cupcakes after living across the street from Magnolia Bakery when Sex and the City was at it's peak. I relished the moment when, walking passed the bakery one day, a man screamed out the window of his cab to the throngs of people milling around the entrance, "it's just a f$%&@ing cupcake!" But after some special friends dropped off Butterlane Cupcakes a few days back, I have been secretly enjoying the handheld sweet treat once again.  They brought me vanilla, chocolate chocolate, banana cream cheese, strawberry, blueberry, and peanut butter.  After getting through a few bites of each of them (except the peanut butter, which I couldn't touch based on an experience in Madagascar that has left me with a severe peanut aversion), I was hooked.  What makes these special is the frosting.  Blueberry! Strawberry! Instead of the typical pastel dyed buttercream, these pros actual blend real fruit into their icing, making for a delicious (and nutritious?) topper.  Garnished with a few bites of the actual fruit, biting into one gives a real blast of flavor.  The banana cream cheese was also superb - nothing ground breaking, but instead, really perfecting a classic.  The same goes for the chocolate and vanilla.  The chocolate icing literally tastes like mousse and in the vanilla icing, flecks of vanilla bean are visible and frequent!  This is not just a f@#*%ing cupcake!

...tell me the name of your sweet heart

An intense phone battle was in action between Culinistas. I had to get a sugary treat to fuel my fire. I walked into a certain donut hot spot, covered my cellphone mic and whispered a desperate plea to the teller, "straaaawberry froooosted".

Laughing burst in front of me. I was busted and joined in.

As a chef well-known for stuffing veggies down the throat of others, it was a sugar-vore's dilemma for me to admit that I frequented the donut chain. I got my treat but had to quell the insisting comments of the Culinista that the laughing was at her. I immediately made my case. I admitted what I was doing but that i had gotten the donut only because it was late and there was nothing else around. Right?

More laughing.

Apparently, my feeble and unnecessary efforts to deny that I regularly eat sweets was triple funnier than the supposed oxymoron of it that I built in my head. How else would Culinistas stay so sweet? *wink* (By the way, she prefers the Boston Creme.)

I guess I'm over it now.

And while I've never made a strawberry frosted donut, I have made another strawberry crowned goodie. I prefer giving this recipe because it has real fruit and doesn't condone the fast food sugar high. Make it with local strawberries when they hit the stands later this year. Use organic wherever possible. It will make me feel better.

Strawberry shortcake
(Adapted from Bon Apppetit!)
For biscuits
1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
5 tablespoons turbinado sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons chilled whipping cream
1 tablespoon grated orange peel

For berries and cream
3 1-pint baskets local strawberries, hulled, sliced (or diced)
1/2 cup plus 3 tablespoons turbinado sugar
2 tablespoons thinly sliced fresh mint
1/2 teaspoon grated orange peel
1 cup chilled whipping cream
1 teaspoon real vanilla extract

Make biscuits:
Preheat oven to 375°F. Line cookie sheet with parchment paper. Blend flour, 4 tablespoons sugar, baking powder, and salt. Cut in butter using 2 knives or food processor until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add 1 cup cream and orange peel. Mix just until moist clumps form. Gather dough into ball; gently knead 5 turns. Roll out dough on floured surface to 3/4-inch-thick round. Using 3-inch-diameter cutter, cut out 3 rounds. Gather dough and reroll as needed to make 3 more 3-inch rounds. Arrange rounds on prepared sheet. Brush with 2 tablespoons cream; sprinkle with 1 tablespoon sugar.

Bake biscuits until pale golden and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Cool 15 minutes. (Can be made 2 hours ahead.)

Make berries and cream:
Combine berries, 1/2 cup sugar, mint, and orange peel in medium bowl; stir to blend. Let stand at least 30 minutes and up to 2 hours, stirring occasionally.

Combine cream, vanilla, and remaining 3 tablespoons sugar in large bowl. Whisk until soft peaks form.

Cut biscuits horizontally in half. Place 1 biscuit bottom in each of 6 bowls. Top each with berries, then sweetened whipped cream and biscuit top.

Relish!

My Own Granola

My mother is skiing in Telluride for three weeks and we ran out of granola.  We couldn't wait for her to get home and make and send more so I had to figure out how to make it all by myself.  I started off with this recipe.  I didn't use the seeds; instead, I subbed in chopped walnuts.  I used un-crystallized ginger instead of crystallized.  I used half raisins and half apricots instead of all apricots.  I added cinnamon.  It turned out great!!