Angel Food Cake with Dark Chocolate Whipped Cream & Pomegranate Syrup

Right now my life consists of grad school interviews (!!!!) and angel food cake. Both of which I'm super excited about. It looks like we'll be going to Chicago, Boston, and San Francisco (twice) over the next three weeks. My bank account is empty, my carbon footprint is huge, and my heart is full. We'll see what happens. 

On another note, it's almost Valentine's Day, a silly holiday if I do say so myself. I've never been much of a fan, until I clicked through my favorite food blogs earlier this morning and got super inspired. I'm debating between a simple pasta dish with mascarpone, hazelnuts, spinach and homemade pasta, or going big on a french theme with french onion soup (did you know you can make it without beef broth?) salad, and creme brûlée. Classic. Either way there will be angel food cake. 

You see, angel food cake is my husband's favorite, ever. Whenever I ask him what he wants for his birthday/first night home after a long trip away/anniversary the answer is always angel food cake. Being the crazy that I am, I refuse to buy the stuff, which in honestly way easier and not far off from the homemade version. You see, angel food cake is finicky. We're talking borderline french macaron finicky. So finicky I almost resisted posting it. So finicky it needs a special pan (I tried it in a bundt once to save money and it was disastrous), perfectly room-temperature egg whites, and an upside down cooling strategy. So finicky that my attempts to simplify and adapt an already perfect recipe failed miserably. So this recipe is from Alton Brown. Follow the directions exactly and you will be fine. Don't adapt, don't skip anything, or you will waste a dozen eggs. Yeah, I know it's a lot, but you can and should totally make ice cream with the yolks. 

Angel food cake is most traditionally served with whipped cream and strawberries. But alas it's February and I wish I could scream at every supermarket in the country right now to "STOP TRYING TO MAKE OUT-OF-SEASON STRAWBERRIES DURING VALENTINE'S DAY A THING". There is nothing romantic about over-priced, imported, tasteless out of season fruit. Just wait until Spring people, it will be worth it. In effort to replace the strawberries, and in keeping the the whole red v-day theme, I went with a sweet pomegranate syrup instead. And I made a dark chocolate whipped cream which is literally icing on an already fantastic cake, because chocolate is already a good idea. 

Angel Food Cake with Dark Chocolate Whipped Cream & Pomegranate Syrup 
Cake recipe by Alton Brown 

For the cake: 
1 3/4 cup cane sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup cake flour
12 large egg whites, room temperature
1/3 cup warm water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1.5 teaspoons cream of tartar 

For the whipped cream: 
4 ounces dark chocolate, roughly chopped
2 cups heavy cream
pinch of salt 
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the Pomegranate syrup
1.5 cups pomegranate juice (about 3 pomegranates - see notes) + a handful of arils for serving
1/3 cup cane sugar    

Make the whipped cream. Place chocolate in a medium bowl. In a small saucepan heat heavy cream to a soft boil. Remove from heat and pour over chocolate. Let sit for a minute, then stir until completely incorporated. Cover and refrigerate for at least two hours. Once cool, use a hand mixer with a whisk attachment and whip until it becomes whipped cream.  

Make the cake. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Pulse sugar in a food processor or blender for about 2 minutes until finely ground. Reserve 1/2 of the sugar. Whisk the other 1/2 of the sugar with cake flour, and salt. Combine egg whites, water, vanilla, and cream of tarter in a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Whisk on medium high, slowly incorporating the remaining half of the sugar, until medium peaks form and the whisk forms grooves in the egg whites. Using a fine mesh strainer sprinkle about 1/5 of the flour mixture onto the egg whites. Being mindful you don't de-flat the egg whites, gently fold in the flour, sweeping the spatula from the bottom of the bowl to the top, turning the bowl as you go. Repeat four more times until all of the flour is incorporated. Try to do this step quickly. Pour batter into an angel food cake pan, take a sharp knife and pierce it into the batter, drawing a circle (martha stewart taught me this gets rid of air bubbles), then use a spatula to lightly even out the top. Cook for 45-50 minutes until the top is lightly brown and a skewer comes out clean. 

To cool, invert upside down over a bottle for at least an hour. I'm not kidding. See photo. Once cooled take a butter knife and glide it between the cake and the edges and center of the pan. I also had luck with a little shaking and smacking. Trust, it will come out. 

Make the pomegranate syrup. Combine juice and sugar in a small saucepan, bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Stir occasionally until juice has thickened and reduced by half, about 30-40 minutes. 

Serve the cake with whipped cream, pomegranate syrup and a small handful of pomegranate arils. Cake keeps for about 5 days covered at room temperature. 

Notes:

• Wanting to save time by not blending the sugar in a food processor, and thinking powdered sugar is basically the same thing? We think alike. And I tried it. It doesn't come out as well, I suspect because powdered sugar actually has some anti-clumping additive that must mess with the egg whites. 
• Feel bad about tossing all those egg yolks? Save them and make ice cream! 
• Here's a fantastic article with pictures for juicing your own pomegranates. All you need is a blender/food processor and a fine mesh strainer. If you don't have time, Pom pomegranate juice works, it's just more expensive. 

Farmstead Roasted Vegetable Risotto with Crispy Sweet Potato Chips & Pomegranate Rubies

Do you ever fear that one day you will run out of creativity? That it will all just dry up in a panic and you'll be left with zero ideas. Sometimes I fear this will happen to me. Then I remember that there are restaurants and inspiration is literally everywhere. I swear one trip to Europe is enough to keep me inspired for years. 

The best meal I've had in a long time was vegetable risotto at Farmstead in Napa. You know something is amazing when you can't stop eating the leftovers, cold, five days later. Yeah. So good. The restaurant is as farm to table as you can get. We literally witnessed the chef walk out back to the garden, pick some herbs and return to the kitchen. Everything about this place was lovely. Including, and especially their risotto. Re-creating is has been on my to-do list for a while. And with Valentine's Day less than a week away, I think the timing is just perfect. 

After a couple tries it tastes spot on to the risotto I had on that cool afternoon back in October. Warning, risotto can be a bit involved, but in my opinion, it's got a worse reputation that it deserves. And should really only take about 20-25 minutes max of near constant stirring. You see, there are certain kitchen tasks that require near constant attention, like smitten's ethereally smooth hummus that requires you peel each single chickpea and homemade pasta that most normal people would totally roll their eyes at and say "you've got to be kidding me, not worth my time". Well, risotto sort of falls into that category. And you know, I think I've discovered the secret to these types of somewhat monotonous tasks. The answer is turn on a good pandora station, pouring yourself a generous glass of wine (hey, you've already opened the bottle of the risotto anyway!) and allow yourself to settle in and let it be a sensual meditative experience. It also helps if you have a partner, one person to manage the ingredients as they get added to the pot, and one to man the stirring. The result is well worth the wait.

I recently followed a butternut squash farro risotto recipe which was delicious and lovely, but it barely made 3 servings, which was seriously disappointing for the amount of time and effort. I knew I didn't want that so this recipe makes a whopping 6-8 servings, though I'd say closer to 8,  and also happens to re-heat beautifully. 

It's packed with tons of vegetables, from butternut squash to broccoli to everyone's favorite kale. And despite being a traditionally heavy winter dish, this risotto is surprisingly light and fresh with lemon zest, fresh basil, and tangy pomegranate arils. It almost feels spring-like which is sometimes refreshing in the dead of winter. Something about homemade risotto is just so special, comforting, and perfect for treating yourself or sharing with someone you love.   

Farmstead Roasted Vegetable Risotto with Crispy Sweet Potato Chips & Pomegranate Rubies
Serves 6-8 

For the Risotto:
2 cups arborio rice 
1 cup dry white wine
6 shallots, sliced 
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided 
1 small butternut squash
grapeseed oil for drizzling 
6-7 cups low sodium vegetable stock 
6 ounces baby broccoli, chopped
2 medium zucchini, diced
7 ounces shitake mushrooms, sliced 
1 small bunch of kale, de-ribbed & chopped 
2 teaspoons of salt 
1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan 
zest of 1 lemon 
1 large pomegranate, de-seeded 
1 large bunch of basil, thinly sliced

For the sweet potato chips: 
1 large sweet potato 
grapeseed oil (or coconut or canola oil) 
1/8 teaspoon cumin 
1/8 teaspoon paprika 
1/4 teaspoon salt 

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Peel the butternut squash and scrap out the center (you can save the seeds for roasting if you'd like), and dice into small cubes. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, toss squash with oil, salt and pepper. Cook for 35 minutes.

Meanwhile, peel the sweet potato and using a thinnest setting of a mandoline, slice into thin strips. Toss with oil, cumin, paprika, and salt. Line a baking sheet with parchment and place sweet potato slivers in a single layer, being mindful they don't touch, and cook at 400 degrees for about 7 minutes, watching carefully as not to let them burn. Note: both of these can be done ahead of time. 

Make the risotto. Heat the vegetable stock in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Heat 3 tablespoons of butter in a dutch oven or large saucepan over medium heat. Sauté shallots in butter until soft, about 5 minutes. Add rice and stir. Add wine and continue stirring until the liquid reduces by half. Ladle about 1/2 cup of the warm stock into the rice, stirring until liquid is completely absorbed, then ladle another 1/2 cup of stock and continue to stir almost constantly. Repeat. Once about one quarter of the stock is incorporated, add in the broccoli, when about half the stock is incorporated add in the zucchini, when about three quarters of the stock is incorporated add the mushrooms. Just before risotto is finished stir in the kale. Continue with remaining stock until the risotto is creamy and al dente, I ended up using 6.5 cups total. Add roasted butternut squash, two tablespoons of butter, salt, lemon zest and parmesan and stir until warmed throughout. 

Remove from heat, and serve, topping with sweet potato chips, basil, and pomegranate arils. 

Notes: 

• I find the water method easiest and and the least messy method for removing pomegranate seeds. Here's a video.
• You can really do this with any vegetables you have on hand. Just add in the vegetables that take the longest to cook soonest. 

Big Sur Grilled Cheeses with Slow-Roasted Cherry Tomato Jam

Once upon a time, Nate and I went to Napa for our second anniversary. We took the extra long scenic route home along Pacific Coast Highway and finally got to see Big Sur, 90 miles of some of the most beautiful coastline in the world. It's so remote, with winding roads, zero cell phone reception, and sweeping cliffs above a turquoise ocean. It felt so remote and spectacular I remember wondering why the roads through were even built. On our way through we stopped at Big Sur Bakery, the cutest little cafe that felt more like snow white and the seven dwarves' cottage than a cafe. We ordered a strawberry strudel, which was absolute perfection and grilled cheeses with tomato jam. It tasted like an adult version of the childhood classic, with thick crunchy slices of bread, gooey mozzarella, and thick tomato jam that tasted less like jam and more like chunky tomato sauce. 

Back in the day I practically lived off grilled cheese. I don't know how, but for a span of about four years around college, I survived on a diet consisting mainly of bread and cheese. Not good. Now I eat them maybe once or twice a year, usually when I'm sick or having a really bad day. To me, grilled cheese is still the ultimate comfort food. I usually spice it up by adding whole grain dijon and a nice handful of baby spinach, maybe a thick slab of heirloom tomato. Totally adult, totally a justifiable dinner, am I right? So when I wasn't feeling good last week, and didn't feel like cooking but wanted something comforting and good I took a shot at re-creating the big sur grilled cheese. 

They start by slow roasting cherry tomatoes until they are sweet, caramelized, and literally bursting with flavor. Because they cook low and slow most of the their juices evaporate, so there's no need to drain them. Pulse them a bit in the food processor then add that chunky goodness to grilled cheeses with a bit of fresh basil, fresh cracked salt and pepper and of course, a few slices of creamy avocado. It's hardly a recipe, and dares to be adapted with maybe some goat cheese or spinach. The bread almost demands real butter which I unapologetically used. The result, according to my husband, tastes like "tomato soup grilled cheese" in one perfectly messy sandwich. Perfect for watching the big game we're skipping out on because the beloved 49ers didn't make it this year. Perfect for snowy weekends where you just don't feel like cooking. And perfectly acceptable for grown adults.  

Big Sur Grilled Cheeses with Slow-Roasted Cherry Tomato Jam
Makes two sandwiches 

For the tomato jam: 
20 oz cherry or grape tomatoes, halved 
2 tablespoons olive oil 
1 large garlic clove, minced 
1/2 teaspoon salt
fresh ground pepper 
1 teaspoon cane sugar 

For the sandwiches: 
4 slices of bread, I used multigrain sourdough 
unsalted butter 
4 oz mozzarella (one heaping cup), grated
tomato jam - recipe above 
small handful of fresh basil 
a pinch of salt + pepper 
1 large avocado (optional)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a large baking sheet with parchment, top with tomatoes and toss with olive oil, garlic, salt & pepper. Cook for 1 hour. Remove from oven, let cool slightly, then add to a food processor or blender (I used my mini food processor), top with sugar and pulse, until chunky. 

Heat a large skillet. Butter the bread, top with cheese, jam, basil, salt and pepper. Cook until brown and crispy flipping halfway through. Remove from skillet, open up the sandwich and slide in slices of avocado. Serve.

Notes:

You will have leftover jam, enough to make 3-4 sandwiches.  It keeps in an airtight container in the fridge for 7-10 days. 

I know what you're thinking, sugar? As much as I hate adding extra sugar, the tomatoes are just way too acidic without it. You could try a sugar substitute and I almost did but hesitated for fear of ruining tomatoes so perfect.