Here is my final recipe suggestion for all you love birds out there.  This recipe is a big undertaking, however, so if you’ve waited this long to make plans, you might have waited too long to mentally prepare for the challenge that is the Big Night Timpano!  If you’re still reading, however, or if your boo bought one of those scalped reservations on the web…I bid you well and recommend you don one of those new skirts with the elastic waistbands that seem to have come back into style at JUST the right time. 

 

I first discovered this recipe in a dark movie theatre at the Aspen Film Festival.  In Stanley Tucci’s 1996 movie Big Night, the chef Primo slaves away at this towering pasta pie, among countles other dishes, in attempt to save his and his brother Secondo’s dying restaurant.  While the guest of honor, charged with brining celebrity buzz to the small unknown trattoria, never shows, the night is anything but a loss.  Actually, I suppose they do lose quite a bit of money, but they have a big extravagant evening filled with endless courses of food, wine, and dancing.  Additionally, they learn the importance of being and being true to yourself and your talents, which may not be as loved and appreciated by others as you would expect, but are the only thing that will bring you true happiness.

Before you delve too much further, the first ingredient you’ll need is love: love of food, love of cooking, or love of the person for whom you’re cooking, be it a father (in my case), a boyfriend, or yourself!  Now, keeping the thing or one you love in mind, you may read forth to your soon to be extensive grocery list!

 

Big Night Timpano

Serves 8-10.

 

• 2 cups Provolone cheese, sliced at 1/4 inch and then cut into 1/2-inch sticks
• 8 soft-boiled eggs, shelled, halved lengthwise
• 1 recipe meatballs (see above)
• 1 recipe meat sauce (see above)
• 2 cups béchamel sauce (see above)
• 2 cups peas, steamed until soft
• 1 lb cooked ziti (cooked the time on the package minus 2 – 3 minutes)
• 1 1/2 cups finely grated Pecorino Romano cheese
• 3 pie crusts or dough from scratch 

 

My “Big Night” began about 9 am when I went to the store.  Please read the entire recipe through before you take a step out that door!  After I returned, I immediately began work on the sauce, followed by the meatballs, béchamel, pasta, eggs, and peas.  If you’re making the crust from scratch you might even want to start the night before. 

Big Night Meat Sauce

 

• ½ lb Italian bulk sausage 
• 2 T olive oil 
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 2 T balsamic vinegar
• 1 T oregano
• ¼ c red wine
• 2 28 oz cans, diced tomatoes
• 8 oz sliced mushrooms

 

Brown meat in a large saucepan pan, remove, and set aside.  Heat olive oil and cook onion and garlic until soft.  Add tomatoes and spices and bring to a simmer for 30 minutes.  Run about half of the tomatoes through a press and return to pot.  Add meat and mushrooms and simmer for 2 hours.  Let cool. 

Big Night Meatballs

 

• 1 T butter
• 8 oz mushrooms, chopped
• ½ lb Italian ground sausage
• ½ lb ground beef
• 1 egg
• 1 T oregano
• ½ c bread crumbs
• Splash of milk
• ½ c Parmesan or Pecorino cheese
• ¼ c parsley, chopped

 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Sauté chopped mushrooms in melted butter for about 5 minutes until soft.  Using a food processer blend mushrooms until fine.  Mix with remaining ingredients in a bowl until combined.  Form into balls of about 1-1.5 inch diameter, transfer to a greased baking sheet, and bake for 20 minutes until cooked. 

Big Night Bechamel Sauce

 

• 2-1/2 cups milk
• 1 shallot
• 1 bay leaf
• Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour

 

Combine the milk, shallot, and nutmeg in a saucepan over low heat and simmer gently for 15 minutes, uncovered, to infuse the flavor into the milk. Discard the shallot, bay leaf, and cloves.

Now for the fun part!

To assemble mix half of the pasta with half of the meat sauce.  Combine the remaining pasta with the béchamel.  Spread your pie crust over the bowl.  Fill the bowl with the pasta & meat sauce combo, top with half of the meatballs, provolone cheese, and peas, and top with half of the remaining sauce and half of the Parmesan cheese.  Now dump in the béchamel pasta!  Top with the remaining meatballs, provolone, and peas, and then the last of the sauce and Parmesan.  Cover with remaining dough making SURE not to leave any openings! 

Bake for 1 hour at 350 degrees until lightly browned.  Cover with tin foil and return to the oven for another 30 minutes.  Remove from the oven and let sit for 30 minutes to an hour.  About 20 minutes prior to serving, flip the timpani onto your serving platter and allow to rest for another 20 minutes.  NOTE:  This is where I went wrong!  I was too hasty after an entire day of waiting, and while the timpani flipped properly, it did not hold together under the knife… 

Speaking of knives, you need to cut a circle down the center of the timpani to act as a support while slicing!  To slice, cut a circle down the center about 2-3 inches in diameter and then cut 8-10 slices to serve!

A dear friend is turned the ripe old age of 24 this weekend and while sad I could not be there to give her a birthday hug and glass of her favorite vino in person, we planned a little preliminary birthday bash in her honor.  Since no birthday outing is complete without some sort of dessert I was left questioning what the dessert could possibly be as sweet as she.  She’s a traditionalist; her favorites being brownies & cookies yet those just don’t seem special enough for the occasion.   But what if we were to combine the two?  What if I made cookie dough cupcakes!

     

  

Now I’ve been known to be a semi-homemade baker in the past, but I’m feeling inspired by the occasion and the original recipe which, of course, I will stray from at some points or many throughout my baking expedition.   Additionally, I have a past experience with cookie dough cheesecake bars that were delicious enough to inspire decades of future cookie dough recipe experimentation!  That said, this is still an experiment that will have to take place after a long day’s work, so compromise might still be in order.  Either way, here’s to you Kimberly!  I’m so glad to have met you and thanks for always reading!

 

Cookie Dough Cupcakes!

(Makes 24)

 

Cookie Dough

• Any cookie dough will do be it your favorite recipe or store bought!  Just roll into 24 balls of your preferred size and pop into the freezer until ready to bake.  Apparently, it is imperative that they be quite cold prior to baking to maintain the gooey center which mine lacked.  Save remaining batter for mini cookies to bake and use for garnish.  Note that the mini cookies must be really really small to fit in the cupcakes!

    

  

Brown Sugar Cupcakes (courtesy of http://hellobaker.net )

• 3/4 cup (1-1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 3/4 cup light brown sugar
• 2 large eggs, room temperature
• 1-1/3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

1.       Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2.       Beat butter on high until soft, about 30 seconds.

3.       Add sugar. Beat on medium-high until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.

4.       Add eggs one at a time, beat for 30 seconds after each.

5.       Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl.

6.       Measure out milk and vanilla together.

7.       Add about a fourth of the flour to the butter/sugar mixture and beat to combine.

8.       Add about one third the milk/vanilla mixture and beat until combined.

9.       Repeat above, alternating flour and milk and ending with the flour mixture.

10.   Place previously prepared frozen cookie dough ball into cup liners, then fill about half to three-quarters full of cupcake batter.

11.   Bake for 20-22 minutes until golden and the cake springs back when lightly touched.

 

 

Note:  If you feel that the homemade frosting is a feat in itself, just grab a box of your favorite cake mix at the grocery store.  I went with triple chocolate fudge since it seems the most similar to brownies, but shhh don’t tell. 

    

   

Cookie Dough Frosting aka best frosting EVER!

• 1-3/4 cups confectioners sugar
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, chilled
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon milk

 

1.       In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine 1-1/4 cups confectioners’ sugar, unsalted butter, salt, and vanilla.

2.       Add milk and continue mixing until well combined. With the mixer running, slowly add remaining 1/2 cup confectioners sugar, mix until well combined.

3.       Mix in the eggless cookie dough.  (The recipe says to taste, but you really should just go for it and use it all.)

4.       Frost cupcakes (I just loaded the frosting into a plastic bag and cut a tip in the corner since I don’t own a fancy frosting bag), sprinkle with mini chocolate chips, and mini cookie to garnish!  (This is where you want to see Lessons Learned below…)

  

 

 

 

Eggless Cookie Dough for Frosting

• 1/4 cup butter, softened
• 1/4 cup brown sugar, plus 2 tablespoons
• 2 teaspoons water
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/3 cup mini chocolate chips (optional)

1.       Cream the butter and brown sugar in a small bowl. Add water and vanilla and mix well. Add flour and salt and stir to combine. Stir in mini chocolate chips (optional).

2.       Store in refrigerator until ready to use.

 

 

Lessons Learned!!!

1.  The silicone baking cups my Nonna gave me are awesome!  The cupcakes pop right out, have pretty ridges along the sides, and are easier to eat without the messy paper cling!  http://www.amazon.com/MIU-Mini-Silicone-Cupcake-Baking-Cups-24-Pack/dp/B000H84S1M  

2.  I already mentioned this one, but freeze the cookie dough balls prior to baking in cupcakes!

3.  Patience is a virtue.  This is a lesson I must learn each and every time I bake, but you must must must let the cupcakes cool prior to frosting and let the cookies cool prior to garnishing on frosting!

4.  Inserting the cookie is tricky.  If you attempt insertion when the cupcake and frosting are soft it crumbles.  If you attempt insertion when the cupcake and frosting are cold the frosting is too hard.  In conclusion I think the best strategy is to refrigerate the cupcakes (they’re awesome cold!) and then let them sit out for 30-60 minutes before garnishing with the mini cookies which you don’t want to refrigerate anyway. 

5.  You will not be able to eat just one, so get in a good workout and get over it!

The word ‘mashers’ makes me cringe, but it’s proven quite difficult to find a synonym for fried mashed potato balls…sounds so uncouth, like one of Rachel Ray’s idiosyncratic phrases. Anywho, the FDA is most definitely going to be on me for this one. As if French fries weren’t enough… all us teeming Americans need is something already smothered & covered, and now deep-fried too! Draws me back to that SNL episode with the taco stand spoof. I digress.

These are the brainchild of an old friend who originally called them ‘Mashed French Fries’; still can’t quite figure out that would have come to fruition, but the idea itself is a delicious one. Speaking of fabulous ideas, we love suggestions so feel free to submit and watch for yours to be in our next post!  If you’re worried about the nutritional value, please reference the ‘Glutton for Punishment’ synopsis. You’ll also be happy to know that I’ve chosen goat cheese – one of the less fattening cheeses. And they say that nice glass of red wine, cab perhaps, slows down the absorption of fat.

Please enjoy and remember – most foods served in restaurants are far worse. I know as <I’m ecstatic to say> I’ve worked in one before.

Fried Mashers

Note: The original recipe was made with goat cheese and caramelized onions, but the pictures are the chive & cheddar variety (see subs) I made for the Super Bowl party my friend was so gracious to host.  Not only did he host, but he let me fry in his kitchen and subsequently cleaned up after me and the complete mess I made – thank you again!

• 1 red onion, sliced (sub 1 bunch chives, chopped)
• 1 pkg goat cheese (sub 1 c cheddar)
• 1/2 c half and half (sub 1 c sour cream)
• 2 baking potatoes
• 2 T flour
• 2 c breadcrumbs  
• olive oil, S&P
• vegetable oil (for frying)

 Another Note:  The dipping sauce for the cheddar chive balls is just sour cream w/chopped chives to garnish.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F, pierce potatoes, and bake for 45 minutes.  Meanwhile, sautee onions in 2 T olive oil and S&P over medium low heat, stirring occasionally until caramelized.  Remove potatotes from oven and scoop insides into a bowl; add goat cheese, onions, half and half, and about 1/2 a cup of the breadcrumbs.  (The consistency shouldn’t be too dry or too wet, so you might have to add/subtract ingredients accordingly.)  Knead mixture into large ball; scoop into smaller balls roughly 1-in diameter.  Combine remaining breadcrumbs, flour, S & P in a dish; roll potato balls to coat.

 

 

Heat 3-4 inches of vegetable oil over high heat until ready for frying.  How do you know if it’s ready you ask?  It’s ready if you DRIP a DROP (one tiny, singular drop!) of water in the oil and it sizzles.  Don’t be like me and have to learn the hard way that oil & water don’t mix…  Alternatively, you can put the end of a wooden spoon into the oil and watch for bubbles.  It’s very important that the oil is hot enough or the balls will not stay together and you’ll get dirty, nasty mashed potato oil.  Fry balls a few at a time (don’t crowd them) for about a minute or until brown, remove with a slotted spoon, and blot on layers of paper towel.  I’ve found that frying is a good team sport so buddy up!

 

Last Note:  Check for these in the BEST WEBSITE EVER lineup!

The finished product!

  
All these years later, while I don’t yet have my own family, I do have my own edition of Beranbaum’s “Bible,” a fitting moniker as it is, bar none, the authority on all things cake. It was without thought that I turned to this resource in planning a cake for an upcoming party. Given that this party would be filled with many fellow foodies, I wanted nothing short of show stopping and found just that in the Chocolate Oblivion Truffle Torte, which I neatly paired with the White Chocolate Ganache for a great black on white “tuxedo” presentation.
  

For a recipe comprised of only three ingredients, this cake is unassumingly complex. The deep, dark chocolate counters well with the cake’s light-as-mousse texture developed while quickly baking in a water bath, and the high butter content lends an extraordinarily rich mouth feel. The addition of the sweet, milky ganache nicely juxtaposed the smoky bitterness of the chocolate. Rose’s ganache is actually more of a white chocolate-infused whipped cream, which I chilled and then piped in mini rosettes atop the cake, crowning each peak with a bittersweet chocolate morsel.
  
The cake fulfilled its purpose, sufficiently wowing the crowd and satiating every chocoholic in the house. And somewhere out there, a housewife in my old hometown is smiling.
   

Chocolate Oblivion Torte Ingredients (all at room temperature):

• bittersweet chocolate: 1 pound or 5 1/3 (3-ounce) bars or 454 grams
• unsalted butter: 1 cup or 1/2 pound or 227 grams
• 6 large eggs: 1 1/4 scant cups or 10.5 ounces or 300 grams (weighed without shells)

Beranbaum note: Two of my favorites are Lindt Courante and Tobler extra bittersweet. If using Courante chocolate, add 1/3 cup (2.25 ounces/66 grams) sugar to the eggs while beating. If using extra bittersweet, add 3 tablespoons (1.5 ounces/37 grams) sugar.
  

Prepare pan: One 8-inch springform pan at least 2 1/2 inches high, buttered and bottom lined with buttered parchment or wax paper; outside of pan wrapped with a double layer of heavy-duly foil to prevent seepage. One 10-inch cake pan or roasting pan to serve as a water bath.
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

  
In large metal bowl set over a pan of hot, not simmering, water (the bottom of the bowl should not touch the water) combine the chocolate and butter and let stand, stirring occasionally, until smooth and melted. (The mixture can be melted in the microwave on high power, stirring every 15 seconds. Remove when there are still a few lumps of chocolate and stir until fully melted.)

In a large bowl set over a pan of simmering water heat the eggs, stirring constantly to prevent curdling, until just warm to the touch. Remove from the heat and beat, using the whisk beater, until triple in volume and soft peaks form when the beater is raised, about 5 minutes. (To insure maximum volume if using a hand mixer, beat the eggs over simmering water until they are hot to the touch, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and beat until cool.)
  

Beating the eggs

  
Using a large wire whisk or rubber spatula, fold 1/2 the eggs into the chocolate mixture until almost incorporated. Fold in the remaining eggs until just blended and no streaks remain. Finish by using a rubber spatula to ensure that the heavier mixture at the bottom is incorporated. Scrape into the prepared pan and smooth with the spatula. Set the pan in the larger pan and surround it with 1 inch very hot water. Bake 5 minutes. Cover loosely with a piece of buttered foil and bake 10 minutes. (The cake will look soft, but this is as it should be.)
  

Incorporating the eggs into the chocolate

  
Let the cake cool on a rack 45 minutes. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until very firm, about 3 hours.
  

To unmold: Have ready a serving plate and a flat plate at least 8 inches in diameter, covered with plastic wrap. Wipe the sides of the pan with a hot, damp towel.
Run a thin metal spatula around the sides of the cake and release the sides of the springform pan. Place the plastic-wrapped plate on top and invert. Wipe the bottom of the pan with a hot, damp towel. Remove the bottom of the pan and the parchment. Reinvert onto the serving plate.

  
Tip: If you have an oven with a pilot light, it can save you a lot of time. The night before baking, place the chocolate and butter in the oven along with the eggs still in their shells in another mixing bowl. (Eggs should weigh about 12 ounces/340 grams.) The next morning, the chocolate and butter will be fully melted and the eggs the perfect temperature. Stir the chocolate and butter until smooth and be sure to remove it and the eggs from the oven before preheating oven!

White Chocolate Ganache Ingredients:

• white chocolate: 1 3-ounce bar or 85 grams
• heavy cream: 1 liquid cup or 232 grams

Refrigerate mixing bowl and beater for at least 15 minutes.
  
Using a double boiler or microwave on high power (stirring every 10 seconds, if using a microwave,) melt the chocolate with ¼ cup cream. Remove from heat before chocolate is fully melted and stir until melted. Set aside until no longer warm. Pour or pipe on torte.
  

In the chilled bowl, beat the cream until traces of beater marks just begin to show distinctly. Add the white chocolate mixture and beat just until stiff peaks form when the beater is raised.
  

A baby torte for the chef!