the best dessert hands down.

Special Occasion Time! Jay and I had an anniversary of sorts to celebrate last week - and how do I celebrate? With Dessert.  No, that was not a typo... Capital 'D' Dessert.

We went to the Duck Club in Bodega Bay. (Some of you may know that I used to work at the hotel attached to this restaurant.) The food is spectacular. If you have some money to burn, and you want a really nice hoity-toity meal in a really cozy spot overlooking the ocean, I highly recommend it. When I worked there, regulars would call weeks in advance to grab a table by the windows so they could see the ocean... Pretty sweet, but I'll tell ya, the best place in the joint is right by the huge fireplace on the back wall. Its really quite special.

Jay and I did not have money to burn for a hoity-toity meal. So we went for Dessert.  Hands down,  best desserts in the area. I could live off this stuff.  Jeff's Mom's Chocolate Cake: Moist, dense, dark chocolate cake with a tangy cream cheese frosting. The kind that makes you want to shove your whole face in the plate and eat it like the kid on A Christmas Story.

don't worry, I refrained.

Man was it good. So, dear reader, as you've probably guessed: I'm on a mission. "Jeff's Mom's Chocolate Cake" will be recreated. Oh yes. It will.


....to be continued....

cake week- part 1

Oh hi!

remember how I said I like cake? Well I do.  Also, I made these:

vanilla cake, mocha mousse, chocolate glaze

Vanilla Cake, vanilla pastry cream, orange buttercream

inside. Scrumptious.

Right now I'm feeling pretty good about myself. I know I'm not booked on Martha Stewart quite yet, but at least they aren't a complete cake wreck, right?

highlights from pie week.

Pie/Tart/Galette Week is over. I survived. I am 2lbs heavier, but no diabetes yet.

I wanted to share some of the little tips I learned over the last week. I'm guessing a lot of people already know most of these, but hey, they're new to me!

1. Gluten strengthens with agitation. In English: The more you work a dough, the tougher it gets.  Instead of rolling out the dough, smack it with a rolling pin until its flat and in a circular shape. I mean really, just pound that sucker. Then, once you have it pretty flat and thin (about 1/2"), roll to desired thickness.  Apparently the smacking doesn't agitate as much as rolling.  Ta Da! Tender flakey pie dough.

2. If you have to pre-bake a crust (like for a quiche or a tart) - cook it until dark golden brown.  It really is a lot darker than you think, and it also takes a lot longer than you think. I have been under-cooking my dough all my life and I didn't even know it.  The dough browns as the sugar caramelizes. So, more cooked = more tasty.

3. Dough comes together a lot easier if you don't use a bowl.  Just throw the ingredients on your counter. I promise, its a lot faster and (if you do it right) its surprisingly clean. I'll elaborate on this in a different post. Soon.

4. And the prize for the most useful information goes to...(drum roll)...Dough can be rolled out and frozen for MONTHS. Like, seriously... months. I never knew this. Want a ton of pies for Thanksgiving? Make the doughs this weekend, roll them out next weekend, and store them in the freezer on parchment paper until November.  Wow.   Think about how much easier your life would be if you already had some rolled out tart dough in the freezer? You could have a fancy schmancy dessert in 30 min! This is life-changing information, Folks!

OK, picture time:

potato leek and bacon tart

strawberry fig pie

 kiwi lemon tartelettes, potato/roasted garlic galettes,
and a blackberry tart (in the foil- it had an accident)