Dessert Recipes
Biscotti translates to 'twice baked' and apparently was a popular snack for Roman soldiers since the biscotti lasted for days without getting stale. I read Christopher Columbus had biscotti stored away on his voyage to America... In Tuscany, biscotti and vin santo is considered by many to be a perfect pairing. I enjoyed this combination at a cafe in Florence years ago... I love dipping crunchy biscotti into a cup of strong black coffee.
I think my favorite cobbler was a recipe I developed with Chef Joshua Mackintosh for an ACF student chef competition. We used raspberries, blueberries, strawberries & dark chocolate chips for the filling. It was delicious. Josh came in second place... hmmm \I'm not sure I agreed with that evaluation! hahaha
To me, Carrot Cake is a vegetable! There aren't too many childhood food memories I have of which weren't Italian... My mother 'Claire's Carrot Cake' is one of the best!
Cooking and baking with fresh, local fruit is simply amazing! I was inspired to bake three fruit clafoutis using a recipe I learned from acclaimed Pastry Chef, Dieter Schorner. I was a young poissonnier at Le Cirque restaurant in NYC many years ago-Chef Schorner was the Pastry Chef.
While visiting Greece, Junnie & I took a cooking class and learned to prepare phyllo dough, Greek salad & this delicious cake featuring local oranges. (while wearing 'chef' bandanas on our heads & listening to Greek music-very fun.