Dolci: Italy's Sweets....Strawberry Summer Tiramisu and a Giveaway

I am really enjoying my review copy of Dolci: Italy's Sweets,  (You can read my original review here),  so much so I decided to share with you another recipe I made from this awesome cookbook put out by Abrams publishing.  It's called Summertime Tiramisu and takes just seconds to put together. It calls for peach jam but you can substitute just about any flavor. I went with strawberry and even added some fresh fruit to the mix.  The results were yummy!

Just a reminder this is a Virtual Potluck post and there's a chance for you to win a copy of this book or one of the other books being blogged about this week.  Head over to Cookistry for a full list of bloggers and book giveaways.

Strawberry Summer Tiramisu
16 ounces ricotta cheese
4 tsp sugar
8 heaping Tbs of strawberry jam
1/2 cup warm water
4 Tbs Amaretto
24 lady fingers
1 package strawberries sliced

In a medium bowl, combine the ricotta, sugar and cinnamon and beat with a fork until smooth.  Set aside.

In a shallow bowl, combine the jam with the warm water and the liqueur. Dip the lady fingers, a few at a time, into the mixture until they are nicely moistened. Place 6 on a serving plate, side by side, and spoon some ricotta mixture over them.  Top with sliced strawberries.  Repeat. finish with a layer of ricotta cheese and a fanned berry.

Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Serve cold.



*****For the giveaway; there are 4 ways to win.  The first two are mandatory*****

1.Leave a comment on this page telling me your favorite Italian dessert.

2. Head over to Cookistry check out all of the other posts; leave a comment on one of them and come back here to let me know.

3. Tweet about this giveaway leaving a comment here letting me know. Use #virtualpotluck in your tweet.

4. Follow me on either Facebook and/or Twitter....and come back here to let me know

Contest ends Friday November 18th at midnight EST.  Winner will be picked by random generator and announced shortly after.

Dolci: Italy's Sweets...Review & Giveaway; Our First Virtual Potluck Event

Welcome to the very first Virtual Potluck. What is VP?  It's a concept that a group of us food bloggers developed; where we'll occasionally work together to post about a specific theme. Generating a true potluck of posts on said topic.  We'll be talking about it on Facebook, Twitter and each of our blogs.  There's a total of 12 of us and we've all got different tastes, focuses and talents. We hope to provide you with interesting content about cool products, recipes, and all things food related.  I suggest you visit all of the blogs during these events...as each one of us will be bringing different things to the table.

So let's get this potluck started.  Our first VP is sponsored by Abrams publishing and being hosted by  Donna at Cookistry.  There are 8 of us participating in this event. What does this mean for you?  8 reviews, about 8 different cookbooks, possibly 8 new recipes and most importantly 8 chances to win.  That's right each of us will be giving away a copy of the cookbook we review; so be sure to check Donna's blog for links to all the other reviews.

If I had to pick one thing to specialize in it would be desserts...Italian desserts to be more precise. So it's only natural that I chose to review Dolce: Italy's Sweets by Francine Segan. This beautiful cookbook is filled with both classic and contemporary desserts for all skill levels. With a gift for making each recipe come to life, Segan shares cherished stories from Italian grandmothers, young and hip foodies, famous pastry chefs, bakery owners and food writers.

Recipes include favorites such as cannoli, and biscotti to the more specialty items like Sicilian watermelon pudding and a Tuscan sweet spinach pie. With so many fabulous recipes in one book I had a hard time deciding which to try first. 

I decided on the Ricotta Pear Cake.  Although, very time consuming and labor intensive this is probably my new favorite dessert. Two moist layers of hazelnut cake surround a fluffy ricotta and pear custard that keeps beautifully in the refrigerator for up to five days...but trust me it won't last that long.

Ricotta Pear Cake

For the Cake
2 cups  finely ground hazelnuts (toasted)
6 Tbs 00 flour
6 eggs
2/3 cup sugar
7 Tbs butter, melted

Preheat the oven to 350. Butter and lightly flour two 9 1/2 inch springform pans.
Grind the hazelnuts and flour in a mini food processor until very fine.  In a large bowl using an electric mixer with the whisk attachment, combine the eggs and sugar and beat on high speed for 15 minutes, until the mixture has quadrupled in volume.  Gently fold in the hazelnuts and flour with a spatula until just combined.  then add in the butter. Divide the batter between the two prepared pans and bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until firm to the touch.  Set aside.


For the Pears
2 pears, peeled, cored & diced (I used jarred)
1/2 cup sugar
Juice of 1 lemon
2 tsp cornstarch
2 Tbs of brandy

In a small saucepan combine the pears, sugar, lemon juice, and cornstarch and simmer over medium low heat until the pears are soft. Remove from the heat, stir in the brandy, and let cool to room temperature. Set aside.


For the Syrup
1/3 cup sugar
4 Tbs brandy
1/2 cup water

In a small saucepan combine the sugar and 1/2 cup water and bring to a boil. Stir in brandy. 


For the Filling
17 ounces ricotta cheese
3/4 cup sugar
1 Tbs vanilla
3/4 cup heavy cream

In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the ricotta, sugar and vanilla for at least 5 minutes, until creamy.

Meanwhile, beat the cream until firm peaks form. Using a spatula, gently fold the whipped cream into the ricotta mixture. Fold in the cooled pear mixture.

To Assemble:
Remove one of the cake layers from the pan and place on a serving platter large enough to hold the outer ring of the springform pan. Brush the cake with 1/2 of the syrup to moisten it. Pile the filling in the center of the cake and put the springform ring back over the cake.

Gently spread the filling to the edges and then top with second layer of cake.  Brush the remaining syrup over the top. Cover with plastic wrap and put in the freezer until set, about 2 hours. Remove the springform ring and refrigerate until ready to serve.




*****For the giveaway; there are 4 ways to win.  The first two are mandatory*****

1.Leave a comment on this page telling me your favorite Italian dessert.

2. Head over to Cookistry check out all of the other posts; leave a comment on one of them and come back here to let me know.

3. Tweet about this giveaway leaving a comment here letting me know. Use #virtualpotluck in your tweet.

4. Follow me on either Facebook and/or Twitter....and come back here to let me know

Contest ends Friday November 18th at midnight EST.  Winner will be picked by random generator and announced shortly after.

Chocolate Chunk Cinnamon Espresso Bars

Surfing the internet, looking for something quick to make for dessert, I came across a recipe for Espresso Bars on the Vanilla Sugar blog.   I did a little tweaking, just to change it up a bit, and turned the recipe into:

Chocolate Chunk Cinnamon Espresso Bars

(adapted from Vanilla Sugar)

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, at room temperature

1 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
1 TB ground espresso beans

1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups flour

1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
2 cups 70% Dark Chocolate broken into chunks

 

Preheat the oven to 375 F with the rack at the middle level. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt, set aside.

Line a 10×15 inch jelly roll pan with baking parchment.

Cream together the butter, brown sugar, espresso, and vanilla.

Blend in the flour mixture, until just combined, no over mixing. Stir in the chocolate by hand. The mixture will be very crumbly, with barely enough dough to hold together the chocolate chips.

Use your fingers, palms, and heels of your hands to press the dough evenly into the pan.

Bake 5 minutes, rotate the pan, and bake 10 minutes more or until the edges are just starting to brown.

Remove from oven and let cool in the pan…break into chunks and enjoy!

My First Time

I’m excited to share with you the details of my first time.  I’ll admit I was a little afraid…not sure what to expect or how this was all going to go down.  But I have to say it was painless and I’m looking forward to doing it again.

Of course I’m talking about my first time as a Secret Recipe Club Blogger (now what were you thinking).   The idea behind SRC is that you are assigned a blog secretly at the beginning of the month.  Your job is to find a recipe, cook it and blog about your experience on a designated day. (that would be today)

My first assignment was the Vanderbilt Wife blog.  Jessie is a stay at home mom and free-lance writer.  She shares all kinds of cool stories on her blog and lots of yummy recipes.  Be sure to check it out when you have a chance.

I try to eat healthy as much as possible so when I saw her recipe for Chockfull of Healthy Muffins, I knew right away that was what I was making.  Jessie describes them as moist and loaded with fiber.  That they definitely are.

I will admit I wasn’t too fond of the shredded carrots…not sure why…but I would definitely leave them out next time around.  I did add the optional sunflower seeds and raisins to mine…yum.

Well that’s the story of my first time…..looking forward to many more with the Secret Recipe Club.

Chock Full of Healthy Muffins
Adapted from AllRecipes

1 cup all-purpose, unbleached flour
1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour (or use all whole wheat, I think it would work fine)
3/4 cup flax seed meal
3/4 cup oat bran
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup brown sugar 
1/4 cup maple syrup
2 T honey
1 tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon
3/4 cup milk
2 eggs, beaten
1 tsp vanilla
2 T melted butter 
2 cups shredded carrots
2 apples, shredded
optional mix-ins: 1/2 cup raisins, 2 T sunflower seeds, and/or 1 cup mixed nuts

In one bowl, combine flours, flax seed meal, oat bran, brown sugar, salt, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Whisk to combine.

In another bowl, stir together maple syrup, honey, milk, eggs, vanilla, butter or oil, carrots, apples, and mix-ins.

Add wet ingredients to dry and stir together until just blended. Pour into lined muffin tins. Bake at 350 F for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out dry.

Makes 18 muffins.

BiteHunter App....Review

Interested in finding “dining” deals in your area?  Have an iPhone?  If so there’s a cool free app I want to share with you. 

BiteHunter scavenges the web for all the best deals that restaurants are promoting; whether it be on Twitter, Facebook, blogs, daily deal sites and more and compiles them into one easy to navigate app.  It’s search engine allows you to find deals based on anything from location to time of day to specific kinds of food.

There are options to personalize your dining preferences and a BiteNow option which gives you real-time offers from companies like “Groupon Now” and “LivingSocial Instant”

With the free BiteHunter App you never have to be in the dark again about dining deals in your area.