Ingredients

* 3 cups heavy cream
* 1 cup whole milk
* 1/4 cup grated fresh ginger
* 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 1/4 cup finely chopped crystallised ginger, more if, like me, you love it!
* Pinch salt
* 8 egg yolks
* 3/4 cup sugar

Directions

In a large, heavy saucepan, combine the cream, milk, ginger, and salt over medium heat and simmer for 20 minutes.

Whisk the egg yolks and sugar together until pale, pale gold and fluffy. Ladle one ladleful of the hot cream mixture into eggs, combine, then add all eggs into hot cream mixture. Stir constantly for around five minutes until the custard mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.

Strain over a fine meshed sieve into a large bowl, pressing with the back of the spoon to extract as much liquid as you can. Cover tightly and refrigerate until cold – at least three hours.

Add the crystallised ginger to the cold cream mixture, then pour into the bowl of an ice cream maker, and freeze according to manufacturer’s instructions. Transfer the ice cream to an airtight container and freeze until ready to eat.

Cook’s Illustrated’s Master Recipe

2 pounds potatoes, scrubbed (I used Yukon Golds)
8 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 stick, 4 ounces), melted
1 cup half-and-half , warmed
1 1/2 teaspoons table salt
Ground black pepper
Chives for garnish (optional)

1. Place potatoes in large saucepan and cover with 1 inch water. Bring to boil over high heat; reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until potatoes are tender (a paring knife can be slipped into and out of center of potatoes with very little resistance), 20 to 30 minutes. Drain.

2. Set food mill or ricer over now empty but still warm saucepan. Spear potato with dinner fork, then peel back skin with paring knife. Repeat with remaining potatoes. Working in batches, cut peeled potatoes into rough chunks and drop into hopper of food mill or ricer. Process or rice potatoes into saucepan.

3. Stir in butter with wooden spoon until incorporated; gently whisk in half-and-half, salt, and pepper to taste. Serve immediately.

3/4 cup créme fraîche
1 tablespoon prepared horseradish
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Combine the créme fraîche and horseradish in a small bowl. Season with 1/4 teaspoon salt and pepper. Taste for balance and seasoning.

via Smitten Kitchen

Serves 4 (generously) to 6

6 beef short ribs, about 14 to 16 ounces each (ask for 3 bone center-cut)
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon thyme leaves, and 4 whole sprigs thyme
1 tablespoon freshly cracked black pepper
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 cup diced onion
1/3 cup diced carrot
1/3 cup diced celery
2 bay leaves
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 1/2 cups port
2 1/2 cups hearty red wine
6 cups beef or veal stock
4 sprigs flat-leaf parsley
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Horseradish Cream (recipe follows)
Potato Purée/Mashed Potatoes (recipe follows)

Season the short ribs with 1 tablespoon thyme and the cracked black pepper. use your hands to coat the meat well. Cover, and refrigerate overnight.

Take the short ribs out of the refrigerator an hour before cooking, to come to room temperature. After 30 minutes, season them generously on all sides with salt.

When you take the ribs out of the refrigerator, preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Heat a large Dutch oven [or a large saute pan, if you would like to use a separate braising dish; I aimed to use fewer dishes] over high heat for 3 minutes. Pour in 3 tablespoons olive oil, and wait a minute or two, until the pan is very hot and almost smoking. Place the short ribs in the pan, and sear until they are nicely browned on all three meaty sides. Depending on the size of your pan, you might have to sear the meat in batches. Do not crowd the meat or get lazy or rushed at this step; it will take at least 15 minutes. [I find this takes closer to 45 minutes if you’re really thorough. Be thorough!] When the ribs are nicely browned, transfer them to a plate to rest.

Turn the heat down to medium, and add the onion, carrot, celery, thyme springs, and bay leaves. Stir with a wooden spoon, scraping up all the crusty bits in the pan. Cook 6 to 8 minutes, until the vegetables just begin to caramelize. Add the balsamic vinegar, port, and red wine. Turn the heat up to high, and reduce the liquid by half.

Add the stock and bring to a boil. Arrange ribs in the pot, lying flat, bones facing up, in one layer. [If you used a saute pan for previous steps, transfer the ribs to a braising pan at this point.] Scrape any vegetables that have fallen on the ribs back into the liquid. The stock mixture should almost cover the ribs. Tuck the parsley sprigs in and around the meat. Cover tightly with aluminum foil and a tight-fitting lid if you have one. Braise in the oven for about 3 hours.

To check the meat for doneness, remove the lid and foil, being careful of the escaping steam, and piece a short rib with a paring knife. When the meat is done, it will yield easily to a knife. Taste a piece if you are not sure. [If you would like to cook these a day ahead, this is where you can pause. The next day, you can remove the fat easily from the pot — it will have solidified at the top — bring these back to a simmer on the stove or in an oven, and continue.]

Let the ribs rest 10 minutes in their juices, and then transfer them to a baking sheet.

Turn the oven up to 400 degrees F.

Place the short ribs in the oven for 10 to 15 minutes to brown.

Strain the broth into a saucepan, pressing down on the vegetables with a ladle to extract all the juices. Skim the fat from the sauce (if you made these the day before, you will have already skimmed them) and, if the broth seems thin, reduce it over medium-high heat to thicken slightly. Taste for seasoning.

Time: About 1½ hours plus 14 to 20 hours’ rising

3 cups all-purpose or bread flour, more for dusting
¼ teaspoon instant yeast
1¼ teaspoons salt
Cornmeal or wheat bran as needed.

1. In a large bowl combine flour, yeast and salt. Add 1 5/8 cups water, and stir until blended; dough will be shaggy and sticky. Cover bowl with plastic wrap. Let dough rest at least 12 hours, preferably about 18, at warm room temperature, about 70 degrees.

2. Dough is ready when its surface is dotted with bubbles. Lightly flour a work surface and place dough on it; sprinkle it with a little more flour and fold it over on itself once or twice. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rest about 15 minutes.

3. Using just enough flour to keep dough from sticking to work surface or to your fingers, gently and quickly shape dough into a ball. Generously coat a cotton towel (not terry cloth) with flour, wheat bran or cornmeal; put dough seam side down on towel and dust with more flour, bran or cornmeal. Cover with another cotton towel and let rise for about 2 hours. When it is ready, dough will be more than double in size and will not readily spring back when poked with a finger.

4. At least a half-hour before dough is ready, heat oven to 450 degrees. Put a 6- to 8-quart heavy covered pot (cast iron, enamel, Pyrex or ceramic) in oven as it heats. When dough is ready, carefully remove pot from oven. Slide your hand under towel and turn dough over into pot, seam side up; it may look like a mess, but that is O.K. Shake pan once or twice if dough is unevenly distributed; it will straighten out as it bakes. Cover with lid and bake 30 minutes, then remove lid and bake another 15 to 30 minutes, until loaf is beautifully browned. Cool on a rack.

Yield: One 1½-pound loaf.

* 2 ounces chopped pancetta
* 1 cup chopped onion
* 3/4 cup chopped celery
* 3 garlic cloves, chopped
* 1 head cauliflower
* 3 1/2 cups chicken broth
* 1-inch cube Parmigiano, or any other strong cheese. I made this with Gorgonzola recently and it was AMAZING. Reserve some cheese to sprinkle over the top to serve.
* 1/2 cup half and half
* White or black truffle oil (for drizzling)

Sauté pancetta until brown. Add onion, garlic and celery and cook until vegetables are soft – a little over five minutes. Add cauliflower, broth and cheese. Bring to boil and simmer, covered, for around 20 minutes.

Puree soup with a hand-held blender, add half and half. When ready to serve, ladle into bowls, drizzle with truffle oil and sprinkle cheese on top.

Ingredients
Serves 8

* 4 large heads garlic
* 3 tablespoons olive oil
* All-purpose flour, for dusting
* Shortcrust pastry or pie crust
* 2 ounces Italian fontina cheese, grated (about 1/2 cup)
* 1 1/2 pounds firm but ripe tomatoes (4 medium), cored and sliced 1/4 inch thick
* Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Drizzle oil on garlic heads, wrap them in aluminum foil and bake for one hour. Remove and set aside until cool. When cool enough to handle, slice off the ends and squeeze the cloves out into a bowl. Mash with a fork.

On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to a 1/8-inch-thick circle, about 12 inches in diameter. With a dry pastry brush, brush off the excess flour; roll the dough around the rolling pin, and lift it over a 10-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. Line the pan with the dough, pressing it into the corners. Trim the dough so that it is flush with the edges; transfer to the refrigerator to chill, about 30 minutes.

3. Spread roasted garlic evenly on the chilled crust. Sprinkle with half of the cheese. Arrange the tomatoes on top of the cheese, in an overlapping circular pattern. Season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with remaining cheese, and drizzle with remaining 2 tablespoons oil. Transfer to oven. Reduce temperature to 400 degrees. and bake until crust is golden and tomatoes are soft but still retain their shape, 45 to 55 minutes. Transfer to wire rack to cool for 20 minutes, and serve warm.

Read more at www.marthastewart.com

1 onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon Curry powder
1/2 teaspoon Ground Coriander
1/2 teaspoon Cumin
1/2 teaspoon Ginger
1/2 teaspoon Garam Masala
Chilli powder to taste
1 can of chick peas with juice
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 cup chopped tomatoes
Cilantro to serve (optional)

Sautee the onions and garlic until soft, then add all the spices. Add the tomatoes, chick peas, lemon juice. Bring to boil, then turn down and simmer uncovered for 15 minutes to reduce the juices. Garnish with Cilantro leaves to serve.

Adapted from Sunday Suppers at Lucques, by Smitten Kitchen.

Serves 6 to 8 as a side

1 1/2 cups fresh bread crumbs (though I found I needed far less)
2 teaspoons thyme leaves
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil plus an extra glug or two for drizzling
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 pounds medium-sized brussels sprouts, washed and trimmed
Salt and pepper
6 ounces pancetta in small dice (1 1/2 cups)
3 tablespoons minced shallots
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
1 1/2 cups veal stock, rich chicken or vegetable broth, more if needed
2 tablespoons chopped parsley

Heat oven to 350 degrees. In a bowl, mix bread crumbs and thyme with a couple glugs of olive oil, and spread on a cookie sheet. Toast, tossing frequently, until golden brown, 10 to 12 minutes.

Heat butter and remaining olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until foamy. Add brussels sprouts, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and sauté, tossing frequently, until lightly browned, about 7 to 10 minutes. Add diced pancetta, and sauté, tossing frequently, until sprouts are well browned and softened slightly, and pancetta is crisp, about 10 to 15 minutes more. Reduce heat, add shallots and garlic, and sauté until fragrant, 2 minutes.

Increase heat to high, add balsamic vinegar and stock, and cook, tossing frequently, until sprouts are glazed and tender, about 20 minutes; add more stock if needed. Taste, adjusting seasoning if necessary, and sprinkle with chopped parsley. Transfer to a warm serving bowl and scatter bread crumbs on top

Lemon tartlets

Pre-heat oven to 350.

Blend box of ginger snaps with stick of butter until crushed and fine. Press into small greased tart tins with removable bases.

Delia’s filling:
1 jar lemon curd (you could make your own, but really, who has the time?)
zest and juice of one large lemon
1 egg, beaten
2 tablespoons half-fat creme fraiche.

Mix filling together. DON’T FORGET THE EGG. Pour into cases. Bake for 20/25 minutes

Jane’s alternative filling, which can be used either as topping, or on its own. If used on its own, no baking required, just put in fridge.
1 can condensed milk
1 small carton heavy cream
juice of 5 lemons
zest of 1 lemon

Blend condensed milk and cream together. Hope it thickens. When it doesn’t, WHIP UNTIL THICK. Spoon into cases and decorate with either lemon zest or candied ginger.