Have a splash of red wine leftover?
Sure, you could just drink it.
Or you could stir it into the batter of these dreamy, fudgy, rich brownies.
OK, now we are talking.
“Red Wine Brownies” is a recipe from the new “Sweet Tooth” (Clarkson Potter), of which I received a review copy.
It was written by Sarah Fennel, a New York City self-taught baker, photographer, and creator of the website, Broma Bakery.
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These days, when you hear of a splashy new restaurant opening its doors, you’ll be forgiven if your thoughts automatically go to San Francisco, Wine Country, or even Palo Alto.
Eos & Nyx, however, is not in any of those places, but rather in downtown San Jose.
Previously a movie theater, the soaring space has been transformed into a glitzy, two-story, 4,000-square-foot Mediterranean restaurant. Fifteen months in the making, it was designed by San Diego’s Basile Studio, which also did California’s Puesto restaurants, including the one in Santa Clara.
Appropriately named for the Greek goddesses of day and night, Eos & Nyx takes on a different personality from brunch (Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays) to dinner (Tuesday through Saturday). During the day, when the weather is warm, the floor-to-ceiling, garage-door front windows can be raised to bring the outdoors in, bathing the leafy dining room adorned with lifelike fake trees and even river rocks underneath the booths with tons of natural light. At night, the vibe is more Vegas-like with moodier lighting that makes the copper accents glimmer and the back-lighted bar stand out.
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Me and custard pies go way back.
Back to when I was a tot and my dad would tote home pink boxes of pale yellow custard pies from San Francisco’s Chinatown.
And back to when my older brother started a family of his own and began baking them for his signature Thanksgiving Day dessert.
But I’d never had one that had a sneaky smidge of white miso in it.
Until now.
And boy, is it fabulous.
“Miso & Nutmeg Custard Pie” takes that homespun dessert — and gives it a little more oomph.
The recipe is from the new “I’ll Bring Dessert” cookbook (Hardie Grant), of which I received a review copy. It’s by Benjamina Ebuehi, a recipe developer and food stylist based in London.
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When it comes to snacks, I do love a good, crunchy pretzel.
And Uncle Jerry’s Handmade Pennsylvania Dutch Pretzels are definitely some of the best around.
Founded by Jerry Skolnick in 1988 in Lancaster, PA, it took only two years for his family-owned business to win a “Best of Philly” award, the first time that honor had ever been given to pretzels.
His youngest daughter Misty joined the fold in 2008 to help launch the company’s e-commerce sales. And lucky me was fortunate enough to receive some samples recently.
These pretzels are made with a sourdough starter. The dough is rolled and kneaded rather than extruded under pressure from huge machines, and the pretzels are hand-twisted. They are made without oil, sugar or preservatives.
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Beef meatloaf. Turkey meatloaf. Pork meatloaf. And combos of all three meats in one, baked either free-form or snuggled inside a loaf pan.
You’ve no doubt had all these iterations of meatloaf, and loved every one of them for their nostalgic taste.
But I bet you’ve never had a shawarma meatloaf, smothered in caramelized onions, soft herbs, and pomegranate arils, and baked into a pie-shape in a cast-iron skillet.
This winning dish could only come from the one and only Yotam Ottolenghi, the Israeli-born British chef and owner of numerous restaurants and delis in the United Kingdom.
The recipe is from his newest cookbook, “Ottolenghi Comfort” (Ten Speed Press), of which I received a review copy. It was written with his long-time recipe developer Helen Goh, Verena Lochmuller, head of quality at Ottolenghi; and co-author Tara Wigley.
These are recipes definitely designed for an adept home-cook, less complex and lengthy than others he’s written, but no less enticing with plenty of global flavors.
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