eggnog

i love eggnog, but am not a big fan of the raw egg most recipes call for (or for that matter, the separating of the whites and yolks ... seems like unnecessary work!) i like simplicity.

eggnog
1 qt milk
2 cups heavy cream
1 Tbsp nutmeg, freshly grated
pinch salt
3 cups sugar
1 cup whiskey
4 ea eggs

heat all ingredients, except eggs, to a light simmer. in bowl, whisk eggs. slowly drizzle in, while whisking eggs, half of the heated milk mixture (tempering). pour egg and milk mixture into the pot with other half of heated milk. heat on low heat whisking constantly. keep mixing until mixture thickens lightly. remove from heat and chill immediately.

serve either cold or warm.

tip: if you cook the mixture too long and the eggs start to curdle, dont worry, act fast. blend the whole mixture well in blender or with immersion blender. chill

to spruce it up:
serve chilled with a dollop of unsweetened whipped cream and bacon streusel.

make a dessert out of it:
serve it with french toast and apple jam.

or better yet, come to gravitas and try it this week.

bon bons

bon bons
Originally uploaded by fuzzzycatt

a selection of our bon bon tray at textile:

bittersweet chocolate truffles, pumpkin truffles, guanaja, white chocolate truffles, pistachio "tootsie rolls", shortbread and smoked brownies

sweet potatoe beignets

sweet potatoe beignets
Originally uploaded by fuzzzycatt

sweet potato beignets, spicy bacon honey, pecan streusel, cinnamon pudding

back to classics

well, this isn't really a classic. i did a version of it about 10 months ago for the america's in the woodlands. and well. its a good dessert, but it needed something else.

soon to come to textile.

sweet potato beignets, bacon honey, pecan streusel, spicy cinnamon ice cream

gianduja "frosty" in potato cone

gianduja "frosty" in potato cone
Originally uploaded by fuzzzycatt

a play on wendy's french fries and frosty.

gianduja "frosty", potato cone.

i wonder what kind of effect would bacon have ...

what's worse than a health inspector on a really busy night?

a food blogger.

frosty and french fries

tonight i sent out an early version of frosty and french fries to our guests. they loved it! tomorrow i will finalize the presentation and preparation. so come and try it! in the meantime, here's my frosty recipe:

gianduja "frosty"

1 lb gianduja
2 Tbsp valrhona cocoa powder
2 cups sugar
3 cups milk
1 qt heavy cream
1/4 cup light corn syrup
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp xanthan gum

potato ice cream cones:
i use michel richards method of making potato baskets. in japanese vegetable slicer (attached with julienne blade) make long "noodles" of potato. wrap the potato around a cornet mold. place inside another cornet mold (to keep its shape). bake at 350 for 10 minutes. check for doneness. continue cooking until golden brown and crisp.

[picture soon to come]

wendy's

i never quite understood my friends fascination with wendy's frostys and french fries. it quite disgusted me. i mean, why dip a french fry in a frosty?! it sounded really absurd until the day i accidently tried it.

after a long day of work, i stopped by the local wendys to pick up a combo and a frosty. put a fry in my mouth and at the same time took a sip of the frosty. didnt event think twice about it. continued eating my food until the last fry was gone. then it finally hit me!! i have just been eating wendy's french fries and a frosty together. it tasted great! i guess the only thing that really inhibited me with the dipping was the dipping. i could not get around dipping my fries into a frosty, but if there was a way around it, i would be ok. funny.

few weeks after the opening of textile, i was wondering what new desserts to make. one night i was asking erika of what stuff she grew up eating. foods that would make people think about their childhoods. foods that would bring back happy memories. we spoke about peas and carrots (now on the menu) and she finally said i should do a wendy's french fries and frosty dessert. i was excited, but how do i do it?

i thought about doing the inverse. chocolate fries with french fry ice cream. though this may sound really interesting, how do i make it presentable? would people be okay eating french fried chocolate? what about potato ice cream? after a few more weeks, i think i've settled on a fun and playful presentation. i am hoping to put it on our seven course tasting menu this week.

ice cream cones! gianduja frosty, potato cone, salted potato flakes