weather or not?

As I write this, we have all of our windows open and I am drinking a very summery Dark and Stormy. All of this on the ninth day of October; what odd weather we’ve been having. Now I am an admitted Weather Channel junkie who loves to know what the weather will be and when the forecast is inevitably wrong, I always complain about it, to which my husband always asks me, “why do you keep watching it then?” He makes a good point. But, besides helping me figure out what to wear, the weather really does drive what I cook. Who wants squash soup for dinner when it’s 80 degrees outside even if those squash are in season?

It was our second to last CSA box this weekend, which makes me sad. It’s been a really great season with Driftless Organics and I always think of our boxes as little biweekly gifts. We hit the farmers’ market as well to pick up apples and some other essentials. Here’s what we’re eating.

At the market and in the box:
Apples
Bell Pepper
Broccoli
Butternut Squash
Current and cardamon rolls
Daikon radish
Garlic
Green-top Carrots
Heart of Gold Squash
Lacinato Kale
Mint
Onions
Parsley
Parsnips
Red Leaf Lettuce
Red Potatoes
Sage
Spinach
Sweet Potatoes
Tomatoes

Menu: week of 9 October 2010
Saturday: Banh mi with sweet potato fries
Sunday: Panko-crusted pork chops with homemade applesauce and sauteed kale
Monday: Lucques-style onion tart with roasted broccoli
Tuesday: Turkish-style roasted carrots and parsnips with hummus, yogurt and pita
Wednesday: spicy chiles and pork stir-fry with jasmine rice
Thursday: Spanish tortilla with homemade garlic aioli
Friday: Roasted squash salad with lardons and spinach

Happy eating, -s.

recipe: hott chocolate

Door County in the fall; perfect for hot chocolate*

This recipe for hot chocolate is so good it calls for an extra T (and it is a little ’80s with that extra T, so it has that going for it as well). This is the splendid union of the hot chocolate a la Chocolat my lovely man has made me on occasion and the cinnamon-spiced Mexican hot chocolate you can make with Ibarra chocolate and milk. A happy marriage, indeed.

This hot chocolate is rich and decadent enough to end a meal (as I did for my bookclub dinner), although you would be mighty popular if you brought a thermos of this with you ice skating come winter. You can make the “base” ahead of time and then just add the remaining milk and bring up to heat.

Whipped cream is a must to both cut the richness and gild the lily.

Hott chocolate
Serves 8 adults or 10 hungry bambinos

Ingredients
Two whole rounds of Ibarra chocolate; I smack the rounds on the counter while still in the package to break them up into pieces
6 oz. Scharffen Berger bittersweet chocolate, chopped roughly
A tiny pinch of kosher salt
6 cups whole milk

lily-gilding accompaniments
½ pint whipping cream
2 tablespoons confectioner’s sugar

Directions
Heat two cups of milk until really hot, but not simmering. In the jar of a blender, add the chocolate and salt. Pour the hot milk over the chocolate and blend it until smooth and frothy. Note: Always use caution when blending hot liquids.

If making ahead, place the chocolate “base” in a sealed container and chill until ready to serve (can be made up to a day ahead of time).

When ready to serve, place the base and the remaining milk in a saucepan and bring to just shy of a simmer. While the hot chocolate is heating up, whip the cream with a mixer, adding the sugar when the cream reaches soft peaks. Whip until stiff – you don’t want soft cream here as it will dissolve when it hits the heat.

Pour hot chocolate into cups, crown with the whipped cream. Enjoy.

*I forgot to take a photo of my cup, because honestly I couldn't wait to drink it!

Happy eating (and drinking), -s.