You may have noticed mention of my new blog, Sweet Life a la Carte, in a few of my previous posts. I started a la carte as a companion blog back in September, but it has quickly grown into a place where I am able to share all my passions – and it felt wrong to not include cooking in the same place as everything else! Please continue to follow my recipes in their new home – I hope you love reading it as much as I love writing it every day.

These are my very favorite holiday cookies! This recipe came in the Food Network’s 12 Days of Cookie annual email series in 2008, I believe, and I made them as soon as I got home from college that winter break. I love that they are crackly on the outside and soft on the inside — they were a big hit at our holiday party last weekend.

Ginger Cookies
from Food Network Kitchens, with just a couple small changes - I didn’t add ginger preserves, and shortened the cooking time

• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1/2 teaspoon ground mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
• 5 cracks freshly ground black pepper
• 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup sugar, plus more for rolling the cookies
• 1/4 cup dark brown sugar
• 1 large egg yolk
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup unsulphured molasses

I recently found the cooking blog Alexandra’s Kitchen through Pinterest, and instantly became obsessed with the gorgeous images and mostly vegetarian recipes. I was inspired to make this Butternut Squash Gnocchi right away, and had the best afternoon roasting the squash, milling the potatoes, shaping the gnocchi, and waiting for everything to come together.

If you make these, take Alexandra’s advice and read the recipe all the way through. I thought I had done this, only to have dinnertime be upon us and realize that the gnocchi needed to be chilled for an hour. Although it is a time-consuming process, it is actually very easy and so worth it to make. The butternut squash, brown butter, and sage are perfect flavors for this time of year, and this recipe is sure to impress your guests!

Butternut Squash Gnocchi with Brown Butter Sauce
from Bon Appetit, via Alexandra’s Kitchen
serves 6 

Note: The squash takes an hour and a half to roast. Then it needs to be cooked in a pan and chilled. The potatoes need to cool, then the dough needs to be chilled. Then the gnocchi themselves need to be chilled. There is a lot of time waiting around, so plan accordingly!

The Bon Appetit version is reprinted below. Check out Alexandra’s site for lots more helpful tips!

Ingredients

• Special Equipment

  Potato ricer (or food mill, or you can also simply grate the potatoes with a cheese grater)

My French Onion Soup (which is one of my favorite wintertime meals) is on the menu at Pairs & Pours for Wine Down Wednesday. Check out my thoughts and grab the recipe here!

Don’t judge me, but I made this soup for a late breakfast on a particularly chilly morning, and it was perfection. I’ve been really into Swiss Chard since I got it in my first CSA basket, and I’ve been putting it into everything I can think of (especially pizza, pasta, and soup), and as we all know I am obsessed with both eggs and soup, so this was really a winning combination for me.

A quick vocabulary recap: Stracciatella means “little ribbons” in Italian. That’s what the “wisps” of eggs   in this dish are (also seen in its cousin, Egg Drop Soup), and it’s also what the inside of burrata is called, expect those are mozzarella ribbons. Stelline is one of Barilla’s newest pasta shapes – little stars for soup! I love them! If you can’t find them, the O’s that look like Spaghetti O’s, Orzo, or any small Italian soup pasta would be a great substitute.

Stracciatella with Chard and Stelline
serves 4

1/2 pound Stelline (or other small Italian soup pasta shape)
1 quart chicken stock (use vegetable to make it vegetarian)
4 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced very thinly
2 cups roughly chopped Swiss chard (can substitute 2 cups baby spinach)
Salt & Pepper
2 large eggs, beaten

1. Cook the pasta in boiling, salted water until al dente.

2. Meanwhile, bring broth to a simmer and add garlic cloves. Let simmer for three minutes, then add chard and (well-drained) pasta. Cook for a few minutes until chard wilts, and season to taste with salt and pepper.

3. Gently stir in the egg with a whisk, turing the egg into long strands (As you can see, I did just okay at this and it still tasted great). Let simmer for one minute, ladle into bowls, and serve!

About one weekend a month, Tim and I (possibly under the influence of a glass of wine or two) spend an evening planning an elaborate brunch. We decide what to make, and in the morning he gets up early, takes the dogs out, and goes to the grocery store to get all the ingredients we need (I’m a pretty lucky girl). Sometimes we have bubbles or Bloody Marys while we cook together, and sometimes we have friends over, but we always end up with a fabulous meal and satisfied tummies on our day of rest.

These Eggs Florentine have been the brunch dish I have been most proud of. It involves a “fancy” French sauce along with my trick of the year – poaching four eggs at once (ta-da!).

P.S. Tim and I got engaged this weekend!!!

Eggs Florentine
serves 2
recipe from Emeril, with just a few changes: he made his with crispy potato cakes, which we weren’t interested in on this particular go-around, though I think they would be delicious. I also omitted the parsley garnish and the nutmeg from the spinach, and we don’t have white pepper – just minor things.

Ingredients

• Sauteed Spinach, recipe follows
• Mornay Sauce, recipe follows
• 4 large eggs
• 1 tablespoon white vinegar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• Freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Sauteed Spinach:

Mornay Sauce:

While in Greece this summer, I learned to love a few “new” foods, including olives, octopus, and eggplant. These are all things that I had tried before and not had much of an opinion of – in fact, a few weeks before we left I silently judged a stranger at the grocery store for loading up on eggplant (I know, I am really friendly).

Greek inspiration

The game-changer for me was a delicious dish of eggplant, red pepper, and potatoes baked in a tomato sauce. The vegetables were tender and had all absorbed the flavor of the sauce and seasonings – I was smitten.

This pasta is a take on the baked vegetable dish that I enjoyed so much while abroad. Eggplant and tomato sauce, I have discovered, is a winning combination and perfect for this time of year when you want a cozy (yet healthy) meal.

Pasta with Eggplant, Caramelized Onion, and Tomato
serves 2

1 large eggplant, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1/4 cup olive oil, plus 1 tablespoon
1 large onion, peeled and thinly sliced
Kosher salt
2 cloves garlic, minced
6 ounces rigatoni (de Cecco is my favorite)
splash of white or red wine
1 cup peeled, seeded, and roughly chopped tomatoes
1/2 cup chicken stock
6 basil leaves, chiffonade

1. Heat olive oil in a Dutch oven (or large pot) and add eggplant. Sautee until brown and tender, about 15-20 minutes. Remove from pot and set aside.

2. In same pot, add 1 Tablespoon olive oil and heat over medium. Add onion and large pinch of Kosher salt and slowly cook, stirring often, for 30-40 minutes until onions are nicely caramelized (It’s okay to add a splash of water if the onions start to brown too quickly).

3. Meanwhile, cook pasta to al dente in salted water.

4. Deglaze pan with a splash of wine. Add garlic and stir until fragrant, and then add eggplant, tomatoes, and broth to pan. Simmer until broth has reduced and tomatoes are beginning to break down, about 15 minutes.

5. Add pasta to sauce and toss to coat. Spoon into serving dishes and  generously garnish with basil.

Over the course of the two-plus years that I have been writing this blog, I have had many people tell me that they are nervous to cook fish. One of the no-fail ways to cook fish is to keep it as moist as possible, which makes it very hard to overcook — and the best way to keep fish moist is by baking it in a packet (otherwise known as a papillote if you want to be fancy).

This recipe would be perfect for a newbie fish cooker. It is quick, simple (only three ingredients!), delicious, and really hard to overcook. When you open the packets, the fish will have cooked in its own juices (and the butter, of course), keeping it moist and delectable. The rosemary fragrance and flavor is just right. I served this with heirloom tomatoes with a splash of olive oil, and Camembert Mashed Potatoes.

Foil-Wrapped Halibut Filets with Rosemary Butter
from Food & Wine
serves 2

3/4 of a pound of Halibut, cut into two even pieces (I am currently obsessed with Pier 46‘s Alaskan Halibut)
Salt and Pepper
2 tablespoons cold butter
Two 4-inch sprigs of Rosemary

Preheat the oven to 450°. Cut two 12-inch sheets of heavy-duty aluminum foil. Season the fish with salt and pepper. Place 1/2 teaspoon of butter in the center of each foil sheet. Lay a fillet on each sheet and top with 1/2 teaspoon of butter and one 4-inch sprig of rosemary. Enclose the fish in foil, crimping the edges to form a tight seal.

Bake for 15 minutes, or until the fish is opaque throughout. Transfer the fish to plates and garnish with rosemary sprigs.

My Butternut Squash Bisque, which I revisited for lunch the other day.

My family’s Thanksgiving is very traditional – we pretty much eat the same thing every year. For the past few years, I have been doing one “different” side dish to mix things up a little bit. If you’re looking to do the same, here is a list of my favorite recipes that would be a lovely addition to your Thanksgiving Table.

• Steamed Leeks with Mustard–Shallot Vinaigrette
• Butternut Squash Bisque
• Blue Cheese and Scallion Biscuits
• Creamed Spinach with Parsnips
• Garlic and Butter Roasted Mushrooms
• Maple Pumpkin Loaf (for the dessert table)
• Taleggio-Stuffed Mushrooms
• Mashed Potato Pancakes (great for leftovers!)
• Camembert Mashed Potatoes
• Rustic Herb Stuffing (I made this for Christmas last year but for some reason it never made it on to the blog – oh well!)

Rustic Herb Stuffing

P.S. If you cook something off Sweet Life Laur on Thanksgiving or any other time, I would LOVE to see photos! You can upload them to my Facebook Page, or email them to sweetlifelaur (at) gmail (dot) com.

Happy Thanksgiving preparation week!

I just used a simple Camembert from the grocery store for this recipe, and while it turned out very well, I know a higher-quality cheese would have been even more amazing. A triple-cream cheese, such as Cowgirl Creamery’s Mt. Tam, would be lovely, and a fresh chevre would add a lot of extra tang if your family is more on the adventurous side.

Camembert Mashed Potatoes
serves 6
adapted from Cooking Light 

4 ounces Camembert cheese
2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into quarters
1/2 cup whole milk
1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt

Peel and quarter potatoes. Place in salted water and bring to a boil, cooking for about 12 minutes until tender.

Meanwhile, remove rind from Camembert (it is easer to do this when the cheese is cold). Cube cheese and let sit out while potatoes cook.

Drain potatoes and return to pot. Add cheese, milk, and salt and mash until smooth with a potato masher. My cheese wasn’t quite room temperature, so I mashed it in and then let it sit with the lid on the pot for a few minutes to let the cheese really soften. When I mashed again, the cheese came together with the potatoes perfectly.

Serve with salt and pepper so guests can season to taste.