Limoncello Liqueur

Ahh limoncello! So easy to make, as long as you are willing to wait.

Someone gifted me a bottle of vodka and a friend had lots of gorgeous lemons, so Limoncello I made!

It is as simple as cutting off the peels of the lemon, steeping them in vodka for at least four weeks, then adding simple syrup. 

Since I am not big into sweets, my preferred way to drink it is as a spritz, either with sparking wine or sparkling water. But if you do sip it straight, make sure it is freezer cold, that's how the Italians do it!

Watermelon Sorbet with Coconut Cream

 

Lately I have returned to a childhood favorite, watermelon. Literally eating pounds of the delicious red stuff, and I still want more. 

Friends came over with fresh caught halibut and corn on the cob and asked that I provide dessert, so I whipped up this sorbet. Easy, delicious, refreshing. Do your self a favor and freeze some chunks of watermelon and then puree it into deliciousness. Your future self will thank you!

Pomegranate Chocolate Delight

As a newcomer to California, I didn’t see my first actual pomegranate until I was 40

years old. It became a favorite soon after, especially since it truly is seasonal. Blink,

and the season’s done, so make this quick and easy dessert while you still can!

My friend Mara introduced this to me one Thanksgiving, and she got it from another

friend, so this is a hand me down of the best kind. Thankfully, it is the most forgiving

of recipes, in addition to being so easy. Break apart a pomegranate and pick out the

arils (seeds), add to melted semi-sweet chocolate, scoop out and chill for an hour, voila! 

Yogurt Cheese Pie with Raspberry Coulis

When I was in graduate school eons ago, I threw dinner parties. The first party I made homemade lasagna noodles with a spinach bolognese sauce, thinking it was pretty fancy. My diners loved it but wondered where dessert was. Dessert didn't even cross my mind, not for the entire nine hours of food preparation! But realizing that it was expected, I developed this goodie for my future meals.

Dessert is not my forte, not a strong desire. Chocolate is fine, but give me bread and butter or cheese and crackers. Mine is a very savory palate! So this dessert isn't very sweet, but it seemed to satisfy those who ate it.

Before Greek yogurt was available everywhere, this pie was made of "yogurt cheese," strained yogurt, mixed with sugar and vanilla. Poured into a graham cracker crust (or something akin to it) with a raspberry coulis on top. I loved it! 

Now, you can buy greek yogurt, which is strained regular yogurt, which makes this pie that much easier. My pie is generally more tart than those who like their desserts sweet, so taste as you go. In the past, I rarely strained the raspberry coulis, since it was simpler and I was often more preoccupied with finishing dinner preparations. Here I did, and it was divine. If you have the time and the inclination, strain it!

Chocolate Cream Pie - Your Way

When I was a child my favorite pie was Chocolate Cream Pie. Maybe it was because it was my dad’s favorite pie, maybe it was because my mom made it often. Whatever the reason, it always made me so happy. It’s been years since I have had any, let alone made it, so I figured it was time to try out this classic once again.

My mom always made a cookie crust or a graham cracker crust, but I present an alternative, because I happened to have some hazelnut flour to use up. You could easily use almond flour, or even actual almonds or hazelnuts, although you should process the whole nuts first before adding in the dates since it will be harder to grind them fine. Of course, you could go the easy route and buy a crust, making the whole endeavor quicker and easier. Make it your way!

I wanted to find a vegan pudding that worked just as well as a dairy based on, and this one is a winner! It firms up beautifully, and doesn’t really require too many odd ingredients. While the original vegan recipe I found online (from OneLovelyLife.com) used almond milk, I have found that Ripple heats well and has that thickness that other vegan milks lack. It did not disappoint!

Of course you can get fancy and shave chocolate on top of your topping; personally, I prefer straight whipped cream!

Berry Semifreddo - Italian Soft Frozen Dessert

 

Ice cream makers are one of those gadgets that all too often sit and collect dust, am I right? Well here is a delicious (semi) frozen treat that is made gadget free!

Semifreddo is four basic ingredients and then add flavoring. Except for the freezing part, it takes less than 20 minutes preparation and then 8 hours later, presto! Deliciousness!

While preparation involves working with a double boiler (one pan with simmering water in it and a bowl on top with the ingredients) once you have created this magic, you realize it isn't as intimidating as it sounds.

My versions have only used berries, and frozen actually work better if you are more interested in the swirl of flavor as opposed to chunks of berries. If you search the web you can add in all sorts of stuff from chocolate and peanut butter to crushed candy, whatever delights you!

Truffles! - Easy, Delicious, Vegan

I will bet my truffle recipe against anyone's...and win!

Ok, not "mine" but the one that I make. Minimalist Baker introduced them to me and they wowed high school students and grown-ups alike. And beyond easy!

5 ingredients - although Minimalist Bakers touts them as 2, but there is salt, vanilla and cocoa powder as well, which brings it up to a whopping five ingredients.

Go ahead, make a batch, they freeze beautifully (or maybe too well, since you can get them straight from the freezer without fear of sensitive teeth, the freezer just keeps them firm!)

Best Chocolate Chip Cookies - Vegan

I know I know, it's really hard to claim that cookies are healthy...and I'm not. But made with coconut oil is a move in the right direction, right?

Ok, all rationalizations aside, these are amazingly delicious cookies! And yes, they are vegan, so your friends who eat cruelty free can indulge as well!

By the way, the school lunch kids got these and no one was the wiser, nor were there any complaints. Rather it was, "may I have another, please!?"

Vanilla Cupcakes with Chocolate Buttercream Frosting - Vegan, GF, Yum!

Lucky me, my hubby brings home all sorts of interesting ingredients that are left as samples at the co-op grocery store where he works. Coconut flour was one, and it was a puzzle for a long time, until I realized I could make cupcakes with it for many many school kids...

Not only would it be gluten free but vegan as well, and supposedly amazingly delicious. I was intrigued!

Now most people do not have those kinds of dietary restrictions, but a few of the kids that I am a lunch lady for do have those dietary limits, so instead of making separate things for them, I just go with GF and vegan for all (and make sure it's good enough that no one's the wiser!)

These cupcakes did not disappoint! Power Hungry wasn't kidding when she said these were winners!

And to top it all off, there was butter (vegan) cream chocolate frosting, which everyone was fighting over to lick the bowl!

Flourless Chocolate Cake - Vegan

One of my greatest faults (and sometimes virtue) is ambition. Not for money or fame or even praise but projects, grandiose and extravagant projects. Making flourless chocolate cake for 70 middle school and high school students without trying the recipe first, that's the kind of ambitious projects I attempt. Or not. Since there are also a few vegans who buy lunch I usually provide a vegan option. Vegan options do get a test run at home since they do tend to be more experimental. Hence this recipe.

And while the ingredients seem really whacky, trust me, this is delicious and decadent! Super rich, it easily serves 16 - 20, without being overly sweet. Be careful and measure carefully because with too much coconut oil it crystalizes and looks a little icky.

Chocolate Ricotta Mousse

Eons ago, when I first consciously decided to become vegetarian - kind of on a whim, on Thanksgiving of 1992 - Moosewood Cookbooks were my first veggie cookbooks, and I adored them. Good, tasty, hippy food. And usually not requiring too exotic of ingredients. They introduced me to Arrancini, good homemade French bread and hummus.

As my culinary interest expanded, Moosewood figured less and less in my repertoire. So it was with a great sense of nostalgia that I came across this recipe for a simple chocolate ricotta mousse. Just three ingredients. I mean, really, how can you beat that! And ridiculously delicious!

If you are a frequent visitor and reader to Kirsten's Kitchen you know that desserts do not tempt me, and sweetness is not my favorite taste. But you can make this as sweet or not depending on your own desires, just adjust the type of chocolate you use!

Thanksgiving Appetizers and Desserts

Although my blog is flexitarian, these suggestions are vegetarian and vegan in focus. So here, in no particular order, are my humble suggestions!

Hors d'oeuvres

Easy snacks for arriving guests are the name of the game here. These are do ahead treats that go great with wine and require little from you on turkey day. 

Fermented Cashew "Boursin" cheese. Yup, vegan, dairy free, delicious. If you want to shock your eaters, make this amazing "cheese." It's amazingly mind-blowing!

Olives are always easy and fun and when you marinate them yourself, you can taylor the flavors. Here's my version of them Moroccan Style.

Nuts are always a great snack to serve and these Maple Rosemary Glazed Walnuts will be a huge hit. But truly heed my warning and triple the batch, they are seriously addictive!

Desserts

I have to admit that desserts are very much an afterthought for me, except at Thanksgiving! While my sweet tooth is general MIA, pumpkin pie is one of my favorite foods, probably because the sweetness factor isn't too high! That being said, if you are cooking for a crowd, it is good to have some variety. So beyond the traditional pumpkin and pecan, here are some suggestions.

Limoncello Macaroons with Lemon Icing are definitely not traditional turkey day fare, but they are easy to make and improve with age and will keep well in the refrigerator! Oh, and deliciously addictive to boot!

Chocolate is usually de rigor in some sort of dessert, and last year I had a sinfully rich chocolate pecan pie, but it really was a recipe for a bellyache! Try this Chocolate Ricotta Tart instead. Rich dark chocolate taste with the creaminess of ricotta!

Lastly, a fruit pie of sorts, inspired by the French: Goat Cheese, Walnut and Pear Galette. Rustic in look but elegant in taste.

Happy meal planning!

Hugs!

Chocolate Dipped Satsuma Tangerines

Not being a huge fan of chocolate - I know, it seems impossible to fathom, but true - it's funny that my favorite dessert flavors are orange and chocolate together. To me they are the perfect combination. And the most perfect combination is when you put together juicy tangerines with dark chocolate. That's my idea of the perfect dessert!

What's so fun about this recipe is that there is no need to fuss with a double boiler. In fact, its inspired by the raw desserts I used to make as a raw food chef. Dipping anything really cold into liquid coconut oil instantly creates a hard shell, presto magic! And since cacao is considered a super food (along with its cousin coconut oil) some people would even consider these treats nutritious. Either way, they are delicious, so enjoy them guilt free!

Lemon Tofu Squares

As longtime readers of this blog will remember, desserts are not something that tempt me. I just prefer vinegar to sweet. Yes, it's weird, but I know I'm not alone in this taste preference!

However this is a tart sweet, but not too tart, and it's got a magic ingredient. Yup, tofu is how this curd is made, no eggs here. I made it for a class I was teaching on how to cook with tofu and during a test run on the teenage daughters I naughtily forgot to mention the tofu until after they'd devoured a few squares. Total satisfaction on everyone's part!

In this version I did not let the saffron threads soak in the lemon juice prior to adding it to the tofu curd, which resulted in such a pale yellow color. If you like your lemon squares to look more lemonly, do allow the saffron to sit in the lemon juice at least 5 minutes before adding to the filling mixture.

Old Fashioned Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Buttercream Frosting

"Dad is great! Gives us chocolate cake!"

That's the song that rings through my head whenever I think of homemade chocolate cake, the refrain from a story that Bill Cosby used to tell on one of his comedy recordings. He was put in charge of providing breakfast for his kids at an early moment in his parenthood journey and spying cake in the fridge, he fed it to them for breakfast. His kids thought he was a hero; his wife was furious...

It always made my sisters and I laugh out loud, long and hard. Our dad never did that but we could easily imagine our mother's horror if he had.

The cake pictured above was inspired by the birthday of my boyfriend's daughter. As I've protested elsewhere, my sweet tooth is nonexistent so I had to search the web for the perfect chocolate cake and hope my powers of intuition would help me find the right one. Everyone who ate the cake thought it was pretty great, so my powers were obviously in top notch form!

Don't be put off by the seemingly strange ingredients - hot coffee, greek yogurt, buttermilk.  Who ever created this recipe obviously knew what they were doing because it is a moist, deeply chocolate flavored cake that made my boyfriend take seconds, and his sweet tooth is as MIA as mine!

Chocolate Covered Carrot Cake Balls

Aaahhh, I know that when you saw the title of this post you thought, "complicatedddd!" And then you saw the photo and thought, "whatttt?" Let me set your mind at ease. These are easy, addictive, and healthy!

Yes, healthy.

Really. They're raw, so there's no sugar or flours. And if you have not tasted raw desserts, don't go turning your nose up just yet.

Raw treats are some of the best desserts out there, super decadent tasting but actually healthy for you, like raw vegetable healthy for you! This one is made with grated carrots and apples, held together with a little almond butter and dipped in liquid coconut oil mixed with raw cacao powder. The trick is to freeze the balls before giving them a chocolate bath, which creates the amazing chocolate shell on the outside. Trust me on this one, kids big and small (and over 25!) will love these!

Raw Key Lime Pie

Raw, vegan key lime pie... sounds impossible, right? But it's real, it's easy, and oh so delicious!

The secret to most raw desserts is soaking cashews. They plump up like raisins and blend into pure creamy almost cheesey goodness. And while they still have a high calorie count, those aren't empty calories; they're full of fatty acids, several vitamin Bs, and electrolytes like potassium, magnesium and manganese. For myself, anything key lime and I'm sold!

Another benefit of this dessert is it is gluten free, made with a walnut, almond and date crust. You can use all walnuts or all almonds, depending on your preference. And when it comes to the tartness of the pie, add more or less sweetner to taste, keeping in mind that the flavor will mellow over time.

Chocolate Ganache Cake

Would you believe me if I told you that the best chocolate ganache cake I have ever eaten was made with...avocado?

No, really. It's true.

And if you're a connoisseur of raw desserts this is old hat to you. But still being a newbie I was bowled over - the creaminess, the mouthfeel, the chocolatey goodness. Really? No cream, no melted chocolate. The world is upside down!

Or perhaps right side up. This is undoubtedly the healthiest chocolate cake I ever ate or made. But that's raw desserts for you. Avocados, cacao powder, coconut oil, vanilla bean paste, and your liquid sweetener of choice, and Presto, Ganache!

I'm sure you're thinking, how is this healthy? Well, avocados and coconut oil are the "good" fats for you, which means they bring vitamins and minerals and do not stick to your ribs! Cacao, when raw, is a superfood, and with less than 1/2 cup of honey (which makes each slice have anywhere from 64-34 calories from honey depending on the size of your slice) this IS a healthy treat! So, go ahead, make this now and don't tell your diners and see if they can tell the difference!

Raw Strawberry Cheesecake

Strawberry Cheesecake...raw. Yes, no cooking involved, and vegan, dairy, and gluten free. That's the beauty of raw products. Most of the traditional allergens are gone!

This cheesecake is a product of the magic of soaked cashews plus farm fresh strawberries. Blending them all together with a few other key ingredients and letting your refrigerator do the work and in presto! In a few hours you have a gorgeous cheese cake that is guaranteed to please.

Don't let the "rawness" of this scare you off. You can easily substitute non-raw cashews or coconut oil and vanilla extract instead of pure vanilla. Making it all raw is necessary is that's your audience. I have made it both ways, and it's delicious no matter the ingredients!

Rice Pudding with Cardamom and Coconut Milk

Exasperation, frustration, vexation, you name it, that has been how I've been feeling about my inability to blog about food lately... I know, how hard is it to make a dish, photograph it and write about it? For me for the past few weeks, undoable.

This particular post has automatically posted three times (the amount of times I keep putting it off). I did make Rice Pudding with Cardamom and Coconut Milk about 6 weeks ago. It was so good I ate it before daylight, before I could photograph it. But I just haven't been able to do it again since. Life happens!

So, here it is. The recipe I used, my inspiration, and a picture of screaming oranges (and Kumquats, to be truthful).  Because that's my truth!

Rice Pudding with Cardamom and Coconut Milk (inspired by Sassy Radish)

1/2 cup arborio rice
2 cups almond milk
2 cups full fat coconut milk
2 teaspoons ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
4 cloves
2 teaspoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt

Combine all ingredients and bring to boil and simmer for 50 minutes until creamy. Serve immediately.

Hugs!