Coffee Flan

Servings: 8-10
Prep Time: 30 min
Inactive Prep Time: 8 hrs
Cook Time: 1 1/4 hrs
Source: Gourmet, 2/06
Condensed milk is the secret ingredient that gives this popular Spanish dessert its silky texture.

Ingredients
3/4 cup sugar
1 (14-oz) can sweetened condensed milk (1 1/4 cups)
3 3/4 cup whole milk
5 lg eggs
4 1/2 tsp instant-coffee granules dissolved in 4 tsp hot water
1 tsp vanilla

Directions
Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 350°F.

Cook sugar in a dry small heavy saucepan over moderate heat, undisturbed, until it begins to melt. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally with a fork, until sugar melts into a deep golden caramel. Immediately pour into a 9-inch round ceramic or glass baking dish or metal cake pan (2 inches deep) and tilt dish to coat bottom (use caution, dish will be hot). Cool until hardened, 10 to 15 minutes.

Blend remaining ingredients in a blender, in 2 batches if your blender is small, until smooth. Pour custard through a fine-mesh sieve over caramel in dish, then transfer dish to a rack inserted into a 17- by 11-inch roasting pan. Cover dish loosely with a piece of foil, place into oven, then pour enough boiling-hot water into roasting pan to reach 1 inch up side of dish. Bake until custard is set but still wobbly in center when gently shaken and a knife inserted in center comes out clean, 1 to 1 1/4 hours. Transfer dish to a rack to cool completely, about 40 minutes. Chill flan, covered, until cold, at least 8 hours so that the caramel completely dissolves.

To unmold flan, run a thin knife around edge of dish to loosen flan. Invert a large platter with a lip over dish. Holding dish and platter securely together, quickly invert and turn out flan onto platter. Caramel will pour out over and around flan.

Flan can be chilled up to 1 day (before unmolding)

Dates with Goat Cheese Wrapped in Prosciutto

Servings: 8
Source: epicurious
These rich nibbles only taste decadent. Soft goat cheese is naturally lower in fat.

These rich nibbles only taste decadent. Soft goat cheese is naturally lower in fat.

Ingredients
1/3 cup soft herbed goat cheese
16 Medjool dates, pitted
16 large basil leaves
4 wide, thin slices prosciutto di Parma, each cut into 4 long strips
16 toothpicks, soaked in water 10 minutes

Directions
Heat broiler to low. Spoon 1 teaspoon cheese into each date; wrap with a basil leaf, then a prosciutto strip. Secure with a toothpick. Broil until cheese bubbles, about 3 minutes. Serve warm.

Dark Chocolate-Cherry Ganache Bars

Servings: 18 bars
Preheat: 325°
Cook Time: 35 min
Source: New York Times

Ingredients
150 grams all-purpose flour (about 1 1/2 cups)
90 grams confectioners’ sugar (about 3/4 cup)
26 grams unsweetened cocoa powder (about 1/4 cup)
1/2 tsp fine sea salt
12 Tbsp cold unsalted butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
52 grams cherry jam (about 2 Tbsp)
340 grams bittersweet chocolate, at least 62 percent, chopped (12 ounces)
2/3 cup heavy cream
3 Tbsp kirsch, rum, brandy or other spirit
1/2 tsp fleur de sel, for sprinkling.

Directions
1. In a food processor, pulse together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder and fine sea salt. Pulse in the butter and vanilla until the mixture just comes together into a smooth mass. Press the dough into the bottom of an 8-inch square baking pan. Prick all over with a fork. Chill for at least 20 minutes and up to 3 days.

2. Heat the oven to 325°. Bake the shortbread until firm to the touch and just beginning to pull away from the sides, 35 to 40 minutes.

3. Cool in the pan for 20 minutes on a wire rack. Brush jam over shortbread’s surface and let cool thoroughly.

4. Place chocolate in a heatproof bowl.

In a small saucepan, bring the cream to a simmer. Pour over the chocolate and whisk until smooth. Whisk in the kirsch. Pour ganache evenly over shortbread. Sprinkle with fleur de sel. Let cool to room temperature, then cover and chill until firm. Slice and serve.

Yield: 18 bars.

Brussel Sprouts Salad

Servings: 6
Preheat: 400°
Prep Time: 45 min
Source: Gourmet | November 2002
Brussels sprouts and nuts can be roasted 2 hours ahead and kept at room temperature. Reheat in a 400F oven until hot, about 5 minutes.

Ingredients
Vinaigrette
3 Tbsp white-wine vinegar
2 Tbsp water
1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
1/4 cup minced shallot
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
6 Tbsp olive oil

Salad
1/2 stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1 lb Brussels sprouts (preferably small), trimmed and halved lengthwise (quartered if large)
1/2 cup pecan halves, halved lengthwise
1 tsp salt
6 oz frisée, trimmed and torn into bite-size pieces (4 cups)
3 Belgian endives (1 lb), cut crosswise into 1/2″” slices

Directions
Whisk together vinegar, water, mustard, shallot, salt, and pepper in a small bowl, then add oil in a slow stream, whisking.

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Melt butter in a large shallow baking pan (1 inch deep) in lower third of oven, about 3 minutes. Toss sprouts in pan with butter, pecans, and salt. Arrange sprouts, cut sides down, in 1 layer and roast in lower third of oven until undersides of sprouts are golden and nuts are fragrant, 12 to 15 minutes.

Whisk vinaigrette, then transfer warm sprouts and nuts to a large bowl and toss with frisée, endive, and enough vinaigrette to coat. Serve immediately.