Flourless Chocolate Hazelnut Torte

Seasonal Recipe of The (maybe soon-to-be-over?) Pandemic
I find that some flourless chocolate cake recipes can be a bit persnickety and the results often disappoint me. They can be too dense or the texture ends up grainy or mushy. This recipe avoids all those pitfalls and I swear it comes out perfectly every time! It's a good jewish holiday recipe as well as a great make-ahead dessert. If you want to WOW your guests, give this one a try. For garnish, I like some berries and a light sprinkle of confectioner's sugar, but some bourbon whipped cream never hurt anyone!

Ingredients
12 ounces 60% cacao bittersweet chocolate, chopped
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into chunks
6 large eggs
1 cup (packed) brown sugar
1/4 cup Frangelico
1 cup finely ground hazelnut flour
1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
1 teaspoon espresso powder

Procedure
Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350°F. Spray a 9-inch diameter springform pan. Wrap outside of pan tightly with 3 layers of heavy-duty foil.

Combine chocolate and butter in medium metal bowl; set bowl over saucepan of simmering water. Whisk until mixture is melted and smooth. Remove bowl from over water. Whisk eggs, golden brown sugar, and Frangelico in large bowl to blend. Add chocolate mixture and whisk until smooth. Stir in ground hazelnuts and 1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt and espresso powder. Transfer batter to prepared pan and tent loosely with foil.

Place springform pan in large roasting pan. Pour enough hot water into the roasting pan to come halfway up side of the springform. Place in oven and bake until cake is set in the center and the top is dry to touch, about 1 hour to 70 minutes (top of cake will remain shiny). Remove cake from roasting pan; remove foil from top and outside of pan. Cool cake in pan on rack. Chill cake until cold, about 3 hours. Remove from springform before serving.

Can be made 3 days ahead. Cover and keep chilled.

Espresso Chocolate Pudding with Frangelico

The Altitude Adjustment Section
How can something so simple taste so damn good? Good ingredients make this Chocolate pudding to die for!

Ingredients
3 cups half-and-half, divided
3/4 cups Dutch Process Cocoa Powder
1 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon powdered espresso
1 pinch kosher salt
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
6 ounces very good semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate, chopped
2 tablespoons Frangelico or liqueur of your choice

Procedure
In a large saucepan heat 2 cups of half-and-half, cocoa, sugar, salt, and espresso, stirring so that all ingredients are completely blended.

Whisk cornstarch into remaining half-and-half until smooth and thoroughly incorporated. Stir this into chocolate mixture. Cook on medium-medium high heat, stirring constantly until the pudding begins to boil and becomes noticeably thicker.
Remove from heat and stir in vanilla extract, chopped chocolate and liqueur, stirring until chocolate is completely melted and mixture is very smooth.

Divide into individual ramekins and place plastic wrap or parchment over the top, laying it flat against the surface of the pudding so that a skin doesn't form. Refrigerate till cold. Bernice would also remind you the person who makes the pudding gets to lick the pot.

Guest Paul Ross: Food writing, eggnog and life

Special Guest
I had a great guest on the show last week and I didn't have time to do a proper post, so here it is ... a bit late. Paul talked about holiday beverages and gave us all kinds of great food history. When discussing Eggnog Paul says "There are tons of recipes out there but almost all employ a mix of the following ingredients: cream and/or milk, sugar (or other preferred sweetener), spices (vanilla, cinnamon and nutmeg are the most common) and eggs (some now go with a pasteurized or powdered product). Of course, you can use a pre-made mix (there's even Rice Nog for the dairy-free) and add the alcohol of choice. Latin takes on this treat include: Rompope, Coquito, y Bilia con Pisco. If you want to remain a purist, but do not want to worry about salmonella, here's a cooked-then-chilled version.

Egg Nog

Ingredients
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup Water
1/2 tsp lemon juice
6 whole eggs
4 cups milk
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/8 tsp nutmeg
1/8 tsp salt
3/4 cup heavy cream
2 tbs hazelnut liqueur
1 tbs sugar

Procedure
Mix granulated sugar, 2 tablespoons water and lemon juice, then boil until the mix turns dark amber in color (about 5 min). Remove from heat and stir in 1/4 cup water. Beat milk and eggs together in a separate bowl and pour into the mix. Lower heat to medium low and cook for an additional 10-12 min. Pour into a serving bowl and stir in vanilla, nutmeg and salt. Refrigerate until cold. Just prior to serving, beat cream, liqueur and confectioners sugar together until soft peaks form and then mix into eggnog mixture with a whisk. Drink while sitting down.

Holiday Punches

These can be cold or hot and tea-, soft drink-, fruit juice- or even milk-based. Mulled or hot ones now interchangeably replace ye olde Wassail which was served to carolers. Once you've decided on your liquid base, the traditional spice choices are cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and allspice and the alcoholic components can be rum, brandy, sherry, port, liqueurs, vodka, wine and hard ciders. An added benefit of a hot crockpot filled with holiday brew is that it does double-duty as potpourri!

Fizzes

(NOT limited to year-end festivities but a welcome addition to any party.)
Basic: (ALL ingredients are proportioned strictly to personal taste) Gin (many choose the sweeter Holland type), citrus juice, carbonated water and powdered sugar. A Fizz is customarily served in an ice cube-filled highball glass.
The legendary Ramos (or New Orleans) Fizz also incorporates: heavy cream, egg white, both lemon and lime juice and orange flower water.
Decoding the rest: Golden Fizz (egg yolk only); Royal Fizz (a whole egg); and the Diamond Fizz substitutes sparkling wine for soda.

The full story of holiday egg drinks and more recipes will appear in the December online issue of Drink Me magazine.

Enjoy!
Paul Ross

Frozen Cappuccino

Refreshing Beverage of the Week
Have you ever had a Frozen Cappuccino full of alcohol? Well, here it is. It’s like a very adult malted. If you are going to drink this, do not operate heavy machinery!

Ingredients
1 ounce light cream
1 scoop vanilla ice cream
1 tablespoons coffee liqueur
1 tablespoons hazelnut liqueur
1 tablespoon Irish cream liqueur
Crushed ice

Procedure
Combine the liqueurs, ice cream and cream in a blender with half a cup of crushed ice. Blend until smooth. Pour into a parfait glass rimmed with cinnamon sugar. Garnish with a cinnamon stick. Add a straw, and serve. Now that's a party!

The Uptown Light

Angela's Refreshing Beverage of the Week

Ingredients
1 1/2 ounces Bourbon, we like Makers Mark
1/2 ounce Frangelico
1/2 ounce Cranberry juice

Procedure
Fill a cocktail shaker with ice. Add the remaining ingredients and shake well.Strain into ice filled rocks glass. Cheers!