I am a huge fan of homemade gift giving, even for Valentine’s Day. Today I’ve rounded up some of my favorite chocolate recipes that are perfect for gift giving. There is something here for everyone. Whether you are looking for a sexy chocolate sauce for your sweetie, or a more cheerful cookie for a friend, all they require is a little naptime baking, a clear plastic bag tied with a ribbon, and your gift is ready!
1. Homemade Chocolate Sauce: This luscious sauce can be made with or without the peppermint extract and is perfect for drizzling over ice cream or pound cake.
My friend Caroline is a native New Orleanean and, although she now lives in Connecticut, she always pulls out all the stops when it comes to celebrating Mardi Gras. At her party last weekend she served the most amazing spread of food including crawfish pies, salad with crab salad, gumbo, king cake (I got the baby!!!), and these bourbon slushies. I would’ve written about them earlier this week, but I just now recovered from my hangover. I am not a big bourbon drinker but holy cow were these good. And potent. And totally beyond any kind of cocktail party drink I’ve ever had.
Today I invited my friend Jeni Britton Bauer, the genius behind Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams, easily the most luscious and addictive artisanal ice cream I’ve ever tasted, to join me for a little kitchen Q & A. I am a huge fan of Jeni’s New York Times bestselling book, Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams at Home, and love her philosophy on using the power of business to create positive change in the world. Clearly Jeni’s business is booming, but I was also curious to take a peek under the tent. For someone who runs a rapidly expanded business, I wanted to know what she cooked for her husband and two young children after hours. Here she reveals how she feeds her family, her take on winter ice cream, and the adult meal she is planning for Valentine’s Day!
1. Your book, Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams at Home, dominated our kitchen last summer. I found myself whipping up lots of ice cream base during naptime and churning it with my daughter after she woke up. Do you ever make ice cream at home with your kids?
My kids, especially my oldest daughter Greta, have always loved getting into the kitchen with me. In fact, when I was testing about 100 batches of ice cream as I worked towards innovating the perfect ice cream base for the recipe in Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams at Home, I did so with Greta, as a small baby, strapped on my back. She was with me the whole way through that process and I think the memory will always be something we share. I also to involve my kids in testing new flavors at home. Their palates continue to surprise me. They’re never afraid to try new flavors, and are even less timid to express their feelings about them.
My friend Kirsten and I are always exchanging recipe tips on Facebook. We would prefer to chat about cooking in person, but she presently lives in Tokyo so Facebook and email are our best bet for direct communication at the moment! Last week she shared her new favorite method for making clean-eating chicken chili: adding a healthy scoop of quinoa for texture. Genius! I thought. Having recently begun to work with quinoa myself, I was excited to give her idea a shot.
Today I invited my friend’s Brooke Parkhurst and James Briscione, the charming duo behind Just Married & Cooking, to share some of their tips for setting the Valentine’s mood while a toddler roams the house. I first met James when we were both recipe winners on Food52, and then met them again last year at the debut of the OXO Tot line. Since then their awesome cookbook, Just Married and Cooking: 200 Recipes for Living, Eating and Entertaining Together, was published and they’ve been popping up all around town. I urge everyone to join the fun on their Facebook fanpagetoo! I am so thrilled they are here today to share some fabulous tips and positively delicious recipes. With this post they can easily restore all the faith of all parents that a romantic home cooked Valentine’s Day meal IS indeed possible!
Nothing spells romance quite like a busy toddler banging on your pots and pans while kiddy music wails from the iPod. How do you recommend parents find their inner zen in the kitchen when trying to create a special meal just for them?
We’re not opposed to asking for a little help—especially when it comes to special nights like Valentine’s or anniversaries. Even though you’re cooking and eating in and won’t need a babysitter for six hours, it wouldn’t hurt to have one for crunch time (what we call “crazy time”), 4-7pm.
Also, trying to make the kids feel as if they’re included in this special new ritual—instead of pushing them out of the kitchen—will almost guarantee better behavior. Our daughter, Parker Lee, loves when we give her a ball of pizza dough (about the size of her tiny fist) and our wooden rolling pin. To her, the dough is ten times cooler than Playdo because she’s able to eat her art project! We top it with a four-cheese mixture and roasted butternut squash or chorizo bits.
She happily toddles off with her pizza and we *finally* open a bottle of wine or shake up a house cocktail.
What are your secrets for setting a romantic scene that won’t be wrecked before it is actually time for dinner?
“Chef’s tables” are big in restaurants, so why not at home? We don’t spend our best moments at the dining room table but, instead, standing at the stove and at the kitchen counter, actually creating the meal and sampling the flavors. (I’m a little embarrassed to admit, we also fight over who gets to lick the beaters!) So I love setting the scene and making this space delicious and pretty. (Even better that our 2 ½ year-old budding chef can’t reach that high!)
While we’re doing our biggest prep work, I set out a charcuterie plate and our best wine glasses. When dinner’s almost ready, and Jamie’s putting the finishing touches on our plates, I quickly change the scene by laying down a pretty, patterned table runner (easier than a tablecloth), our French pottery, a hodge podge of candles (never scented- you don’t want to distract from the food) and cloth napkins. I’m really into using the beautiful , sturdy, French kitchen towels by Les Etoiles de Soleil (www.lesetoilesdesoleil.com) as my dinner napkins for special occasions.
