Home Sweet Home (with Giada's Almond Citrus Olive Oil Cake)


If I've done my math correctly, I sold my home in New Orleans about 2,892 days ago. Since then, and for the better part of a decade, we hopped from place to place. At last count, Omar (our trusty Rottweiler) had lived in 8 places and Otis has had 4 addresses since his birth...and he's only 3 1/2. Nomads, vagabonds, drifters. No, we were renters. Not that there's anything wrong with that. But I longed for a place to call my own, a place where I could plant perennials and actually see them bloom the following year. A place where I could put up shelves, frames and anchor a mirror. I wanted a home.
When my 6-year stint in New Orleans came to an end, I moved back to my parent's home in the Riverdale section of New York City. After two months of sleeping in my childhood bed, my then-boyfriend (now-husband) and I moved to Carroll Street in Park Slope, Brooklyn. The apartment was fine, despite being a bit run down. It was well-lit and spacious by New York standards (just under 600 square feet). But then construction started on the lot next door and it was time to move. No one likes waking up to what feels like a seismic occurrence and our walls began to crack. Omar was also a nervous wreck...or was that me?

Next we rented an apartment in a turn-of-the-century Brownstone. That's where Otis spent his first year of life. We lived in Prospect Heights on a beautiful tree-lined street that was quintessential Brooklyn. But we were outgrowing the space, Omar could no longer take the stairs, and then I found out I was pregnant with Theodore. On the move again.
Our fourth space was a remodeled apartment that was about 625 square feet. Cramped yes, but it felt clean and relatively safe. Then the beeping started. Unfortunately we signed a lease for an apartment directly across from a bread factory that operated around the clock, yes 24-hours. There were beeps and honks from machinery of all sorts, fork-lifts, 18-wheelers, garbage trucks at 2 a.m.-- nothing but noise and pollution. It was a total disaster. And that's what tipped the scales for us: we'd had enough and we moved west...to Colorado.
With Otis, Theo (who was 6 weeks old at the time), and Omar, we rented a lovely, albeit quirky, home in the Highlands section of Denver. Unfortunately for us, after a year of renting, it went on the market and sold within a few days. The home was slated for demolition, so we got a 6 month rental on the edge of Denver's city line. It was a generic townhouse that could have been in anywhere-U.S.A and there was no walkability to speak of, but it served its purpose.
Then it was time to take the plunge; it was time to do some serious house hunting. 
Have you ever read 'The Hunt' in the Real Estate section of The New York Times? It was kind of like that. 
No. 1: A beautiful, old Victorian in Congress Park, a neighborhood we were pretty much set on living in. But after an investigation turned up liens and judgements against the property, we walked. 
No. 2: A bid was submitted on a 1920s stunner in Park Hill, but systemic foundation issues surfaced after our structural engineer did the inspection. We wanted it fixed one way, but the sellers weren't interested. Our inspection objections were rejected, so that house was done. Back to Congress Park. 
No. 3: Our home! We fell in love with an old, historic home built in 1895, the year Grover Cleveland was President. We closed in March...

Writing this post means that we're settled, that we're anchored, that we've bought a home. I have a long-standing tradition of bringing olive oil cakes to house warming parties, and here I am making an olive oil cake for our family...in our very own house. It's been a long, long (long) road.
Happy baking! 
xo
Batya


Giada's Almond Citrus Olive Oil Cake (Adapted slightly from this recipe)
Ingredients
Cake:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder (to compensate for altitude I added 1 3/4 teaspoons)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
3 large eggs
2 teaspoons orange zest
2 teaspoons lemon zest
1/4 cup whole milk, plus 1 tablespoon for altitude
3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2/3 cup sliced almonds, toasted, finely chopped (original recipe suggests coarsley crumbled)
Powdered sugar, for sifting



Citrus Compote:
2 tablespoons grated orange peel
3/4-1 teaspoon orange blossom water, optional though I'd use it.
3 oranges, segmented
2 pink grapefruits, segmented

Directions
To make the cake: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly oil an 8-inch-diameter cake pan. Whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl to blend. Using an electric mixer, beat the sugar, eggs, and zests in a large bowl until pale and fluffy. Beat in the milk. Gradually beat in the oil. Add the flour mixture and stir just until blended. Stir in the almonds. Transfer the batter to the prepared pan. Place cake pan on baking pan to collect any possible spills. Bake until a tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out with moist crumbs attached, about 35 minutes. Transfer to a rack and cool for 15 minutes. Remove cake and place on serving platter, top side up. Sift powdered sugar over the cake.

To make the citrus compote: Stir the orange peel, blossom water, and 2 tablespoons of accumulated juices from the segmented fruit in a small bowl to blend. Arrange the orange and grapefruit segments decoratively in a wide shallow bowl. Pour the blossom water mixture over. Cover and let stand 15 minutes for the flavors to blend.

You can cut the cake into wedges and spoon the citrus compote alongside or place the compote on top and slice.


Butternut Squash Lasagna with Basil Béchamel


A friend of mine affectionately called me and my now-husband "weekend warriors." That was before we had children. We were always up to something, like trying an out-of-the-way eatery, trekking to a remote exhibit, or gathering friends to do something a little quirky. 
Well a bunch of years later. and with two boys added to the mix, we are not quite as intrepid as we used to be, but we still try to get out and do things. Recently I took the kids to the Denver Botanic Gardens for the Orchid Show, we went to Breckenridge to see the International Snow Sculpture Championship and this week we drove to Silverthorne to check out the Ice Castle. There were also trips to the Denver Art Museum, the Clyfford Still Museum, the Butterfly Pavilion and we walked through 10 historic, architecturally significant neighborhoods in town. We are always out and about. 
By the time I get back from our morning outings I'm usually quite exhausted. So I decided that this week I would make some "bulk food." I would spend one afternoon cooking non-stop and that would be it for the week, or at the very least, a few days. Not that I mind cooking. I love food and I love preparing it. But I want to start relaxing a few days a week. I'm also going to try to read a bit more while the kids are napping. I know, sounds crazy! But getting through a book is not quite as easy as it used to be. So I'm going to start with some short stories because they don't require the same time commitment as a 300 page novel. I was thinking about Nathan Englander's What We Talk About When We Talk About Anne Frank, but I am open to suggestions.   
Back to my 'bulk food.' I'm going to make Moosewood's Spanakopita and a quiche, but I also wanted to make a pasta dish. I wasn't in the mood for anything 'red sauce.' I was feeling vegetables, but didn't want anything chunky. I did some digging through my many, many recipe printouts and found this one for Butternut Squash Lasagna with a Basil Béchamel. Perfect. I had all the ingredients on hand: basil, no-boil lasagna noodles (fresh pasta sheets would be really nice here-- but there really are only so many hours in the day), milk, cheese, and a 2 pound squash. 
This is a really nice, filling, seasonal pasta dish. It took me an afternoon to make all the food I wanted to make for the week and now I've got a whole bunch of meals that can easily be paired with a salad or simple side dish. For the next few days I can spend the kid's nap time under a blanket, curled up on the couch...reading some short stories.  
Butternut Squash Lasagna with Basil Béchamel (Adapted from Giada De Laurentiis)
Yield:8 to 10 servings
Ingredients
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 (2 pound) butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1-inch cubes
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup water (I added another 1/4 cup as the water evaporated)
3 amaretti cookies, crumbled (I used 3 Graham crackers instead)
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 1/2 cups whole milk
Big pinch nutmeg
1 cup (lightly packed) fresh basil leaves
12 no-boil lasagna noodles or fresh pasta sheets from a specialty store
2 1/2 cups shredded whole-milk mozzarella cheese
1/3 cup grated Parmesan
Directions
Heat the oil in a heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the squash and toss to coat. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Pour the water into the skillet and then cover and simmer over medium heat until the squash is tender, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes. (I added another 1/4 cup of water about half way through.) Cool slightly and then transfer the squash to a food processor. Add the amaretti (or graham) cookies and blend until smooth. Season the squash puree, to taste, with more salt and pepper.
Melt the butter in a heavy medium-size saucepan over medium heat. Add the flour and whisk for 1 minute. Gradually whisk in the milk. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer until the sauce thickens slightly, whisking often, about 5 minutes. Whisk in the nutmeg. Cool slightly. Transfer half of the sauce to a blender*. Add the basil and blend until smooth. Return the basil sauce to the sauce in the pan and stir to blend. Season the sauce with salt and pepper, to taste.
Position the rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 375 degrees F.
Lightly butter a 13 by 9 by 2-inch glass baking dish. Spread 3/4 cup of the sauce over the prepared baking dish. Arrange 3 lasagna noodles on the bottom of the pan. Spread 1/3 of the squash puree over the noodles. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese. Drizzle 1/2 cup of sauce over the noodles. Repeat layering 3 more times.
Tightly cover the baking dish with foil and bake the lasagna for 40 minutes. Sprinkle the remaining mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses over the lasagna. Continue baking uncovered until the sauce bubbles and the top is golden, 15 minutes longer. Let the lasagna stand for 15 minutes before serving.
*When blending hot liquids: Remove liquid from the heat and allow to cool for at least 5 minutes. Transfer liquid to a blender or food processor and fill it no more than halfway. If using a blender, release one corner of the lid. This prevents the vacuum effect that creates heat explosions. Place a towel over the top of the machine, pulse a few times then process on high speed until smooth.

Pumpkin Cheesecake, Baked Potatoes and a post-Thanksgiving review

Weep. Weep. Sniffle. Sniffle. I thought I was going to be able to prep, cook and post my holiday recipes as I was making them. But that just didn't happen. I was lucky to get everything into the oven!  It's possible that I over-extended myself (you know, since there's a toddler and infant in tow), but I'm happy to report that I was able to make everything I set out to make.* I also tried new recipes.  That caused some trepidation; it's much more comforting to present dishes that you've made a million times because you can vouch for their deliciousness.  But I really wanted to emerge from my comfort zone and try a new dessert and a new side dish.  
So, I started cooking the night before Thanksgiving after the kids went to sleep. I decided to make a pumpkin cheesecake with gingersnap and hazelnut crust. Hello! I'd seen it in Saveur magazine in a feature on vegetarian Thanksgivings (!).  The cake took a while to make, but it was worth it.  It's decadent and rich (and definitely not for the lactose intolerant).  It felt much more holiday appropriate than the standard Upstate Cheesecake I typically make.  Going with the pumpkin version was the right thing to do. 
Thanksgiving Day was warm with temperatures hovering around 70 degrees here in Denver.  Crazy, right? We went over to our friend's new home (in historic Washington Park) to celebrate.  We were really happy to be included because our families are back in New York (having their get-together which includes 'Turkey Parts'- but that's a story for another time).  Our hosts were taking care of the bird.
Since I don't eat turkey and I wasn't sure how well a giant Tofurkey (with gravy on the side!) would go over with the crowd, I settled on Heidi Swanson's Wild Rice Casserole.  It's easy to make and it's a real crowd pleaser.  I also adapted a Giada De Laurentiis recipe for Baked Potatoes with Bread Crumbs and Parmesan Crust.  I liked the potatoes and would definitely make them again.  (Note: you must add a lot of salt to the dish or else it will be bland and flat).  Of course since this is the holiday season, a few tablespoons of cream seemed like an appropriate addition too!
Our friends made some great food: a wonderful-tart cranberry dish, a very yummy spinach casserole, stuffing (vegetarian and from the bird) and a pumpkin pie.  We all had a great time and Otis loved playing with his friends.  Otis also went nuts over the electric Thomas the Train track set that was in the house...which he's been talking about ever since...
Hope you all had a great holiday! 

* Well, almost everything made it.  I did suffer two altitude-related causalities: curried deviled eggs never boiled right and the caramel in my tart got a little scorched (still very edible) because the boiling point here is something I'm still getting used too.  That said, I am getting the hang of it! 
Pumpkin Cheesecake with Gingersnap and Hazelnut Crust 
Serves 12-14
Ingredients for the Crust: 
1¼ cups (about 8 oz.) finely ground gingersnap cookie crumbs
¾ cup finely ground hazelnuts
6 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
3 tbsp. packed light brown sugar
For the topping: 
3 tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 16-oz. container sour cream
For the filling:
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
¼ tsp. ground allspice
¼ tsp. ground ginger
3 8-oz. packages cream cheese, softened
4 eggs
½ cup heavy cream
⅓ cup maple syrup
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 15-oz. can pumpkin puree

Instructions

1. Make the crust: Heat oven to 325°. Wrap the outside of a 9" springform pan with foil and set aside. Combine gingersnap crumbs, hazelnuts, butter, and brown sugar in a food processor, and process until evenly combined. Transfer to pan and press evenly into bottom and halfway up side; bake until set, about 10 minutes. Let cool and set aside.
2. Make the topping: Whisk together sugar, vanilla, and sour cream in a medium bowl until smooth; set aside.
3. Make the filling: Set a kettle of water to boil. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle, beat brown sugar, cinnamon, allspice, ginger, and cream cheese until smooth and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition, until evenly incorporated. Add cream, syrup, vanilla, and pumpkin, and mix until smooth. Pour filling over crust and place springform pan into a large roasting pan; pour enough boiling water into roasting pan to come halfway up side of spring-form pan. Bake until filling jiggles slightly in the center when the pan is tapped on the side, about 1 hour and 45 minutes.
4. Pour sour cream topping over filling and gently smooth top; continue baking for 5 minutes. Remove springform pan from water bath and let cool completely to room temperature. Chill until set, at least 4 hours or overnight, before serving.

* * *
Baked Potatoes with Bread Crumb-Parmesan Crust (Adapted from Giada De Laurentiis)
6 to 8 servings
Ingredients
1 tablespoon butter
5 pounds russet potatoes, peeled, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 1/4 cup whole milk
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted, plus 1 tablespoon
1 1/2 cups grated mozzarella
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan
Salt and freshly ground black pepper (You really have to add a lot of salt and pepper. There are the only 2 spices in this recipe, so don't be shy. Taste as you go.)
3 tablespoons seasoned bread crumbs
2 tablespoon heavy cream
Directions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Coat a 13 by 9 by 2-inch baking dish (I used a large circular pan) with 1 tablespoon of butter and set aside.
Cook the potatoes in a large pot of boiling salted water until they are very tender, about 15 minutes. Drain; return the potatoes to the same pot and mash well. Mix in the milk and melted butter. Mix in the mozzarella and 3/4 cup of the Parmesan. Season, to taste, with salt (a lot) and pepper. Transfer the potatoes to the prepared baking dish. Stir the bread crumbs and remaining 1/4 cup of Parmesan in a small bowl to blend. Sprinkle the bread crumb mixture over the mashed potatoes. Add two tablespoons of heavy cream.  Taste and adjust salt and pepper.  If it doesn't have flavor now, it's not going to have it when it's finished baking!  Recipe can be prepared up to this point 6 hours ahead of time; cover and chill.
Bake, covered for 10 minutes. Then bake an additional 10 minutes, until the topping is golden brown.
And the Wild Rice Casserole.  Click here for recipe. 
And the ever popular and very fabulous Chocolate Caramel Tart from Marlow & Sons. Click here for recipe.  (Note: I took this picture in Brooklyn- the first time I made this pie.  The caramel was runny and gooey.  Not so when I made the same tart in Denver.  It suffered from an altitude sickness and the caramel got a bit burnt and the crust was a bit dry. Not to worry. I will correct my mistakes and make it again in the Mile-High City!) 

Roman Treat, Part I: Lemon Spaghetti

The other day I had the most intense craving for pasta with lemon. It was really, really intense. It was almost as bad as the time I had a craving for Steve's Key Lime Pie and contemplated going out during a blizzard to get one. Anyway, back to the pasta...
I thought about adding artichokes and white wine to my pasta with lemon, but after doing an inventory check, I was out of luck. I didn't have those ingredients in my pantry and going out at 8 p.m. wasn't an option. So I took out my copy of "Everyday Italian," confident that I would be able to find something I could adapt. I had tons of lemons and spaghetti so that's where I was going to start.
After thumbing through the cookbook for about 2 seconds, I stumbled upon "Lemon Spaghetti."  Fantastic!  Could the stars be any more perfectly aligned?!  Only a few ingredients were needed in addition to the pasta and lemon, and I had all of them on hand (olive oil, parmesan, salt, pepper and basil leaves).  
This is not the most complex or unique pasta to come out of my kitchen, but it is unbelievably simple to make and the lemon-citrus flavor just pops.  It's like "light comfort food," if there is such a thing, and it hit the spot.   I paired it with Giada's Italian Caesar Salad with Polenta Croutons (featured in this post).  I made the polenta the day before and it was sitting in the refrigerator.  All I had to do was heat it up in a fry pan, with a little bit of oil, over low heat.   I chopped up some romaine lettuce, thinly sliced some sun-dried tomatoes, grated a bit of parmesan and toasted some pine nuts.  The vinaigrette, which contains fresh lemon juice, was made in about 2 minutes and dinner was served in no-time at all.  
Tip:  When you need to extract juice from a lemon, roll the fruit back and forth a few times to release the juice.  I see Giada do this all the time on her show...
Bon Appetito! 

Lemon Spaghetti (Courtesy of Giada de Laurentiis)

Serves 6.  

Ingredients

  • 1 pound spaghetti
  • 2/3 cup olive oil (I used a little bit less...some where between 1/3 cup and 2/3 cup)
  • 2/3 cup grated Parmesan
  • 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice (about 3 lemons)
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon lemon zest
  • 1/3 cup chopped fresh basil leaves

Directions

Cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 minutes (I let my pasta cook for 10). Meanwhile, whisk the oil, parmesan, and lemon juice in a large bowl to blend.
Drain the pasta, reserving 1 cup of the cooking liquid. Toss the pasta with the lemon sauce, and the reserved cooking liquid, adding 1/4 cup at a time as needed to moisten. Season with salt and pepper. Garnish with lemon zest and chopped basil.

Italian Caesar Salad with Polenta Croutons