LITMIR.BIZ

       Daniel

      Breakfasts of magdalenas and hot chocolate were a big part of growing up, and I still enjoy them as a breakfast or snack. If the name and flavor remind you of French madeleines, it’s no accident – this is a Spanish version of that classic treat, but bigger and heartier, a more muffin-like pastry. Try them and you may prefer them to madeleines – and muffins, too.

      This recipe is interesting in that it recreates the heating pattern of an old-fashioned brick baking oven, which would be heated to a peak temperature and then lose heat gradually as bakers raked out the coals and filled the oven with bread dough or pastry.

      Magdalenas are traditionally made in baking pans lined with paper muffin cups, but you know your bakeware best: if you trust your muffin pan, you can coat the individual muffin wells with nonstick baking spray, butter, or nothing at all as you see fit.

Magdalenas (Olive Oil Muffins)

      Makes 12 magdalenas

       INGREDIENTS

      1 cup sugar, plus more for sprinkling

      3 eggs

      Zest of ½ lemon

      1 cup olive oil

      ¼ cup milk

      1 teaspoon baking powder

      ¼ teaspoon cinnamon

      ¼ teaspoon salt

      2 cups cake flour

       STEPS

      • In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream sugar and eggs at medium speed. Continue at medium speed while adding lemon zest, olive oil and milk.

      • In a separate mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Reduce the speed of the mixer and add the flour mixture. Gradually increase mixer speed to high and whip batter for 3 minutes. Put the mixing bowl in the fridge for 45 minutes.

      • Ten or 15 minutes before you’re ready to bake, heat the oven to 475°F.

      • Prepare the muffin pan using paper baking cups, nonstick baking spray or other preparation. Evenly divide batter among wells in the muffin tin, filling each one ½–¾ full. Sprinkle a little sugar on top of each magdalena.

      • Put the muffin pan in the oven, lowering temperature to 350°F. Bake for about 15 minutes, or until a toothpick or cake tester poked into a magdalena comes out dry.

      • Enjoy with thick, bittersweet hot chocolate, coffee, juice or milk, according to your age, time of day, or personal preference.

       Chris

      There is nothing wrong with a nice, gooey, grilled cheese sandwich. But when I was growing up we looked forward to a different kind of cheese sandwich for a Saturday lunch. It was made with ricotta and mozzarella, but the distinctive cheese flavor came from the addition of caciocavallo (which means saddlebags in Italian). The name comes from the way the balls of cheese are tied with string and hung over a rafter or wooden beam to dry and age. It is reminiscent of provolone with a salty and smoky character. You can easily substitute provolone if the more exotic cheese is unavailable.

      (In the Sicilian dialect spoken by my Gram, caciocavallo sounded to a child’s ear like “ghas gavalda” and it took me many years to track down the real thing.)

       SERVING OPTION

      You can also put 2 halves together for an even heartier sandwich.

Ricotta and Mozzarella Sandwiches

      Makes 8 open-faced sandwiches

       INGREDIENTS

      4 soft Italian rolls, split

      8 ounces whole milk ricotta

      8 slices fresh mozzarella

      1 cup shredded caciocavallo (or provolone)

      Freshly ground black pepper

       STEPS

      • Spread each half of the rolls with ricotta and season with fresh cracked pepper. Cover with a slice of mozzarella and a handful of the shredded caciocavallo.

      • Lay the sandwich halves on a foil-lined baking sheet and broil for just a minute or two, until the cheese is bubbling.

       Chris

      If you ask for biscuits and jam in England, you’ll probably get a plate of flat dry crackers and a small dish of preserves. But around here we like our biscuits fresh from the oven, light and flaky with a golden crust. You can enjoy them as a breakfast bread with eggs and sausage gravy but they might be best of all when split and served with a dollop of fresh jam.

      This recipe for freezer jam means you don’t need any special canning equipment or expertise, and because the fruit is never cooked it retains its fresh-picked flavors.

      This recipe makes a delicious jam with minimum work. It is kept in the freezer because it has not technically been preserved like traditional jams. It will keep in the freezer for months and, once opened, it will easily keep a week in the refrigerator. Freezer jam can be made with any kind of fresh berries or fruit, but strawberries seem to hold up particularly well.

      Welch’s grape jelly was our sweet spread of choice. It went on our toast with peanut butter, cream cheese or butter. We spread it on crackers and English muffins. I don’t think it was so popular because of any outstanding flavor characteristics. It just came in the cutest glass jars with cartoon characters. Our

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