Jacques Torres Chocolate Chip Cookies

Total Prep and Baking Time: 1 hour 30 minutes, plus 24 hours to chill the dough
Yield: 18-20 large cookies (I used a #40 ice cream scoop, which is a bit more than 2 tablespoons, and got about 40 cookies)

2 cups minus 2 tablespoons cake flour
1 2/3 cups bread flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt
2 1/2 sticks (1 1/4 cups) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/4 cups light brown sugar, packed
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 large eggs, room temperature
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 1/3 pounds bittersweet chocolate disks or fèves, at least 60 percent cacao content (now, I did not have these, so I used Guittard 60% cocoa bittersweet chocolate chips, as well as about 1/2 pound of semi-sweet Guittard chocolate pieces, which I chopped – I loved the look and texture of this combination)
sea salt or fleur de sel, for sprinkling

1. Sift together the cake flour, bread flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into a medium sized bowl and set aside.

2. In the bowl of your mixer, cream together your butter and sugars until light and fluffy, about 3-5 minutes. Add in the eggs, one at a time, until combined, scraping down the bowl as needed. Add in the vanilla and mix. Gradually add in the dry ingredients, until just moistened. Fold in your chocolate until evenly added throughout the dough. Press plastic wrap against the dough, making sure it is completely covered, and refrigerate for at least 24 hours, or as long as 72 hours (I left mine for 36 hours).

3. When you are ready to bake, bring the dough to room temperature so that you can scoop it out, and preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Line and/or grease your baking sheets. Scoop your dough out onto the sheets. I used a #40 ice cream scoop, which is about the size of 2 tablespoons, but you can make them even larger, if you like. Do not press the dough down – let it stay the way it is. Sprinkle the cookies lightly with a bit of fleur de sel or sea salt. Bake 10-12 minutes for smaller cookies (mine took about 11 minutes), or 18-20 minutes for larger cookies.

4. Allow the cookies to cool slightly on your baking sheet, then move them to another surface to cool completely. You can enjoy these warm, room temperature, or cold. Store in an air-tight container at room temperature for up to 3 days, or freeze for up to 2 months.

Kashk-e-Bademjoon

INGREDIENTS

3 medium eggplants
2 egg whites, beaten
1/4 cup oil
3 large onions, peeled and thinly sliced
5 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
1 tsp turmeric
2 tbsp dried mint flakes
1/2 cup water
2 1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

garnish:
5 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
1 tbsp oil
1 tbsp dried mint, crumbled
1/2 cup liquid whey (kashk), diluted in 1/4 cup water
1/4 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
1/4 tsp ground saffron dissolved in 1 tbsp hot water

DIRECTIONS
1. Peel eggplants and cut into four lengthwise slices. Place in a colander and soak in water and 2 tbsp salt to remove bitterness. Let stand for 20 minutes. Rinse with cold water and pat dry.
2. Brush the eggplant with egg white on all sides to use less oil in the frying process.
3. Heat 2 tbsp oil in a skillet and brown eggplant slices on all sides over medium heat. Drain over a paper towel.
4. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
5. Brown the onions and garlic in 2 tbsp oil, add turmeric and mint flakes and set aside.
6. Alternate layers of eggplant with layers of onion and garlic mixture in a long ovenproof dish. Pour 1.2 cup water over the layers, sprinkle with salt and pepper, cover, and bake in the oven for about 20 minutes or until tender.
7. For the garnish, just before serving, lightly brown the garlic in oil. Remove skillet from heat and add mint, whey, walnuts, and saffron water. Pour over the eggplant, cover, and bake for another 15 minutes in a 300 degree Fahrenheit oven.
8. When the eggplant is done, adjust seasoning with salt and pepper and keep it warm until serving. Serve from the baking dish with bread, onions, chopped herbs, and (my personal favorite) grapes. Delicious!

Rose-Petal Preserves (Moraba-ye gol-e-Mohammadi)

INGREDIENTS
1 pound fresh or 2 cups dried rose petals
1/4 cup lime juice
2 1/2 cups sugar
2 cups water
1 cup slivered pistachios
2 tbsp rose water (if using dried rose petals)

DIRECTIONS
1. Select fresh pink rose petals. Cut off the white ends and of the petals and wash carefully, especially if they have been sprayed with pesticides. Place rose petals in a container and cover with cool water. Let stand for 15 minutes, then drain. If using dried rose petals, place in a pot, cover with water and bring to a boil. Drain in a colander. Sprinkle with 1 tbsp lime juice and let sit.
2. Place sugar and water in a laminated pot. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and let simmer over medium heat for 35 minutes, or until the syrup has thickened.
3. Add the rest of the lime juice, rose petals, slivered pistachios, and rose water, mix well, cover and simmer over medium heat for 20 minutes longer, or until the syrup sticks to the back of a spoon. Remove from heat and let cool.
4. Sterilize jelly jars in boiling water; drain and let dry. Fill the jars with the hot jelly and seal. Store in a cool, dark place.

Doogh

This drink is called "doogh" in Farsi and "ayran" in Turkish.

INGREDIENTS
1 cup whole-milk yogurt
1 tsp chopped fresh mint or a dash of dried mint flakes, crushed
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups club soda or spring water, chilled

DIRECTIONS
1. Pour yogurt, mint, salt, and pepper into a pitcher. Stir well.
2. Add club soda or spring water gradually, stirring constantly. Add 3 or 4 ice cubes and mix again.
3. Serve chilled.

Sharbat-e-Albaloo

This drink is amazing in the summertime.

INGREDIENTS
3 pounds fresh or frozen pitted sour cherries (about 3 cups of sour-cherry juice)
8 cups sugar
4 tablespoons lime juice
5 cups water

DIRECTIONS
1. Squeeze the cherries or process them in a juicer.
2. Bring the sugar, lime juice, and water to a boil in a laminated pan. Add the cherry juice and boil for 10 - 15 minutes over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the syrup thickens.
3. Remove the pan from the heat and allow to cool.
4. Pour syrup into a clean, dry bottle, and cork tightly.
5. In a pitcher, mix 1 part syrup, 3 parts water, and lots of ice cubes. Stir and serve.

VARIATION
Another way to make this syrup is to bring the sugar and water to a boil, tie the sour cherries with the pits in cheesecloth, and add the cloth to the sugar and water. Boil for 25 minutes. Squeeze and remove the cheesecloth and add 1/4 tsp vanilla extract to the syrup. Allow to cool, pour the syrup into a clean, dry bottle, and cork tightly. Server as in Step5 above.

Lavendar Cocoa Cupcakes with Blueberry Frosting

Lavender Cocoa Cupcakes with Blueberry Frosting
an original Shazam recipe
makes 18

Cupcakes:
1 1/4 cup all purpose flour
3/4 cup Askinosie cocoa powder
1/2 tsp espresso powder
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter at room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1 cup milk
2 tsp dried lavender flowers

In a small bowl, combine the flour, cocoa, espresso powder, baking soda, and salt. Whisk to break up lumps and set aside.

In a small saucepan, bring the milk and lavender flowers to a simmer. Turn off the heat and let steep for 5 minutes. Carefully, using an immersion blender, blend in pulses until most of the flowers have been chopped and milk is frothy. Let sit for another 5 minutes, then strain out the lavender solids and let cool to room temperature (about 20 minutes)

In a mixing bowl with electric mixer, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Beat in vanilla extract. Add eggs one at a time, making sure they're incorporated. Add the flour mixture in 4 parts alternating with the now room temperature milk. Beat briefly for 30 seconds to make sure the batter is completely homogeneous.

Split batter between 18 prepared cupcake tins. Bake for 22 minutes, or until tops are springy and a toothpick inserted into cupcakes comes out fairly clean.

Cool cupcakes completely.

Frosting:
1/2 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
3 cups powdered sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 cup blueberries*

Simmer blueberries on stove until most of the berries burst and release their liquids. Mash gently with a wooden spoon and chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes or until cold.

Cream butter and powdered sugar until smooth. Add vanilla extract and chilled blueberries.

* I used frozen berries, but I'm sure fresh would also work. Depending on the amount of liquid derived from the berries, you may want to adjust the powdered sugar level to ensure that the frosting is of a spreadable consistency.

Assembly:
cocoa nibs
lavender flowers

Pipe Blueberry Frosting onto Lavender Cocoa cupcakes in decorative swirl. Sprinkle each cupcake with cocoa nibs and lavender flowers. Being careful not to overwhelm the cupcake with either nibs or flowers.

*UPDATE!- The brand of lavender I used was The Spice Hunter. If you check the website there's a handy way of searching by state to see where you can get it near you!*

Grilled Veggie Kabobs

Serves 4

To parboil the potatoes, put them into a small pot, cover with 2 inches of salted water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer until the potatoes are just tender, but not completely cooked through since you'll finish them on the grill.
Ingredients

3/4 pound small new potatoes, cut in half
2 medium zucchini or yellow summer squash, cut in half lengthwise
1 large onion, cut into 1/2-inch thick pieces
1 green bell pepper, cut into 1-inch strips
1 yellow bell pepper, cut into 1-inch strips
1/2 pound mushrooms, quartered
1/3 cup of your favorite salad dressing
Method

If using bamboo skewers, soak them in water for 2 hours prior to using to reduce charring. Parboil potatoes until done but still firm. Thread vegetables alternately on skewers. Brush generously with salad dressing. Grill for 3 minutes; turn vegetables over, brushing with extra salad dressing. Grill for another 3 to 4 minutes until done.