The October 2010 Daring Bakers challenge was hosted by Lori of Butter Me Up. Lori chose to challenge DBers to make doughnuts. She used several sources for her recipes including Alton Brown, Nancy Silverton, Kate Neumann and Epicurious.

You might as well just declare October 2010 the month of doughnuts. Between my birthday, Lara Ferroni and The Daring Bakers, it’s doughnut central here.

Not that I’m complaining, mind you.

I’m especially not complaining about the amazing challenge that Lori put before us. Between birthday celebrations and family stuff, I only got to try one recipe but it was the one that I most wanted to try: Bomboloni.

Bomboloni are basically the Italian version of doughnut holes. They’re rolled in sugar and often filled with a pastry cream, or other delicious filling like jam or chocolate.

Almost as soon as the bomboloni were fried I was pumping them full of Nutella like you wouldn’t believe.

Not only were these doughnuts plump, soft and tasty, they were filled with Nutella.

What more do you want?!

Thanks to Lori for a great challenge! Check out what all the other Daring Bakers did!

Ciao!

You may already be familiar with Lara Ferroni via her beautiful blogs Cook & Eat and Still Life With.

Whether you’re just finding about Lara or already a fan, you are sure to fall in love with her first cookbook - Doughnuts: Simple and Delicious Recipes to Make at Home.

I’ll admit, it takes very little effort for me to get excited about the prospect of fried dough covered in some form of sugar.

But when a book all about doughnuts comes out that happens to be written by someone that I admire very much, well, you can’t blame me for being a bit stalkerish in my behaviour.

When I found out last year that Lara was publishing a book on doughnuts, I unabashedly contacted her in the hopes that come publication time, I’d be remembered. And sure enough, when I saw that the book was on the market, I was fortunate enough to be included in a blog tour for Lara’s book.

The tour started at Cakespy.com. It then headed over to Wasabi Prime before making it’s way to The Sophisticated Gourmet. From there Lara’s book meandered on over to Cannelle et Vanille before finding a home at Use Real Butter.

Happily, today Lara’s book finds it’s blog tour stop here at Cream Puffs in Venice.

What to say about this precious little book? Well besides the fact that it has the most beautiful photographs and that it’s so straightforward and easy to follow that even if you’ve never ever tried doughnuts before you’re bound to be successful, leafing through the book makes you want to eat it.

How’s that for a review?!

Seriously. I wanted to eat every page, even the pages that had recipes that I may not normally try like recipes for Vegan Raised Doughnuts. That’s part of the beauty of the cookbook: there are doughnuts for everyone!

I was a very lucky girl because I got to have my doughnuts for breakfast on my birthday! My mother and I made Raised Doughnuts with a Maple Glaze and … swoon … Crème Brulée Doughnuts. Wondering how that works? Basically after you fry the beautiful dough you stuff the doughnut full of custard. Then you cover the top in sugar and brulée it so that it crackles when you break into it.

Did I say swoon yet?!

If you are a doughnut lover or if you want to become one (and why wouldn’t you?), I cannot recommend this book more.

Thank you, Lara, for creating such a beautiful book!

Ciao!

In case you missed the blog tour, here all the stops:

Cakespy.com
Wasabi Prime
The Sophisticated Gourmet
Cannelle et Vanille
Use Real Butter

Just a quick note to let you know that tomorrow’s edition of Magazine Mondays is being hosted by Wandering Coyote of ReTorte.

For those of you that have already sent me entries, I’ve passed them along to my buddy Wandering Coyote.

For those of you that want to enter, there’s still time! E-mail your entries to wandering_coyote{@}yahoo{dot}ca.

MM will be going on the road once or twice a month for the next little while. If you’re interested in hosting, let me know!

Ciao!

What?! Another year gone by already? It doesn’t seem possible!

But it’s true. I’m a year older and hopefully a year wiser.

It’s been a great year with lots of good things and lots of opportunities to learn.

Today, my birthday celebration got off to a very sweet start with dougnuts (made by Mamma Cream Puff) from this little treasure. Come back in a few days and you’ll hear more about it.

In the meantime I’m trying to decide between maple-glazed and creme brulée.

Decisions, decisions.

Have a wonderful day! And to all of you who have left me messages and called, thank you!!!

Ciao!

Today is six weeks to the day that I returned from Italy.

That is stunning to me because in my mind, I still feel very much there. In the mornings, in particular, I can recreate my time in Italy with such clarity that I swear I’m sitting at my kitchen table in our little house waiting for the espresso to come up so I can have colazione (breakfast).

I can hear someone filling a container from the fontana (fountain) just steps outside our front door.

I hear someone’s boots on the ground as they walk past our door, on their way to one of the many trails that lead up to the castagne (chestnut trees). It’s that time of year, you see. It’s time to go and inspect the trees and clean any weeds or bushes that are growing nearby.

Our neighbour across the way is standing on her front step talking to her daughter on a cell phone (every Italian has a cell phone). I can hear everything she’s saying.

My uncle, next door, is in the back using the zappa (hoe) as he breaks up some hard-packed earth in his garden.

I hear it all until, with a start, I realize that I’m not actually there. I’m in Toronto, on a subway, on my way to work. And I love Toronto and my family and my home and my friends, but sometimes I just wish that I could stretch my hand out and touch that scene of me at the kitchen table in a house in Italy pouring espresso into a hot cup of milk.

I know, as completely as I know my own name, that those scenes flashing in my mind are as real and solid and as part of me as my daily subway rides to work.

It is a revelation to me, but it is so true, that as you get older the truth becomes clearer.

You really do learn who you are and what you are. You really do understand what is important and what is worth it.

Perhaps it has taken me longer than most, but I’m getting there. I get it. I understand.

I had many revelations on my trip.

Some good. Some sad. Some inspiring. Some funny. Some difficult.

But perhaps one of the most memorable was that it was revealed to me how to make a truly great crostata.

You may find that funny, but I think crostata-making is a life skill. For years, I have yearned for the recipe used by my oldest aunt.

My aunt has a presence that looms large over all off us. Her booming voice rings out constantly in my mind. She is the epitome of woman. Strong. Capable. Supportive. Hard-working. Graceful. Generous. Determined.

And she makes the best crostata ever.

So finally, after so much time, I got to watch her and her daughter make crostata one day. Like all things, it was so simple. And that, you see, is the key.

It’s never the complicated stuff. It’s always the simple stuff that makes the difference.

Within days of being home, I went into the kitchen and made a simple crostata.

It was a revelation.

Ciao!

Before I get to the recipe, I wanted to give you some background information on the exact nature of my aunt’s recipe for crostata. The ingredients are flour, eggs, sugar and butter and something she calls “medicina”. It is a substance that she buys at the pharmacy that is formulated to be used when making pastry dough. I asked about what exactly it was and the answers I got were exceedingly vague. As far as I can tell, it’s a cross between flavouring (our pharmacy sold medicina that had essence of vanilla or essence of lemon) and baking powder. But don’t quote me on that. If anyone has any information on what exactly medicina is, I would be grateful!

While I did not use medicina when I made this after returning to Toronto, I did use a product called “Lievito Vaniglinato Bertolini”. Toronto has a huge Italian population and thankfully we have easy access to many Italian products, including Bertolini products. This lievito is a powdered product (with the essence of vanilla) that as far as I can tell helps your baked products to get a good rise. I would compare it to a form of baking powder. I figured that it was as close to the medicina that my aunt buys as I could get.

The other key to my aunt’s crostata is the filling. She uses homemade jam (always) and she likes to mix in melted chocolate. While this may sound a bit odd, somehow it works as the chocolate gives the fruit jam a depth of flavour. The bitterness of the chocolate brings out the sweetness of the fruit. For my own versions, I used Italian prune jam and cherry jam.

In Italy, when baking, measurements are always by weight. Everyone has a scale and weighs out ingredients. While I plan on converting the measurements in this recipe to cups (one day), I have not done this yet. For those of you that are going to want conversions, my first piece of advice is to invest in a scale. If you’re a baker, it’s a key piece of equipment in the kitchen and nowadays you can buy good scales without spending a fortune. If buying a scale is out of the question, there are a lot of conversion tools on the internet but use them with caution. I’ll try to do conversions the next time I make this crostata but until then, I have only weights to offer you.

Crostata with Jam Filling

This recipe will yield two 9-inch crostatas. I baked them in a 9-inch cake pan.

500 grams (1/2 kilo) unbleached, all-purpose flour*
200 grams granulated sugar
1 package of Lievito Vaniglinato Bertolini
3 large eggs, room temperature
180 grams unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
2 cups jam or preserves (you can use any type of jam you wish)

*Extra flour for dusting your work surface

In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar and lievito. Mix well.

In a small bowl, lightly beat the eggs and then pour them into the flour mixture. Add the butter and mix well until you have a dough that comes together. If the mixture is dry, add a bit of milk or cold water, a tablespoon at a time, until your dough comes into a ball.

On a well-floured surface, knead the ball of dough a few times until it’s smooth. Don’t knead for too long or your dough will be too hard.

Divide the dough in half. Wrap one half of the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate while you make the first crostata.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. and lightly butter a cake pan.

Divide the ball of dough you’re working with in half (half is for the crust and the other half is for the lattice top).

Place one half in your cake pan and gently flatten the dough until it covers the bottom of the pan evenly.

Take one cup of jam and spread evenly over the top of the dough.

With the other half of dough, break off one small piece at a time (pieces should be slightly bigger than a marble but not as big as a golf ball) and roll the pieces into ropes.

Carefully use the ropes to create a lattice top to the crostata. Some of the ropes may break but don’t worry about it. Patch them together. Once the crostata bakes you won’t be able to tell and even if you can, it’ll just make your crostata more “rustic”!

Once you’ve created your lattice top, bake the crostata in the centre of the oven for 25 minutes.

The crostata will rise slightly and the lattice top will be golden. If the crostata is not cooked after 25 minutes, keep baking, checking every five minutes.

Remove the crostata from the oven and let cool before slicing into wedges. My aunt would slice crostata into diamond shapes and serve them on a pretty tray.

Enjoy!

Before I went to Italy, I bought a special issue of Vegetarian Times dedicated to taking advantage of all the incredible produce at farmers’ markets.

While I am not a vegetarian, I would say that probably about 70 per cent of what I eat is vegetable, legume or grain. That’s just the way that we were brought up to eat. That’s one of the reasons why I enjoy Vegetarian Times so much. I don’t buy every issue, but the ones I do buy tend to be full of great recipes.

This is Tabbouleh with Mint and Pistachios, which are one of my favourite nuts. This dish was so good that we were fighting over the leftovers. What I love most about it is that you can make loads of it on the weekend and then pack it for lunch during the work week.

I followed the recipe exactly and I certainly hope you’ll give it a try.

Before I get into the MM entries for the week, I just wanted to let you know that in the coming months Magazine Mondays will be going on the road. I’m entering a busy time at work so I’m counting on MM contributors to host at least one edition of MM per month. I have a few people lined up already but if you’re interested, send me an e-mail!

Here’s who joined me for this week’s edition of Magazine Mondays:

Recipe Sleuth of Eye for a Recipe made Roasted Rosemary Potatoes from the October 2010 issue of Food & Wine; Roman-style Braised Chicken with Roasted Peppers from also from the October 2010 issue of Food & Wine; Mussels in Black Bean Sauce from the October 2010 issue of Canadian Living and Pumpkin Pecan Bundt Cake also from the October 2010 issue of Canadian Living.

Grace of La Mia Vita Dolce made Chocolate Mud Cake, Dark Chocolate Ganache and Sweet Glazed Cherrires from Donna Hay.

Lynn of I’ll Have What She’s Having made Shrimp Fra Diavolo from Food & Wine and Saffron Scented Pear Upside Cake from the October 2006 issue of Martha Stewart Living.

Wandering Coyote of ReTorte made Pumpkin Pecan Bundt Cake from the October 2010 issue of Canadian Living (obviously a popular cake!) and Pulled Pork from the December 2005 issue of Canadian Living.

Sue of Couscous & Consciousness made Thai Green Curry Chicken Pies from the August 2004 issue of ABC Delicious.

Janice of Kitchen Heals Souls made Butternut Squash Gnocchi from the October 2010 issue of Bon Appétit.

Mary of Caramels, Bonbons et Chocolats.com made Bourbon and Orange Pecan Pie from Real Simple.

Natalie of Seattle Lunchbox made Brown Sugar Maple Chip Bundt Cake from the October 2007 issue of Bon Appétit.

Have a great week, everyone!

Ciao!

So I’m a little bit late with posting the round-up from my hockey event. I think I forgot about Thanksgiving and the eating which, by the way, still isn’t over.

Turkey leftovers are awesome. For real.

Anyway, my little hockey event did well in it’s first go-round. It’ll be back next year and here’s hoping it’ll be bigger and better.

In the meantime, though, here’s who showed their hockey love:

Angie of The Sausage Link (great name) made Giant Bavarian Pretzels which, everyone knows, are perfect for hockey games! Thanks, Angie!

My girl. The one who truly knows how much I love hockey. The one who I can complain to about hockey at any time! The one who is such an awesome baker! Peabody of Culinary Concoctions by Peabody got her booze on with a Gingerbread Stout Cake with Caramel-Ale Sauce. Yes. Beer and Hockey go. Thanks, Peabody!

Kara of Happy When Not Hungry made Pumpkin Spice Bars with Cream Cheese Frosting. The beginning of hockey season is pumpkin season. Perfect. Thanks, Kara!

Vicki of Heavenly Cake Walk knows what kind of a sweet tooth you can work up during a hockey game. She made Apple Dippers with Caramel Sauce! Thanks, Vicki!

Koko of Koko’s Kitchen made Canuckcakes. Did you guess she’s a Vancouver Canucks’ fan? I hope they recognize that she’s their greatest fun! Thanks, Koko!

I met my good friend Penny in a baking class. She is a sweetheart through-and-through. Her blog is called Sweet Sadie’s and the for the last Daring Bakers’ challenge, she made a sugar cookie tribute to The Toronto Maple Leafs … Love! Her photo graces the top of this post. Thanks, Penny!

Thank you to all of you for participating. For the rest of you, go watch a hockey game and enjoy the season!

Go Leafs Go!

Ciao!

… many things.

I am thankful for my mother and my brother, and my papa, who is always with me.

I am thankful for my friends, both near and far.

I am thankful for my little house in the hills in Italy.

I am thankful for pumpkins.

I am thankful for leaves that change colour.

I am thankful for hockey.

I am thankful for books. Especially cookbooks.

I am thankful for measuring spoons. And flour. And sugar. And butter. And eggs.

I am thankful.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Ciao!

The 2010-11 NHL season begins today for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

How am I feeling? Nervous. Excited. Worried. Optimistic. Hopeful.

And hungry.

Hockey makes me hungry.

That’s why I decided to host a little hockey event for all the food bloggers out there that love their hockey.

On Saturday nights, when we’re watching Hockey Night in Canada, I love to make chili with nachos.

Sometimes I have little arguments with myself about which I like more: the chili or the nachos.

I would say it’s a tie and fortunately we don’t have to settle this tie with a shootout.

We can eat both.

Here’s to the Toronto Maple Leafs. Here’s to a hockey event celebrating food bloggers that love hockey. Here’s to a great season.

Go Leafs Go!

Ciao!

Remember, you have until midnight EST Friday October 8th to e-mail me your entries at creampuffsinvenice{@}gmail{dot}com.

This is my most favourite chili recipe.

For the nachos above, preheat your oven to 375 degrees F. Spread your favourite nachos on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Top with thinly sliced jalapeno and as much cheddar and monterey jack cheeses as you like. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes until the cheese has melted and the nachos have turned crispy. Enjoy!

If you live somewhere where apricots are still in season that I am insanely jealous of you.

I adore apricots, and yet, I find it more and more difficult to find really good apricots in the summer time. Some of our family members have apricot trees so I try to be extra nice to them during the summer in the hopes they’ll grace me with some of the bounty from their trees.

When I saw the pie on the cover of Issue 106 of Fine Cooking, I literally took the magazine, went straight to the kitchen and started baking.

Brandied Apricot-Almond Slab Pie. That’s the name of the deliciousness that I baked. Just tell me when it’s apricot season again so I can have another go at it!

This is my entry for this edition of Magazine Mondays. Here are all the other wonderful bloggers who joined me this week in taking a shot at that magazine pile:

Mary of Caramels, Bonbons and Chocolats.com made Chocolate Chip Cookies from Cook’s Illustrated.

Mama Bear of Suitable for Consumption made Versatile Vanilla Cake from Everyday Food.

Janice of Kitchen Heals Souls adapted Cherry Pepper and Goat Cheese Hush Puppies from the September 2010 issue of Bon Appétit and Brown Butter and Pumpkin Cupcakes from Fine Cooking.

Brenda of Brenda’s Canadian Kitchen made Pastitsio from the August/September issue of Saveur and Almost Famous Chimichanga from Food Network magazine.

Tia of Buttercream Barbie made Honey-Spice Apple Butter from the 2004 issue of Fine Cooking.

Tina from Life in the Slow Lane at Squirrel Head Manor made Chicken Florentine Artichoke Bake from Better Homes and Gardens.

Ranjani of Four Seasons of Food made Roasted Turnips with Parsley-Mustard Vinaigrette from the September 2010 issue of Food & Wine.

Fallon of Fallon’s Cucina made Turkey-Ricotta Meaballs from the September 2008 issue of Cooking Light and Tex-Mex and Bean Dip, also from Cooking Light.

Recipe Sleuth from Eye for a Recipe made Chicken with Olives and Prunes from the October 2010 issue of Canadian Living; Stir-fried Pork, Green Geans and Red Bell Pepper with Gingery Oyster Sauce from the January 2003 issue of Cook’s Illustrated; and Old-fashioned Potato Salad from the July 2002 issue of Gourmet.

Grace of La Mia Dolce Vita made a Chocolate Buttermilk Layer Cake from Donna Hay.

Have a great week, everyone!

Ciao!