Recently I tried a couple of recipes from the March 2010 issue of Bon Appetit that yielded terrific, delicious treats.
The first was British Flapjacks, the concluding recipe of Molly Wizenberg’s monthly column in the magazine called Cooking Life.
The column explained exactly what flapjacks are. They’re not pancakes, rather, they’re a kind of cookie that reminds one of a granola bar.
This is one of the easiest recipes I have ever made — and it yields amazing results.
Butter, golden brown sugar, and golden syrup (look in the pancake syrup aisle) are stirred over medium-low heat until the butter melts and sugar dissolves.
Off heat, quick-cooking oats are added and stirred until coated. The mixture is transferred to a prepared pan.
This is baked for 25 minutes, then cooled slightly and cut into triangles.
The second recipe I tried was Tangerine and Prosecco Sorbet.
This dessert manages to be both simple and elegant at once, and is nice for both a winter evening or summer’s day.
The prosecco, found in liquor stores in the sparkling wine section, brings out the flavour of the tangerines, and adds a lovely crispness to the texture of the ice.
This was also a snap to make, but requires the use of an ice cream maker.
Sugar and water are combined and boiled in a small saucepan (I substituted Splenda for sugar in this, as I often do for simple syrups that are the base of sorbets, granitas or drinks.) This is chilled.
Strained chilled tangerine juice (I used carton tangerine juice to save time), chilled Prosecco and finely-grated tangerine peel are mixed with the chilled syrup, then the mixture is processed in an ice cream maker.
The sorbet is put into the freezer to harden.
Some of the other recipes that caught my eye to try in this issue include:
• Red Pepper and Hazelnut Soup with Marinated Anchovies
• Chocolate-Orange Brownies
• Chicken Parmesan Burgers
• Chocolate, Almond and Banana Parfaits
• Buttermilk Spice Cake with Pear Compote and Creme Fraiche
• Homemade Papperdelle with Bolognese Sauce (but we’d use packaged papperdelle)
• Ice Cream Sundaes with Chocolate-Coffee Sauce
• Mrs. O’Callaghan’s Soda Bread
