The Most Excellent Eggnog Recipe for the Holidays

Bob and Gina’s homemade eggnog recipe will get you in the spirits.

Cheers to our fave drink of the holiday season! (Just don’t think about all those calories!)

It’s one of my favorite Christmas traditions: getting a lovely warm buzz from my friend Christina’s eggnog at her annual holiday party. Most people have one requisite glass and move on to wine or beer. But our friend Reggie and I always have a container reserved for us. We drink it all night, my cheeks turning rosy as the booze literally warms my spirits. And no, I refuse to calculate the fat content — it’s the holidays, dammit, and I’d rather get drunk on eggnog than have a second helping of pie. 

“I’d rather get drunk on eggnog than have a second helping of pie. ”

This year, because COVID ruined everything, Christina had to cancel her party. The prospect of an eggnog-free Yuletide was simply too bleak to consider, so Christina was kind enough to share her parents’ recipe. 

This tasty eggnog recipe — Wally always goes on about how it tastes “like puddin’” — comes from Ontario, Canada.

Some notes on the recipe: We used Bulleit Rye and E&J Brandy, which we had in our liquor cabinet. Duke whipped out the wire whisk on his KitchenAid stand mixer. And we followed Christina’s suggestions on the dairy, though the math hurt my brain: 1 cup heavy whipping cream and 1½ cups half and half (there are 2 cups in 1 pint). To dilute the mixture a bit, we added an additional 1 cup whole milk.

“It’s a bit of a fiddle to make,” Christina says, “but as you know, well worth it!” Indeed! –Wally

Wally and Duke worried they’d have too much for just the two of them. The pitcher didn’t last two days.

From Christina:

I have made this recipe many times, and in far greater amounts. This particular variation makes about 1 gallon. The trick is to make it at least two days before you plan to drink it, allowing the egg whites to break down while maintaining the lightness of the drink.

Lots of booze, eggs and dairy — here’s what you’ll need to make a pitcher of eggnog.

Eggnog Ingredients

• 6 eggs

• 6 tablespoons sugar

• 2 ounces rye whiskey (or rum if preferred)

• 12 ounces brandy (feel free to use a relatively cheap brand)

• 1¼ pints cream (this can be adjusted according to your taste — typically I use ½ a pint of whipping cream and half-and-half for the rest)

• whole milk (as needed)

• Nutmeg (freshly grated if possible, but pre-grated will work as well)

It’s certainly not the most appealing concoction to whip up. Just keep folding until those lumps are gone.

Directions

First, separate the eggs. 

Beat the egg yolks very well. I use my KitchenAid. 

Once the yolks are very well beaten, stir in the sugar until dissolved. 

Then slowly stir in the alcohol.

Next, beat the whites to a stiff peak in a separate bowl. 

Gently fold the whites into your boozy yolk mixture. Take your time doing this step, as the integrity of the whites is what lends the concoction its lovely airy texture. 

Finally, gently stir in the cream mixture.

Of course, you will now have to sample! If your mixture seems too thick or too boozy, add whole milk. 

Decant into glass containers and refrigerate (or stick outside in a snowbank, as we usually do in Canada).

Gently stir the mixture at least once a day. The egg white clouds will initially float to the top but will slowly disintegrate into the mixture. 

On about the third day, it should be ready to drink. You’ll need a wide-mouth pitcher because it is too thick with bits of egg white. Later, I usually pour it into empty booze bottles that have a bit wider necks, like rum bottles. 

Pour out into festive glasses and top with grated nutmeg.

We think Santa would prefer boozy eggnog over milk with his cookies.

Happy Holidays!

Apple Cider Donut Bread

Sweet! A favorite fall treat gets a new preparation in this dessert recipe that uses stuff you’ve probably got at home already. 

A new fall tradition: whipping up some apple cider donut loaves!

Fall has officially arrived in Chicago. The mild 80-degree days of early October plummeted to the 30s and 40s in the blink of an eye. This delicious baked loaf is the perfect combination of fresh cider cake-style donuts and cinnamon sugar.  

I miss our annual autumnal visit to my family in Ellicottville, New York and going through the legit-scary Pumpkinville cornstalk maze. After making it through, Wally and I would always treat ourselves to some fresh-pressed apple cider and cider donuts. You know the kind that are still warm, a little bit cakey and covered with generous amounts of cinnamon sugar?

Duke and Wally goofing around at Pumpkinville, with their creepy friend Chris in the background

Our favorite fall tradition: visiting Pumpkinville in Ellicottville, New York, with its a-maize-ing corn maze

You can imagine how excited I was when I found a recipe on Epicurious for apple cider donut loaf. Three loaves and a bit of experimentation later, I finally figured out the right ratio. This bread has a subtle apple flavor and is totally acceptable to eat for breakfast. You probably have everything you need in your fridge and pantry right now except cider — so what are you waiting for?

Eggs, flour, spices: Check your kitchen — we bet you’ve got most of these ingredients already.

Ingredients

• 1 large apple, peeled, cored and chopped 

• 1½ cups apple cider

• ½ cup whole milk

• ¼ cup sour cream

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

• 2½ cups all-purpose flour 

• 1½ teaspoons baking powder 

• ½ teaspoon baking soda

• 1 teaspoon salt

• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

• ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg

• ¼ teaspoon ground allspice

• 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature 

• ¾ cup brown sugar

• ½ cup organic granulated cane sugar 

• 3 large eggs, room temperature 

Anything topped with cinnamon sugar is A-OK in our book.

Cinnamon Sugar 

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon 

⅓ cup granulated sugar

How you like them apples? Some people have said there’s not enough apple taste, so ramp that up if you want.

Preparation

Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat to 350°F. 

Grease and flour a loaf pan. Line the bottom with parchment paper. 

For the apples, I used a Honeycrisp, but a Granny Smith would work, too.

Place the chopped apple and cider in a saucepan and bring to a boil. 

Lower heat and simmer for 8 minutes until reduced to 1 cup. 

Remove from heat and let cool, then pulse in a food processor until puréed. The texture will resemble apple sauce. 

In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, nutmeg and allspice. Set aside. 

Using a stand mixer, beat the butter, sugar and brown sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. 

Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. 

Add sour cream and beat until incorporated, about 1 minute. 

Decrease mixer speed to low and add the flour mixture in three batches. After the first portion of the flour mixture is added, pour in the apple mixture. Then add the other two batches of the flour mixture, scraping down the sides and bottom of the bowl with rubber spatula as needed. Increase the speed to medium and beat until just combined, about 30 seconds. 

Add vanilla and beat once more, just to combine, about 10 seconds. 

Pour the batter into the prepared pan. 

Bake for 50 to 55 minutes until the tester inserted into the loaf comes out clean. 

Leave to cool for about 1 hour. 

Generously sprinkle the top of the loaf with cinnamon sugar.

Everyone’s favorite apple cider donuts now come in bread form!

We think this sweet treat works for breakfast or dessert!

The end result is a bit subtle on the apple front, but there’s a nice burst of apple flavor when you first take a bite. We’ve added an apple to the original recipe to increase the concentrated flavor; see if that works for you. If you find something you really like, please let us know in the comments section. –Duke

For the Love of Latin Food

Most cooking sites get Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban and Dominican recipes wrong. Familia Kitchen sets out to correct that by highlighting authentic family recipes.

Home cooking should be easy and delicious.

I admit that when it came to Latin cuisine, I was hopelessly naïve. I expected all of the countries of Central and South America to have the bold, spicy flavors of Mexico. So I was quite surprised when I got to Peru and realized that the national cuisine had little in common with Mexico’s. But the soups I had along the Incan Trail to Machu Picchu were absolutely delicious, and I had a tres colores ceviche that might be the best I’ve ever had. I also enjoyed my alpaca medallions on the shore of Lake Titicaca — just don’t ask me about the guinea pig.

Now, as a more seasoned traveler (and foodie), I realize that every country has its own distinct cuisine, each delicious in its own way.

Food is an essential part of travel for us, and Duke and I eat as globally in our cuisine as possible. So it was with great excitement and anticipation that we awaited the launch of Familia Kitchen, by my friend and former colleague, Kim. –Wally

What’s not to love about Latin food, in all its many varieties?!

“Grandmother cooking is fast, because abuelas know how to get dinner on the table quickly. And it’s authentic, because it comes from their heart and their homeland soil.”

— Kim Caviness, CEO and editor in chief, Familia Kitchen

What made you decide to launch Familia Kitchen? 

I’ve long been fascinated by what people cook at home, for themselves. On a regular weeknight and on important occasions, like a family holiday: What do they make and why? If I meet someone new, I’ll try to find a way to ask them a typical thing they make for dinner and about their family food heritage — by the way, it almost always comes from their mother’s culture. Their face lights up when they start talking. 

Food is family is history is identity. 

Li’l Kim in Puerto Rico, already a big fan of food

I grew up in Puerto Rico, right by San Juan, surrounded by so many cousins and aunts and uncles. My mother’s family goes back many generations on the island. We rotated from aunt to aunt for family holidays, which always involved lots of cooking.

In Puerto Rico, my family owned a little hotel, a guesthouse called El Canario. It was my mother’s house when she grew up. My grandmother, Rocío — which  means “morning dew,” isn’t that so pretty? — lived next door. That’s the Latino way: Family lives near each other and gets together a lot, over food. My parents would often invite our American hotel guests back to our place across the street for drinks. Dad had this tiki bar in our apartment and he’d swish up daiquiris and piña coladas, and Mom would make delicious dishes, often Puerto Rican traditional ones. I’d watch her in the kitchen. I wanted to do that when I grew up.

Kim’s family owned El Canario Hotel near San Juan, Puerto Rico, where they’d invite guests to their apartment-cum-tiki-bar across the street.

Now I’m the grownup hosting family holiday meals, and if I want to make authentic dishes from my childhood, the only way to get them is straight from Mom. There are lots of good blogs, but when I consult the major recipe websites, they don’t get Latino food right. They often mix up Mexican and Puerto Rican, Dominican, Cuban and so on. They water down the flavors and ingredients. They use the wrong kind of rice or not-quite-right spices. It seems like they see all Latinos as one monolithic Hispanic food segment. Sometimes, they’ll have a talented chef doing a traditional dish “Nuevo Latino” style. Which usually sounds great and I’m all for innovation, but it will list 20+ ingredients and steps. You couldn’t make it for a normal, daily, family dinner. 

Kim, with her son, Bob

For years, I’d think to myself: That’s not how Latina abuelas — our good-cook grandmothers — would make that dish. Why overcomplicate?  And how do we keep their recipes alive?

So I determined to do something about it. I decided to create a website with only authentic abuela cooking. We’d publish the favorite family recipes of Latino/a/x homecooks who have their go-tos dishes memorized. Who know when and how to break traditional food rules — and when not to. They are the OG keepers of our culinary traditions.

Mmmmm…nachos!

When did you get the idea for the site? 

The specific idea for Familia Kitchen, a crowdsourced and curated Latino/a/x family recipes and food stories website, came to me the week of Christmas 2019, when I was trying to find a Puerto Rican recipe online — and struck out. 

Nine months later, like a baby: Familia Kitchen launched. Our mission is to celebrate and collect Latinx families’ favorite recipes, as we really make them. We’ll go country by country, island by island, memorializing families’ favorite recipes before they get lost to time. 

Kim, Lisa and Ana decided to found Familia Kitchen — the kind of Latinx recipe site they dreamed of.

What’s your site’s mission?

Our dream is to create the best, biggest and most authentic treasury of Latinx culinary legacies — for all 19 Spanish-speaking destinations in Latin and Central America and the Caribbean — showcasing their simplicity and sophistication. Very important: We’ll celebrate the home cooks who submit by posting their bylines, family food stories and cook’s notes.

Boricua-style Puerto Rican rice with chicken. Sharing your family’s recipes on Familia Kitchen could score you a free trip home!

Tell us about your recipe contests. 

One of the ways Familia Kitchen will gather the best traditional Latinx recipes is by inviting users to submit to our 12 Familia Kitchen recipe contests a year. Each month, we’ll feature one defining dish from a Latinx country or island and invite cooks to submit their family’s favorite. In October, we launched with Your Familia’s Favorite Puerto Rican Arroz con Pollo. In November, we switched to Your Familia’s Favorite Mexican Pozole. We will publish every recipe and food story submitted. They’re all authentic, time-honored and loved. 

Familia Kitchen will build our culinary treasury one recipe, one food story at a time.

At the end of each year, the cook who submits the “most popular” family recipe — the most likes, most shares, most comments — will win a trip (flight, hotel, an amazing meal) for two to their Latinx homeland. Our tagline is “Cooking your way home” — and Familia Kitchen is excited to literally make that happen for one Latinx cook and their plus-one each year. We’ll also donate 5% of our profits each year to a Feeding America Latino community program.

What’s your favorite aspect of Latinx cuisine?
The richness of the regionality of each Latinx nation’s flavors and food histories. And the way each destination’s food is different from each other in foundational ways, yet in the same food family. Cuban and Argentinian cuisines are pretty different, yet they are both unmistakably “Latino.”

Family gathered to celebrate young Kim’s birthday.

What’s the best part about cooking?

Feeding people you love: friends and family. I also love experiencing someone’s life and family through their food stories and memories. When they tell you that this is the very beef picadillo that they always ate at their grandparents’ house on Father’s Day when they were growing up. And then you make that picadillo, with its hints of that family’s own way of cooking and living — you can literally taste a time and place and people. Food anthropology.

One of Kim’s favorite recipes: pasteles with pork, wrapped in banana leaves

What are some of your favorite recipes?

I love so many. We have a recipe for pasteles with pork, green bananas and yautia from a friend I went to elementary school with that takes me back in time to Puerto Rico of 100 years ago. My husband’s cousin Anjie, whose family came from Spain to New Mexico in the 1600s, submitted their never-see-it-anywhere-else recipe for sweet chile rellenos with hatch chiles that is a revelation. A friend, Susana, who is from Peru, sent me her family recipe for the fish ceviche they eat at the beach. What an honor. 

And one of my co-founders, Ana: Her husband Brian writes a regular column for us called “Guero Corner.” Guero is a nickname Mexicans give light-haired people. The funny thing is he’s the gringo family cook who sits with his Mexican mother-in-law, an amazing abuela cocinera nicknamed Gollita. One of our most popular recipes on the site right now is his: Gollita’s porkchops with tomatoes and onions, which are unlike any porkchops I’ve had before. They are tangy, textured and so easy! My husband and son said they are the best chops they have ever had, and now I make them on the regular.

What do you love about “abuela cooking,” as you call it?

Grandmother cooking — it’s the best. Here’s why: It’s trusted. It’s been honed over decades to its most simple and delicious version. It’s fast, because abuelas know how to get dinner on the table quickly. And it’s authentic, because it comes from their heart and their homeland soil.

Tacos could be one of the most versatile of dishes, with a potentially infinite amount of variations — almost always tasty.

What ingredients are essential for a Latinx home chef?

For all Latinx cuisines? I’d have to say rice, of course, as well as garlic — which means we all need a good garlic press to squeeze every liquidy last bit from each clove. 

If Wally sees a cubano on the menu, there’s no turning back.

What’s something most people don’t know about Latinx cuisine?

How complex and sophisticated each country’s dishes are. They’re not as spicy as people think. And how wide the range of cuisine is. Peruvian is as different from Mexican cuisine as German is from Italian food.

Wally has already whipped up a huge batch of Doña Felipa’s sofrita — and is experimenting by putting it on pretty much everything he can think of.

Tell us about Doña Felipa, your neighborhood “abuela.”

One day I heard someone speaking Spanish while watering her back garden, which is literally next to my house in Chicago. I could tell from the woman’s accent she was from Puerto Rico. What are the chances? I waited for her to finish her phone call, introduced myself, and we immediately started talking. 

Doña Felipa, who is 83, and I discovered we both love cooking, and that cemented our friendship. She and I spend a lot of time at her kitchen counter, while she chops and teaches me how she makes our island’s most traditional dishes. Even now we do that, wearing masks.

Doña Felipa loves to tell stories of growing up on the western side of the island and raising her kids in Chicago. She spoils us with Puerto Rican food packages all the time. Last month, she brought over a little statue of El Niño Divino, the divine child Jesus, to watch over our health and house. She blessed me right there on the street in front of our house, on busy Diversey. Total abuela thing to do.

Everyone should live next to a Puerto Rican abuela. 

Or the next closest thing: Cook like one. #abuelacooking

Spicy Old Fashioned Recipe

Ancho Reyes is the secret ingredient that will give this rye classic cocktail the kick you never knew it needed. 

Our old fashioned with a kick is inspired by a trip we took to Mexico City.

Here’s a typical scenario over dinner:

Duke and l take a few bites, then: “This is good. But it’d be better if…” I’ll dart into the kitchen and come back with sriracha, hot sauce or red pepper flakes. We sprinkle it on our meal and nod in agreement. “Much better!”

That’s my way of saying that Duke and I have gotten to the point where we prefer pretty much everything to be spicy — and that now extends to our cocktails. 

We first discovered the wonder of Ancho Reyes during our stay at the Ignacia Guest House in Mexico City. Every evening around twilight they’d have a happy hour, featuring a different cocktail and some nibblies. (This is when we first tried crickets, which is a whole other story — though I bet I would’ve liked them more if they were spicy!) 

On a couple of nights, the drinks the hotel served had a delightful kick. When Duke asked what was in them, we heard, “Ancho Reyes,” but had no idea what it was — or that it would soon become one of our favorite boozes. This spicy liqueur is crafted from ancho chilies, which are dried and smoked poblano peppers. 

Here’s how Wine Enthusiast describes Ancho Reyes: “Caramel-y brown in the glass, look for a lightly herbaceous aroma similar to root beer and rounded flavors that mix caramel and cocoa with raisin and cinnamon heat, with a faint smokiness on the finish.” I’m no connoisseur, but that sounds like a lot of pretentious prattle to me. Just know it’s got a bit of a kick and would be great to add to a margarita or, as Duke and I have been whipping up of late, an old fashioned. 

Equal parts rye and Ancho Reyes figure into this spicy old fashioned — and don’t forget the orange bitters.

Spicy Old Fashioned Ingredients

• 1 shot Ancho Reyes

• 1 shot rye

• ⅓ shot simple syrup 

• 4 dashes orange bitters

• 1 dash aromatic bitters 

Add all of the ingredients to a cocktail shaker, then fill with ice. (I double the recipe to do two at once.) Give it a good shake, shake, shake, and pour over ice — preferably one nice big square cube. 

Garnish with a slice of orange peel. 

If there’s one ingredient you can skip it’s the bitters. I just add a dash cuz I feel bad for it. Really, the orange bitters are all you need. 

Duke likes Bulleit, while I prefer Old Overholt — a highly rated rye at a great price.

If you’re out of rye, bourbon will do. 

Make a couple of these and put on a British murder mystery. You may never want another kind of old fashioned again. –Wally

I Feel Like a Zombie Tiki Drink

Wally’s new favorite drink is a modern twist on a tiki classic, created by Chelsea Napper, bartender extraordinaire.

We just might have found you the perfect summertime cocktail: the I Feel Like a Zombie.

There’s just something so appealing about a tiki bar. All those masks and idols that are about as spooky as something out of a Scooby-Doo cartoon. The kooky glasses shaped like skulls or grimacing, bug-eyed faces. Those superstrong, fruity drinks that will knock you on your ass — some of which get set on fire! And, of course, the brightly colored garnishes, including cocktail umbrellas and bananas carved to look like dolphins.

So when you’re stuck at home (perhaps in the midst of a global pandemic) and the sun is shining and all vacations are canceled and you’re yearning for a bit of the tropics, consider whipping up a batch of I Feel Like a Zombies. 

Such was the case when we ordered a delicious tasting menu from Mr. Oiishi, a takeout and delivery concept launched during the coronavirus quarantine, where various chefs create their take on Asian comfort food. 

When we saw cocktail kits dreamed up by Chelsea Napper, bar director at Yugen in Chicago’s oh-so-trendy Randolph Street Corridor, we had to try one out. 

Napper says she came up with the drink by “thinking about the flavors of the classic zombie tiki cocktail but much more modern.”

Which got me thinking: What exactly is the drink version of a zombie, and where did it originate?

Heavy on the rum, with just the right amount of pineapple and grapefruit, chances are you’ll feel like a I Feel Like a Zombie again soon.

The History of the Zombie Cocktail

The first imbibable zombie was created by the appropriately named Donn Beach, the patron saint of tiki bars. He was so worried about someone stealing his recipe that he went to great lengths to keep the ingredients a secret — even from his own bartenders. The recipe, from 1934, consisted only of code numbers that corresponded to otherwise unlabeled bottles on his bar. Although many have tried to hunt down the exact recipe, there’s a good chance it has been lost to the ages (though Beachbum Berry has made it a lifelong quest to uncover the secret formula — and just might have succeeded). 

Beach is said to have referred to the zombie as “a mender of broken dreams” — and one so potent he wouldn’t serve more than two to a customer.

Everything you need to make this twist on the tiki classic, the zombie, including shrub and syrup.

I Feel Like a Zombie Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 ounce dark rum

• 1 ounce light rum

• 1 ounce pineapple cinnamon shrub

• 1 ounce grapefruit syrup

• 1 slice dehydrated grapefruit

“I recommend a light and dark rum for this cocktail, but if you’ve only got one or the other, that totally works,” Napper says.

Duke did some research and landed on Diplomático Reserva Exclusiva for dark rum and Plantation 3 Stars for light rum, which we picked up at our friendly neighborhood liquor store, Foremost in Uptown.

What the Heck’s a Shrub?

I had never heard of shrubs before. They’re also known by the unappetizing designation of “vinegar cordial.” The last time I knowingly drank vinegar was during a halfhearted attempt to pass a drug test for a summer job I didn’t want.

Shrubs are nonalcoholic syrups made of concentrated fruit, aromatics, sugar and, yes, vinegar.

Why are they called shrubs? Turns out the name is derived from the Arabic word sharab, meaning “to drink.” Shrubs were all the rage in Colonial America, when they were a tasty way to preserve fruit. Their popularity died out with the introduction of factory foods and home refrigerators but have resurged during the mixology revolution and rise of cocktail bars that like to have at least half of the ingredients in their $15 drinks be of obscure origin. 

Here’s a pineapple shrub recipe to try. And a general guide to making shrubs, stating that they typically follow a 1:1:1 ratio of fruit, sugar and vinegar.

Grapefruit Simple Syrup

As a big fan of sangria and old fashioneds, I’m familiar with simple syrup. This is essentially sugar water, so there’s no denying tiki drinks are on the sweet side — though it’s offset by the high amount of alcohol and the tartness of the vinegar.

Try this recipe for grapefruit syrup. 

Preparation

Once you’ve got everything you need, add the shrub and syrup to a cocktail shaker. Then add in the rum. 

Fill the shaker 3/4 of the way with ice and give it a good shake for about 10 seconds.

Strain and serve over fresh ice.

Garnish with a cocktail umbrella and dried grapefruit slice if you’re feeling fancy. Bonus points for serving in tiki glasses! –Wally

Milk Bar Compost Cookies

Some people call them garbage cookies or kitchen sink cookies. While you’re baking up a storm at home, throw in whatever sweet and savory snacks that are near the bottom of the bag into this sinfully delicious dessert recipe.

Compost cookies: decadent and the perfect meeting of savory and sweet

It seems surreal now, as we move into the third month of our coronavirus quarantine. But back in early February, before the world screeched to a halt, I was in New York on a business trip and walked past one of Milk Bar’s locations, the sister bakery to the Momofuku restaurant group. It was around 9 p.m. and it was still hopping, so I decided not to go in. 

Since we won’t be going to NYC any time soon, I decided to make their famous compost cookies at home. You may wonder why they’re called compost cookies, or, alternately, garbage or kitchen sink cookies. Whatever you want to call them, there’s no denying how addictive and delicious they are. They’re the perfect marriage between satisfying my sweet tooth (with dark chocolate chunks and toffee bits) and Wally’s savory cravings (featuring one of his favorite snacks, potato chips). Although there are a lot of ingredients that go into these, what’s great about them is that you can easily incorporate and use up whatever you have on hand.

“Compost cookies are easy and comforting to make — an ideal recipe to add to your rotation, during, say, a global pandemic, especially if you’ve grown tired of making banana bread.”

It’s a great recipe for someone like my mom who’s known to throw random ingredients into her recipes. Compost cookies are easy and comforting to make — an ideal recipe to add to your rotation, during, say, a global pandemic, especially if you’ve grown tired of making banana bread.

Luckily for us, Christina Tosi, the award-winning chef, creative force and owner of Milk Bar, has graciously shared her recipes for their baked goods on their website. It seemed downright serendipitous when Tosi showed up as a guest judge on Nailed It! on Netflix as we were munching on the compost cookies I had baked.

I’ve made a couple of minor tweaks. The first batch I tried at the suggested temperature of 375°F came out more flat and crispy than I would like — Wally didn’t mind, but I can admittedly be a bit neurotic about these things. I don’t know if our oven is simply too hot, but I reduced the temperature to 350°F, and the baking time from 18 minutes to 12, with better results. 

The dough has so many bits and chunks in it — it’s seriously bonkers how many different things are in these cookies! For the best results, I recommend scooping out your dough with a 1½-inch-diameter cookie scoop and placing the balls in a resealable container in the freezer overnight. But if you can’t wait that long, a couple of hours will suffice. –Duke

Compost cookies are a fun take on chocolate chip cookies that pack in your favorite snacks.

Servings: 24 cookies

Active Time: 30 minutes 

Total Time: 2 hours, plus an optional overnight chill

Potato chips, toffee, chocolate, pretzels — throw in whatever you’ve got left in the pantry!

INGREDIENTS

• 16 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature 

• 1 cup granulated sugar

• ⅔ cup light brown sugar, tightly packed 

• 1 tablespoon light corn syrup

• 1 egg

• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract

• 1⅓ cups flour

• ½ teaspoon baking powder

• ¼ teaspoon baking soda

• 1 teaspoon kosher salt

• ¾ cup chocolate chunks 

• ½ cup Heath toffee bits 

• ⅓ cup old-fashioned rolled oats

• 2½ teaspoons ground coffee

• 2 cups potato chips

• 1 cup mini pretzels 

The first step is mix up the ingredients that could be used for a graham cracker crust — though here they’ll just create the base for the cookie dough.

GRAHAM CRACKER “CRUST”

• 1½ cups graham cracker crumbs

• ¼ cup milk powder

• 2 tablespoons sugar

• ¾ teaspoon kosher salt 

• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature 

• ¼ cup heavy cream

The graham cracker “crust”

PREPARATION

Start with what Tosi calls a graham crust. I’m looking forward to trying this on the next Key lime pie I make, but here it’s used as a textural component in the cookies. Toss the graham cracker crumbs, milk powder, sugar and salt with your hands in a medium bowl to evenly distribute your dry ingredients.

Add the butter to the dry ingredients and toss again to evenly distribute. Then add the heavy cream. The butter and cream will act as a glue, adhering to the dry ingredients and turning the mixture into small pea-sized clusters. The crust should hold its shape if squeezed tightly in the palm of your hand. If it isn’t moist enough, mix in an additional 1 to 1½ tablespoons of butter.

Next, move onto the cookie dough. Combine the butter, sugars and corn syrup in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. I swear by my KitchenAid stand mixer, but an old-school hand mixer will work, too. Cream together the ingredients on medium-high for 2 to 3 minutes. Using a spatula, scrape down the sides of the bowl, add the egg and vanilla, and beat for 7 to 8 minutes more. 

Reduce the speed to low and add the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. I usually add this in batches to prevent the flour from flying out of the bowl. Mix until the dough comes together, no longer than 1 minute. (Do not walk away from the appliance during this step, or you will risk over-mixing the dough.) Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula.

Still on low speed, add the chocolate chunks, toffee bits, graham cracker crust, oats and coffee, and mix until just incorporated, about 30 seconds. Add the potato chips and pretzels, still on low speed, until just incorporated. When you’re adding the potato chips and mini pretzels, it’s best not to mix them too much; you want to retain irregular bits and pieces. That way you can taste the salty-sweetness of the cookie.

Duke recommends freezing the dough for better results — if you can stand the wait!

Using a 1½-inch-diameter cookie scoop, portion out the dough equally. I make a dome shape that’s flat on the bottom. Don’t bake your cookies at room temperature — they will end up flat like a pancake. Mine still came out pretty flat, but the longer I froze the dough, the more shape they kept. Place inside a resealable container and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or freeze overnight. 

A cookie scoop helps shape the dough.

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Arrange pre-scooped cookie dough a minimum of 4 inches apart on parchment or silpat-lined sheet pans.

Bake for 12 minutes. The cookies will puff, crackle and spread. After 12 minutes, they should be golden-brown. Give them an extra minute or so if that’s not the case.

Cool the cookies completely on the sheet pans before transferring to a plate or an airtight container for storage. Wally learned this the hard way — he wanted to have these right out of the oven, but the cookies didn’t have enough time to solidify. At room temp, cookies will keep fresh for five days; in the freezer, they will keep for one month.

Call ’em what you will — compost, garbage, kitchen sink — but these Milk Bar-inspired cookies are delicious by any name.

Turkish Coffee Buns

Try Caleb’s twist — see what we did there? — on glazed cinnamon cardamom buns, where he activates the yeast in coffee instead of milk. (Believe it or not, it works!)

These delectable treats look almost too good to eat!

I recently had some amazing Turkish coffee buns at Lula Cafe in Chicago’s Logan Square neighborhood, and ever since I had been wondering if I could activate yeast in coffee instead of water or milk. So I tried it!

I made my own version of the buns and I’m quite proud of the bake. –Caleb

Servings: 8

Active Time:  1 hour, 10 minutes

Total Time: 5 hours, 20 minutes, plus an overnight proof

Brew up some coffee…

…cuz you’ll be activating the yeast in it!

INGREDIENTS

Dough

• 1 cup freshly brewed coffee

• 1 teaspoon honey

• 1 tablespoon active dry yeast

• 1 egg

• 1 egg yolk

• 3½ cups bread flour (all-purpose is fine, too)

• ½ cup granulated sugar

• 1½ teaspoon ground cardamom (from about 3 teaspoons of pods)

• 1 teaspoon fine kosher salt

• 6 tablespoons room-temperature unsalted butter, plus more for bowl

You’ve got to proof the dough overnight — and this is a step you can’t skip!

Roll out the dough before the twists and turns take place.

Filling and Assembly

• 6 tablespoons room-temperature unsalted butter 

• 2 tablespoons instant coffee or espresso powder

• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

• 1½ cups (packed) brown sugar, divided

• all-purpose flour (for surface)
  

PREPARATION

Dough

Brew fresh coffee, and allow it to cool until lukewarm, ideally 110ºF-115ºF—any hotter and you’ll kill the yeast.

Pour the coffee into the large bowl of a stand mixer. Whisk in the honey and yeast, and let it sit for 10-15 minutes until there’s a layer of foam on the surface. This means the yeast is active.

Add the egg, egg yolk, flour, granulated sugar, cardamom and salt to the yeast mixture and mix with the dough hook on low speed until well combined. 

Increase the speed to medium and continue to mix until the dough is smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes. 

Gradually add butter, 1 tablespoon at a time. When you’ve added 6 tablespoons, mix until the dough is smooth, supple and shiny for 10-15 minutes to develop the gluten.

Transfer the dough to a large buttered bowl, cover with plastic wrap and a kitchen towel, and let it sit at room temperature until doubled in size, 1-1 ½ hours. 

Punch the dough down, cover the bowl tightly in plastic wrap and chill overnight. This is an important step: Don’t skip it. The slow proof creates more flavor because it gives the yeast more time to process the sugar.

Knotty, knotty: You might need to watch a tutorial on how to get your buns looking so good.

Filling and Assembly

Mix the butter, cinnamon and 1/2 cup brown sugar in a medium bowl until combined.

Work quickly and keep the dough as chilled as possible to make rolling more manageable. Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured piece of parchment paper and roll to a ¼-inch-thick rectangle, about 16 inches by 12 inches. Cover with plastic and chill until the dough is firm, 30-60 minutes.

Spread the butter mixture over two-thirds of the dough. Fold the plain side over the middle, then fold the opposite third over (like folding an envelope). Roll to a 12-inch-by-8-inch rectangle about ½-inch thick. Slice lengthwise into eight 1-inch-thick strips.

Working one at a time, lay each strip on a clean work surface with the long side facing you. Using your palms, gently twist each end in opposite directions until the entire strip is spiraled. Hold one end of the strip between your thumb and index finger. Working away from you, tightly wrap the strip around three fingers. Wrap it around your fingers again, placing the second loop closer to the palm of your hand. As you bring the strip across the back of your hand, cross over the first loop, angling toward the end of your index finger. Cross the dough over the front of your hand and tuck the end into the center while removing your fingers and pushing through to the other side to create a knot. 

If all of that seems a bit much, Epicurious has kindly offered up step shots. Whatever shape you make, just be sure the knots are tight.

Divide the twists between two rimmed baking sheets, spacing them evenly apart. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let them sit at room temperature until they’ve doubled in size, 45-60 minutes.

Place the racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven.

Preheat to 325°F. 

Bake the coffee buns, rotating pans from top to bottom and front to back halfway through, until they’re deeply golden brown, 25-30 minutes.

Bring the remaining 1 cup brown sugar and ½ cup water to a boil in a small saucepan. Generously brush the syrup over the hot buns. FYI: The glaze recipe makes enough for two or three rounds of brushing. Beware — brushing this many times will make for a sweet and sticky bun. Which, don't get me wrong, is delicious. But if you want less sweet, cut the recipe in half and brush the buns once. 

Syrupy sweetness! Don’t be shy with that glaze.

This take on Turkish coffee buns is one you won’t soon forget.

Note: If you want to make regular cinnamon buns with this recipe, consider the following swaps: 

• Activate the yeast in whole milk instead of coffee.

• Use 1 tablespoon of Chinese five-spice powder and 2 tablespoons of cinnamon (skipping the instant coffee or espresso powder).

Dig in!

Cold Soup Recipe: Carrot and Healing Roots Bisque With Crostini

Beat the heat with this bright and refreshing vegan chilled soup that will transport you to the enchanting open-air pavilion of Herb Library in Ubud, Bali.

Can’t stand the heat? Whip up a batch of this refreshing cold soup we first had in Bali

This past week brought some hot and humid days, a little reminder that the dog days of summer have arrived in Chicago. Naturally, I found myself wanting to be cooler and craving the creamy, chilled carrot and healing roots bisque I enjoyed when Wally and I dined at Herb Library in Ubud, Bali this past spring. Their menu is an extension of the Alaya Jembawan Resort’s wellness concept and features healthy and delicious options.

The bisque was silky smooth, light and delicious, like the brightness of the Balinese sun in a bowl. Ginger, galangal, garlic and earthy turmeric give the soup its complex layers, while carrots serve as the foundation. Carrots are high in beta-Carotene, which works inside our bodies as an antioxidant, while ginger, galangal and turmeric purge toxins and reduce inflammation. Plus, with a bit of prep, these nutritious ingredients cook up quickly, and when blitzed in a blender, give the soup a velvety texture.

“The bisque is silky smooth, light and delicious, like the brightness of the Balinese sun in a bowl. ”

This recipe was kindly provided by Herb Library’s executive sous chef, Wayan Adhe Suwetha. The soup is substantial enough on its own, but can be served with crostini and a mixed greens salad. I like to finish mine with a good dollop of plain yogurt or swirl of coconut milk to round out the flavors.

Servings: 4

Turmeric, garlic, galangal, ginger, carrots and green onions form the base of this summertime bisque

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons virgin coconut oil
• 3½ tablespoons green onion, white part only
• 4 cups carrots (about 1½ lbs), peeled and finely diced
• 1 tablespoon garlic
• 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, minced
• 1 tablespoon fresh galangal, minced
• pinch of grated kencur
• pinch or more of red pepper flakes
• ⅛ teaspoon salt
• ⅛ teaspoon ground pepper
• pinch of cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon turmeric
• 4 cups water
   

Preparation

Melt coconut oil in a large pot over medium-high heat.

Add the whites of green onions, ginger, galangal and garlic. Sauté 2 minutes, until glossy.

Add carrots and spice mixture. The kencur is optional but adds another layer to this soup. I purchased mine online through Épices de Cru. Sauté 1 minute, stirring to coat carrots.

Add 4 cups water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover partially and simmer until carrots are very tender, about 20 minutes. Cool slightly.

Purée soup in batches until smooth. Season with salt and pepper.

I recommend making it a day ahead — that way you get more depth of flavor and it’ll be properly chilled.

If the soup is too thick, thin with more water.

Ladle into bowls. Serve with crostini and salad.

Crostini

Ingredients

• 12 day-old baguette slices, ¼ inch thick
• ¼ cup unsalted butter, melted
• chives, to taste
• garlic, to taste

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Mix in chives and garlic to melted butter. Brush both sides of bread with butter. (Try olive oil instead to keep this recipe vegan.) Place in a single layer on a baking sheet.

Bake until golden brown, about 15 minutes, turning halfway through baking. –Duke

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Mulligatawny Soup: Where It Originated and How to Make It

One of the more flavorful (and seemingly bizarre) soup recipes, this Indian dish has many variations. Here’s our favorite.

British colonists in India insisted on a soup course — and mulligatawny was born

The British historically aren’t known for their culinary skills. Sure, they can whip up a myriad of delicious cakes, as The Great British Baking Show has taught us. But when it comes to meals, many Brits are as bland as can be. My Welsh grandmother once told me, “The only spices you need are salt and pepper.” I disagreed, and with the rise of curry shops around England, the British eventually came around as well. It’s strange to me that a country that colonized so many parts of the world took so long to add bold flavors to its cuisine.

When you try mulligatawny soup, there’s no denying it’s an unexpected but delicious blending of British and Indian culinary styles.

The Origins of Mulligatawny Soup

Indian meals are traditionally served all at once, the containers placed in the center of the table, family-style, with everyone digging in and helping themselves to the shared dishes.

During the British Raj, between 1858 and 1947, when the sun never set on the British Empire, the fussy British colonists and soldiers refused to alter their way of dining, which I’m sure they felt was much more civilized. And that included a soup course.

Well, there wasn’t really an Indian soup, per se, so the servants would water down one of their occupiers’ favorite dishes, milagu tannir, which translates to “pepper water” in Tamil, a southern Indian dialect. (One source says the dish was molegoo tunes, a broth drunk by poor Sri Lankans.) The British never seemed to worry about pronouncing things incorrectly, and they garbled the dish until it came out mulligatawny, as it’s known today.

The colonists brought mulligatawny back to Britain, where it’s a staple on pub menus, though the recipe varies widely. We’re partial to the version my mom makes.

Ingredients

• 2-3 stalks celery, thinly sliced

• 2 chicken breasts, cooked, cooled and shredded

• 5 garlic cloves, minced

• 3 tablespoons garam masala

• 2 teaspoons curry powder

• 8 cups chicken broth

• 2 bay leaves

• 1 teaspoon ground ginger

• 2 tablespoons olive oil

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter

• 2½ cups onion, chopped

• 3 large Granny Smith apples, diced

• 1 small can diced green chilies

• 2 cups carrots, chopped

• 3 tablespoons lemon juice

• 1 14-ounce can diced tomatoes

• Salt and pepper to taste

• 1 cup heavy cream
   

Apples, curry, carrots, garam masala, chicken, green chilies and onions all come together in a surprisingly cohesive and delicious meal

Preparation

Put oil and butter in a skillet until it melts.

Sauté onion for 4-5 minutes.

Add garlic, sautéing for 2 minutes.

Add the rest of the ingredients to a large pot, except the heavy cream. Cover and simmer.

Ladle out some of the warm liquid and slowly add the heavy cream while stirring. This will help prevent the cream from curdling. Add it back to the pot and cover.

Simmer for at least an hour. The longer the better.

Serve with fresh parsley (and a dollop of sour cream if you’d like).

Back in the day, the heavy cream was coconut milk, so feel free to substitute that.

The original recipe also called for a potato (peeled and chopped), but the Shirl swaps this out for another apple. You can’t tell the difference, she says, and she likes the added sweetness. –Wally

Chana Masala Recipe

Also known as chole, this Indian recipe will satisfy your craving for curry.

The delicious chana masala we had at a roadside restaurant while visiting the Ajanta Caves in India inspired us to hunt down a similar recipe

Wally and I can’t get enough of spicy food. Our favorite cuisines employ heat as part of their flavor profile, and neither of us can resist a good curry or salsa with a bit of a lingering heat. In fact, when we cook from a recipe, we always double the spice.

As temperatures drop, I find my mind wandering off to the memory of Wally and I eating the most delicious chana masala at a dhaba, a roadside restaurant, on our return from the Ajanta Caves in Maharashtra, India.  

The nourishing, flavorful stew, made with chickpeas and diced tomatoes, is a simple, adaptable dish. It's begun like most curries, with garlic, ginger and onion, simmered in an aromatic mixture of traditional Indian spices like cumin, garam masala, coriander and turmeric.

An ingredient worth adding to your pantry, and what gives channa masala its sour citrus note is amchoor powder, a tart and earthy spice made from dried unripe green mangoes. You can order amchoor powder here, or substitute with a squeeze of lemon juice.

Top the chana masala with a dollop of cooling yogurt and serve with naan or basmati rice. Ours gets heat from serrano chiles, but if you’d prefer something less spicy, simply omit one of the peppers.

Yield: 6 to 8 servings
Active Time: 1½ to 2 hours
Total Time: 8 to 12 hours for soaking the garbanzo beans
 

Chickpeas and aromatic spices are at the heart of this chana masala recipe

Minced peppers, onions and ginger add to the flavor profile

Ingredients

• 16 ounces garbanzo beans (chickpeas)
• salt
• ⅓ cup peanut oil
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 1 large yellow onion, chopped
• 1½ teaspoons ground turmeric
• 2 fresh serrano peppers, minced
• 8 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 3-inch piece of ginger, peeled and roughly chopped
• 14.5 ounces diced tomatoes, juices reserved
• 2 tablespoons ground chana masala spice blend
• 1 tablespoon ground garam masala
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• juice of 1 lemon
• ¾ teaspoon amchoor (dried mango) powder
• cooked basmati rice for serving (optional)
• chopped cilantro for garnish (optional)
   

We like to rehydrate garbanzo beans, but if you have less time, canned chickpeas will work as well

Preparation

Put the chickpeas in a large pot and add enough water to cover them by 3 to 4 inches. Soak the beans 8 hours or overnight.

Drain the chickpeas in a colander and rinse well under cold water. Add them to a large pot, cover the beans with several inches of water and bring to a boil.

Reduce the heat to medium-high and cook until the chickpeas are tender, 1 to 1½ hours. When the chickpeas are mostly tender, add a few large pinches of salt to the pot. Drain well, rinse with cold water to stop cooking and transfer to a bowl.

Purée the ginger and garlic in a food processor until it forms a paste.
Heat oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. When it’s hot, add the onions and season with salt, stirring occasionally, until they begin to soften, 3 to 5 minutes.

Add the turmeric and diced serrano peppers and continue cooking until the onions are caramelized, about 5 to 7 minutes.

Add the garlic and ginger paste, stirring occasionally, for another 2 minutes.

Add the chickpeas, tomatoes, chana masala spice mixture, garam masala, cumin and sugar. Cover and simmer over medium heat until the chickpeas are tender and the mixture has thickened slightly, about 30 minutes. Stir in the amchoor powder and lemon juice.

Serve hot, over basmati rice or with naan, and garnish with cilantro, if desired. –Duke