In February we were honored by the Times Online and of course I mean we because without you I’d be long gone. After that we ate strong cheese .

In March things looked different. NotWithoutSalt.com was born. And we drank great coffee.

In April we made butter.

Then in May we hit the big time. We hopped on a plane to L.A. to see a screening of Food, Inc. and to have a one on one interview with the director – at his home, while he ate his breakfast (this was all thanks to my brother who was a cinematographer for the film).

Garlic Scapes filled us with joy in June.

In July Bacon Caramels satisfied our sweet and salty cravings.

We learned how to render lard in August.

In September we took a field trip to the Orchard then made caramel worthy of those apples.

A-hunting-we-did-go in October.

In November we learned all about coffee. More coffee. Coffee, cont’d.

And finally in December we covered ourselves in sugar. Cookies, candies, cakes, trifles and shortbread with onion jam.

Thanks to all of you for an incredible year. Here’s to an even more memorable one in 2010!

Have a fun New Year’s celebration. I will be ringing in the new year learning all about duck. More on this later.

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I realize that it has been weeks and quite possibly longer  since I’ve posted something savory. ‘Tis the Season! But don’t worry mom, I have been eating my vegetables  – it’s just so fun to talk about sugar.

That changes today. Sort of. There is still sugar in the recipe but there is also an ingredient that you may be unfamiliar with – fennel pollen.

Thanks to the lovely Jennifer Perillo from “In Jennie’s Kitchen”, I was gifted a generous supply of this sweet spice.

Peggy Knickbocker wrote, in an article for Saveur, “If angels sprinkled a spice from their wings, this would be it.” I couldn’t agree more. Anything that resembles fennel in its sweet anise flavor is a winner in my book but fennel pollen goes above and beyond anise. It’s as if it takes all that is good with that subtley sweet licorice essence and makes it a thousand times better. The aroma is floral and intoxicating.  One smell and I suddenly wish I was a bee so I could cover myself in it. I guess I don’t have to be a bee to do that but it would be quite expensive as fennel pollen is nearly as costly as saffron.

The recipe for these fennel pollen cookies is nearly the same as yesterday’s chocolate chip shortbread with a touch more salt and minus the vanilla. I served them with a tart and sweet onion jam and a smokey blue cheese from Rogue River Creamery and let me just tell you the angels were singing. In one bite I tasted sweet, salty, smokey and a soft vinegar bite. The finishing taste was the fennel pollen as it lingered on my tongue, hanging there for a bit – I begged it not to go but once it did I popped another one in my mouth.

If time allows I hope to give all those I love dearly a little jar of onion jam and package of the fennel pollen shortbread. They will be happy.

Continue along for the recipes.

Onion Jam

adapted from Food & Wine

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

2 medium sweet onions, julienned 

1/2 cup sugar

1/3 cup dry red wine

1/3 cup red wine vinegar

1/3 cup grenadine

Salt

Melt the butter in a medium skillet. Add the onions and cook over moderate heat, stirring, until soft and just translucent, about 8 minutes. Add the sugar, wine, vinegar, grenadine and a pinch of salt. Cook over low heat, stirring, until the liquid thickens and coats the back of a spoon, about 35 minutes. Transfer the onion jam to a bowl and let cool.

Note: I doubled the recipe and it worked beautifully. The cooking time was 45 minutes to 1hour.

Fennel Pollen Shortbread
Wild Fennel Pollen can be ordered online. Besides shortbread, fennel pollen, makes an incredible rub on lamb and pork. Sprinkle on salads or roasted vegetables to give an intriguing floral-anise flavor.

adapted from Ina Garten

Ingredients

3/4 pound butter, softened

1 cup sugar

3 1/2 cups flour

1 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon fennel pollen, plus more for rolling

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

In the bowl of an electric mixer with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and 1 cup of sugar until they are just combined. Add the fennel pollen. In a medium bowl, sift together, with a whisk, flour and salt; then add them to the butter-and-sugar mixture. Mix on low speed until the dough starts to come together. Roll into a log about 2 inches in diameter. Sprinkle a generous amount of fennel pollen to cover the the log. Cover in wax paper or parchment. Chill until firm.

Carefully slice the log into 1/4″ cookies. Place the cookies on an sheet pan covered with parchment. Bake for 11-13 minutes, until the edges begin to brown. Allow to cool to room temperature.

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I had a craving the other night. It was a very specific craving that, not surprisingly, involved chocolate and I wanted it in cookie form. I knew that I wanted it to be buttery with a texture that crumbles in your mouth as sand would except not as repulsive as the idea of eating sand. Not chewy or crispy nor too complex rather it must be soft and sweet and as fragile as the Christmas ornaments that my 1 1/2 year keeps on shattering.

My craving ceased as I bit into a *store bought* (?!?!! – sometimes I like it when someone else does the baking for me). The texture was perfect and the mini chocolate chips studded throughout provided a depth and rich sweetness that brought me much delight. The peppermint ice cream that I used to wash down the cookie also added to my enjoyment.

It was a shortbread cookie. Traditionally shortbread is made from one part sugar, two parts butter and three parts flour. Classically the flour was oatmeal flour but today it is more common to use white flour. Some people go real crazy and throw in ground rice or cornflour to give the cookie an interesting texture.

The high amount of fat (in this case, butter) gives these cookies their soft and crumbly texture. The butter generously coats the flour limiting gluten formation. The resulting cookie is unbelievably tender and simply melts in your mouth.

The next day the craving returned. My husband kindly sought out the mini chocolate chips from the grocery store while I began to mix.

The recipe I used is an adaptation from Ina Garten. She doesn’t shy away from butter and I LOVE her for that. With this recipe’s high amount of butter and lack of eggs I knew that it would provide the texture I was craving. I wasn’t disappointed.

This dough can be made in advance then rolled into a log. Wrap in wax paper or parchment paper then slice and bake when the craving strikes.

Chocolate Chip Shortbread

adapted from Ina Garten

Ingredients

3/4 pound butter, softened

1 cup sugar, plus extra for sprinkling

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

3 1/2 cups flour

3/4 teaspoon kosher salt

12 ounces mini chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

In the bowl of an electric mixer with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and 1 cup of sugar until they are just combined. Add the vanilla. In a medium bowl, sift together, with a whisk, flour and salt; then add them to the butter-and-sugar mixture. Mix on low speed until the dough starts to come together. Add the chocolate chips until just mixed in. Roll into a log about 2 inches in diameter. Cover in wax paper or parchment. Chill until firm.

Carefully slice the log into 1/4″ cookies. Place the cookies on an sheet pan covered with parchment. Bake for 11-13 minutes, until the edges begin to brown. Allow to cool to room temperature.

Note: The edges of the shortbread are ever so slightly sharper if you chill the cookies before baking them.

Stay tuned for a slighty savory application of this same recipe. In the meantime start softening some butter and get mixing.

Also, these cookies make for a great addition to your holiday cookie plates. They travel well and pack nicely as a little gift.

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The other day a smell permeated the house that was as comforting as slippers – the ones that are covered with wool then open up to a textured faux fur that tries to replicate the impossibly soft covering of a baby lamb. It was as fragrant as Lillies and so completely intoxicating I had a hard time concentrating on the task at hand.

I was poaching pears.

My nose was never more than six inches from the pot as I let the floral steam wash over my face like the most exhilarating spa treatment. My mind raced with ideas on how to use these pears daily  during this chilled season where their presence is simply perfect.

As I dreamed I dipped a little glass in to steal some of the poaching liquid and determined that it makes a rather delightful mulled wine.

On this occasion the pears found themselves covered in a white blanket of white chocolate mascarpone mousse. They became close neighbors with lady fingers that also became intoxicated with a reduced version of the poaching liquid. Everyone was happily capped with whipped cream and white chocolate curls.

The next day my pears became fast friends with a ginger and cardamom panna cotta.

Don’t you think for one minute that these pears need some fancy accompaniment to make them special enough for the Holidays. Oh no. They are, on their own, simply perfect. Serve with creme fraiche or whipped cream – oh and can you imagine what a creamy caramel would do for these spicy pears. Oh goodness.

White Chocolate Tiramisu Trifle with Spiced Pears
from Bon Appetit, December 2007
This is a great holiday “wow” dessert that is actually better made the day ahead. Space out your prep. You can make the pears and reduction 2 days ahead and assemble everything else the day before. Let rest in the fridge. This will give all the incredible flavors a chance to hang out and get to know one another.

Spiced Pears:
1 750-ml bottle dry white wine
2 cups pear juice or pear nectar
1 1/4 cups sugar
12 whole green cardamom pods, crushed in resealable plastic bag with mallet
4 1-inch-diameter rounds peeled fresh ginger (each about 1/8 inch thick)
2 cinnamon sticks, broken in half
7 large firm but ripe Anjou pears (3 to 31/4 pounds), peeled (the original recipe called for 5 but I wanted more. Feel free to make even more pears – you won’t be sorry)

White Chocolate Mascarpone Mousse:
7 ounces high-quality white chocolate (such as Lindt or Perugina), finely chopped
1/3 cup poire Williams (clear pear brandy) - I used apple brandy and I heard no complaints
1/4 cup water
1/2 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
1 8- to 8.8-ounce container mascarpone cheese
1 cup chilled heavy whipping cream

Trifle Assembly:
3 3-ounce packages soft ladyfingers, separated
2 cups chilled heavy whipping cream

White chocolate curls

1 tablespoon powdered sugar

For spiced pears:

Combine first 6 ingredients in large saucepan. Stir over medium-high heat until sugar dissolves. Add pears and bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium, cover, and simmer until pears are just tender when pierced with knife, about 35 minutes. Transfer liquid with pears to large bowl and refrigerate until cold, about 3 hours.

Using slotted spoon, transfer pears to plate. Boil poaching liquid in heavy large saucepan over medium-high heat until slightly thickened and reduced to generous 1 1/2 cups, about 15 minutes. Strain into 2-cup measuring cup; discard spices in strainer. Cool. Cover and chill pears and pear syrup until cold.
For mousse:

Combine white chocolate, pear or apple brandy, and 1/4 cup water in top of double boiler set over simmering water. (You can also do this in the microwave for 30 sec. increments – be very careful not to overheat) Stir until smooth (mixture will be very liquidy). Scrape in seeds from vanilla bean; discard bean. Transfer white chocolate mixture to large bowl; gradually add mascarpone, whisking until mixture is smooth. Cool mascarpone mixture until barely lukewarm.

Using electric mixer, beat 1 cup cream in medium bowl until peaks form. Fold whipped cream into mascarpone mixture in 4 additions. Cover and chill white chocolate mousse until set, about 3 hours. DO AHEAD: Pears and mousse can be made 1 day ahead. Keep chilled.
For trifle assembly:

Cut pears lengthwise in half and remove cores and stems; cut halves lengthwise into 1/4-inch-thick slices.

Arrange ladyfingers, rounded sides down, in single layer in bottom of 12-cup trifle dish (about 8 inches in diameter and 5 inches deep), covering bottom completely (using about 15 ladyfingers). Drizzle 5 tablespoons pear syrup evenly over ladyfingers. Using small offset spatula, spread 1/3 of white chocolate mousse over ladyfingers, making layer slightly thicker around outer edges of dish to allow mousse to be more visible (center of mousse layer will be thin). Starting at outer edges of dish, place pear slices in single layer with curved edges against sides of dish atop mousse, covering completely. Repeat layering of ladyfingers, syrup, mousse, and pears 2 more times. Cover with fourth layer of ladyfingers (some ladyfingers and pear slices may be left over). Drizzle ladyfingers evenly with 5 tablespoons syrup. DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate trifle and remaining pear syrup separately.

Using electric mixer, beat 2 cups whipping cream in large bowl until soft peaks form. Add 1/4 cup pear syrup and beat until stiff peaks form. Working in batches, transfer cream to large pastry bag fitted with large star tip. Pipe rosettes all over top of trifle, mounding slightly in center. Sprinkle with crystallized ginger. Garnish with chocolate curls. DO AHEAD: Can be made 6 hours ahead. Keep refrigerated.

Sift powdered sugar over trifle just before serving.

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