Bourbon and Chocolate Pecan Pie

Ingredients

Pie Pastry:

1 cup all-purpose flour,plus more for dusting

1/4 cup finely ground pecans

1 TBS Sugar

pinch of salt

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter.cold and cut into small chunks.

2 TBS ice water,plus more if needed

Filling :
1/4  cup(1/2 stick) unsalted buttter
2 oz of unsweetened chocolate
3 large eggs
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup dark corn syrup or sugar cane syrup
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
3 TBS bourbon
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups of pecan halves.

Directions:

To make the pastry:combine the flour,ground pecans,sugar,and salt in large bowl. Add butter and mix with a pastry blender or your hands until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Pour in the ice water and work it in to bind the dough until it holds together without being to wet or stickly. Squeese a small amount together ,if it is crumbly.add more ice water. 1 TBS at a time. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
Roll out dough on lightly floured surface in to a 12 inch circle. Carefully roll the dough up onto the pin and lay it inside a 9-inch pie pan. Press the dough into the pan so it fits tightly and trim the excess around the rim. Place pie pan on a sturdy cookie sheet so it will be easy to move in and out of the oven.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

To make filling :melt the butter and chocolate in a small saucepan over medium -low heat,remove from heat and let cool.  Beat eggs in large mixing bowl untill frothy and then blend in the sugar. Stir in the syrup, vanilla,bourbon,salt and the melted butter mixtue until well blended.
Arrange the pecans on the bottom of the pie crust and carefully pour the egg mixture over them.  Bake until the filling is set and slightly puffed,about 45 minutes. Test doneness by sticking a thin knife in the center of the pie,if it comes out  pretty clean,your good to go. Transfer pie to rack and cool completely before cutting. 

This is a Tyler Florence recipe.   Look for local ingredients,eggs ,pecans, flour,etc 

Bringing Italy to Kansas

Casa Somerset Presents
Bringing Italy to Kansas

www.caponetti.com

Cooking with Laura Caponetti March 12 – 15, 2010

Laura has responded from Italy with the menus for the dinners.
We are happy to share with you these menus, sent directly from Laura.

Events:
Friday, March 12th 7pm. Dinner $40.00 per person
from the North

ANTIPASTO
Vitello tonnato (cold meat from the eye of the round with a tuna sauce)
Acciughe in salsa verde (anchovies fillets with a parsil and oil sauce)
peperono arrosto con "bagna cauda" (roasted big peppers with an olive oil/garlic warm sauce)

FIRST COURSE
Minestra di frittatine (light meat broth soup with thin sliced stipes of frittata as tagliolini)

MAIN COURSE
Brasato di manzo alla langarola (Braised beef simmered with herbs, spice and red wine)
Cardi gratinati (Cardoons "au gratin")
Radicchio arrosto al gorgonzola (red radicchio roasted in the oven with a mild gorgonzola sauce)

DESSERT
Pesche ripiene (peaches baked and stuffed with amaretti cookies and chocolate)
Torta sbrisolona (crispy cake from corn and wheat flour and nuts)

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Saturday, March 13th 10am Cooking from the Piedmonte $45.00 per person

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Saturday, March 13th 7pm. Dinner $40.00 per person
from Central Italy:

ANTIPASTO
Crostino toscano (toast with Tuscan style liver patè)
Frittata di carciofi (artichokes frittata)
Asparagi al prosciutto (asparagus rolled in ham and baked)

FIRST COURSE
Lasagne alla bolognese (lasagna with meat and tomato sauce)

MAIN COURSE
Arrosto di maiale con pere e cipolle (pork roasted over a layer of pears and onions, recipe from Renaissance recipe book from Florence
Patate all'alloro (roasted potatoes with bay leaf)
Fagioli bianchi all'uccelletto (cannellini beans)

DESSERT
Crostata con marmallata (tart)

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Monday, March 15th 6pm. Dinner $35.00 per person
from Southern Italy

ANTIPASTO
Insalata siciliana (salad with fennels, oranges, olives etc)
Pomodori gratinati (Tomatoes baked, stuffed with parsey and capers)
Insalata "di rinforzo" (cauliflower salad with anchovies, olives etc)

FIRST COURSE
Orecchiette con cime di rapa (Pasta "orecchiette" sauté with rape broccoli, garlic, chili pepper...)

MAIN COURSE
Pollo alla "Franceschiello"(chicken savoury and spicy,recipe from Naples where Franceschiello was king)
Melanzane ripiene (eggplants stuffed with tomato, basil, breadcrumbs etc)
"Gattò" di patate (Mashed potatoes baked with cheese and diced ham)

DESSERT
Pastiera napoletana (tart filled with cooked wheat grains, ricotta, candied fruit etc)

All the dinners have to be completed with Italian strong black coffee.

Bring your own wine, there will be no corking fee for these events

Call for reservations: 913-557-9288 Or send an email 
mikehursey@hughes.net

Casa Somerset NOW!!! Winter

WINTER!!!!   AGGH#*#*

I was raised in northern Indiana, 11 miles from Lake Michigan.   I still hate winter.  This is probably the second worst winter in KC for me.  It is definitely the worst winter EVER for Christine... she is from California!  We are just waiting for Spring at Casa Somerset. 

The grapes are not happy with winter, as you can see with the vineyard.  We just hope they are sleeping and not dead!  We have a class scheduled in two weeks on grape pruning with the Master Gardeners.  I can only hope that it will happen, and that we won't have a snowstorm that day.

I am ready to go on a cruise, way south, the Caribbean!!!   

But... even so... isn't it beautiful??!!!

Limoncello or Applecello, so many decisions in life.

This has become our trademark drink and cake. We have a beautiful container of limoncello sitting on the kitchen counter and the applecello container in the fridge. I was first introduced to limoncello 12 years ago in Italy, at Casa Caponetti. Laura Caponetti gave me some to taste while I was there. She sent me home with the recipe, which is so easy . www.caponetti.com

Laura Caponetti will be arriving in Kansas in March. She will be conducting cooking classes, and preparing some special dinners. We are so happy she is coming. Watch for more information on these Special Events!!!

Limoncello recipe

1.75 liter of vodka

peels of 10 lemons , put in vodka for 10 days.

After 10 days add equal parts of sugar and water, same as the amount of vodka.

It is ready to go.

The Limoncello cake and sauce recipe is in our September 2008 blog. This recipe came from Jasper's nephew, Jasper the third. He is making the cello cake and drink famous. They have many drink recipes at Jasper's Restaurant.

Applecello recipe

1.75 liter of vodka

Gallon of Louisburg Cidermill cider.

Louisburg Cidermill milling spices. www.louisburgcidermill.com

Simmer cider and milling spices for 1/2 hour , take off stove, cool, and add vodka. Let this sit for 1 week, then enjoy.

Enjoy

Mike

Bicerin Chocolata or Chocolata Bicchiere

Whatever they call it, it is Great, and it is real CHOCOLATE. I remember being in Turin, Italy with Jasper Mirabile at the oldest coffee shop in the world having our bicerin. Turin (Torino) is the capital of Piedmonte, and where the winter Olympics were held. The coffee shop was founded in 1760. WOW!! There you will see people drinking this delightful concoction in a " little glass " which is what bicerin means.

I love chocolate. It is just about my favorite food. Jasper made fun of me long after we came home about my chocolate habit. Bicerin is a mixture of expresso coffee, hot chocolate and cream.

We made this last week for our friends at Casa Somerset. Jasper dropped by and the cooking began. Bicerin was the last item, but it sure ended it on a good note.

http://www.jasperskc.com/ He is the # 1 Chef in KC.

Chocolata Bicchiere

1 cup milk

1/2 c. heavy cream

1 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 c. strong black coffee or espresso

1/2 c. flavored liqueur (coffee-flovored was used, but you can use almond, hazelnut, orange, or just chocolate liqueur)

1T dark rum or brandy

Whipped cream

Grated chocolate

In a saucepan, bring milk and cream to low boil, add chocolate chips to the milk. Simmer over medium heat, stirring, until all is melted and smooth. Add espresso. Add liqueur and rum and stir well.

If too thick, you can add a bit more milk if desired (I couldn't imagine why...)

Remove from heat and pour into espresso cups. Top with a spoonful of whipped cream and grated chocolate.

This is close to heaven.

Mike

Pizza Bella , Kansas City

As you can see, Christine is enjoying pizza at Pizza Bella. We took the family there after Christmas. Leonard Mirabile of Jasper's Restaurant told us about this restaurant, and his brother Jasper, Christine, and I have eaten there before. Leonard raved about it. http://www.jasperskc.com/

Pizza Bella is close to pizza from Italy. I was reading about others opinions / reviews on http://www.yelp.com/

They have different antipasta dishes. The brussel sprouts, with cranberries is over the top. This last trip they had new dish, roasted red cabbage and beet salad. It was so good, you have to try this one. I am putting it on one of my favorite dishes to cook at Casa Somerset.

The pizzas are cooked in just minutes, like in Italy. They have no stoves there, everything is done in their amazing wood-fired ovens. The taste from the red hot coals is in the food.

Pizza Bella is at 18th and Baltimore in Kansas City. http://www.pizzabellakc.com/ Google it and read the reviews, you will rush to eat at this unique pizza house in KC.

Enjoy the experience.

(Don't you just LOVE it when people take pictures of you eating....?) C.

Artichoke and Mushroom Lasagna

Our friends loved it. If you want to have something different that will surprise everyone, try this recipe. Served at Casa Somerset

This is an Italian treat.

Artichoke and Mushroom Lasagna

The filling:
1/4 stick of butter
1 lb of mushrooms, I like portabella
3 garlic cloves
1 lb of artichokes, use the canned
1 cup of vermouth

The sauce
4 1/2 tbls of butter
4 1/2 tbls of flour
4 1/2 cups of milk
2 1/2 cups of parmesan 8 oz.
Ground nutmeg
lasagna noodles
2 lbs of mozzarella cheese

for filling
Melt butter in large skillet. Add mushrooms and garlic, saute until mushrooms release juices and begin to brown, about 8 minutes. Add artichokes and vermouth. Cook until liquid is absorbed, stirring occasionally. About 11 minutes.

Sauce
Melt butter in saucepan over medium-high heat. Add flour, stir 1 minute to make roux. Gradually add milk, whisking. Reduce to medium and simmer until sauce thickens. Stir occasionally. This will be about 20 minutes. Stir in parmesan. Season with nutmeg.

Spread 2/3 cup sauce over bottom of 13x 9 x2 pan. Top with noodles to cover bottom. Spread 1/4 of artichoke mix over Noodles. Spread 2/3 cup of sauce over this and top with mozarella. Top with enough noodles to cover. repeat 3 more times. finishing with layer of noodles,then remaining sauce. Sprinkle with parmesan.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake lasagna covered with foil 1 hour. Remove foil. Increase temp to 450 degrees. Bake until golden brown on top, about 10 minutes.

makes 8 servings. This came from Bon Appetit.