Braided Spaghetti Bread...

I found this receipe on Pinterest and oh my am I in food heaven!

This is the ultimate comfort food in my opinion....must be the italian in me. 

Braided Spaghetti Bread!!

Ingredients:

1 Loaf Rhodes Bread Dough thawed to room temperature

6 oz spaghetti, cooked

1 cup thick spaghetti sauce

8 oz mozzarella cheese, cut into 1/2 –inch cubes

1 egg white

Parmesan cheese

Parsley flakes

Garlic Salt

Ground Turkey, Italian sausage, or Beef (optional)

How to:

1. Spray counter lightly with non-stick cooking spray (or use parchment paper).

2. Roll loaf flat into a 12x16-inch rectangle. Cover with plastic wrap and let rest for 10-15 minutes.

3. Cook spaghetti according to package instructions. Drain and let cool slightly.

4. Remove wrap from dough. Place spaghetti lengthwise in a 4-inch strip down the center of dough. Tip with sauce and cheese cubes. (I mixed my spaghetti and sauce together and added a ½ pound of cooked Italian sausage/cook ground turkey/cooked ground beef)

5. Make cuts 1 ½-inches apart on long sides of dough to within ½-inch of filling.

6. Begin braid by folding top and bottom strips toward filling. Then braid strips left over right, right over left. Finish by pulling last strip over and tucking under braid.

7. Lift braid with both hands and place on large sprayed baking sheet. (or transfer parchment paper to baking sheet). Brush with egg white and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and parsley (I added garlic salt).

8. Bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown. Cool slightly and slice to serve.

Amazing! Great for a fun friday night meal!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Heather

Fashion designers favorite recipes...

In the spirit of Thanksgiving rapidly approaching (tomorrow), I wanted to share this weeks recipes today instead of Friday. Here are some world renouned fashion designers signature dishes (as featured on Vogue.com)! I think I would take just about any advice from Tory Burch, and if it's something I can eat, bring it on!

Enjoy! 

Tory Burch's
Pumpkin Mousse

“Nothing is better than pumpkin pie on Thanksgiving,” Burch says. “This year we are making pumpkin mousse with gingersnaps — a modern take on a classic recipe.”

15 oz. pumpkin puree (recipe follows)
1/4 cup Myers Original Dark Rum
2 tsp. unflavored gelatin powder
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
2 large egg whites
a few pinches of salt
1 1/2 cups cold heavy cream
Additional sweetened whipped cream for serving
gingersnaps (recipe follows)

Place the rum into a stainless steel bowl and rain the gelatin over the rum. Set the bowl aside and allow the gelatin to bloom for 10 minutes.
Whisk the brown sugar into the pumpkin puree.
Heat 1/2 cup of the puree in a saucepan.  Add the gelatin to the saucepan and whisk over medium heat until the gelatin has dissolved. Blend the warm pumpkin/ gelatin mixture into the remaining pumpkin puree.
Place the egg whites into the bowl of a stand mixer with the salt and sugar. Set the bowl over a pot of simmering water and whisk constantly until the mixture reaches 145 degrees on an instant read thermometer. Transfer to the stand mixer and whip on high until stiff peaks form and until the meringue has cooled.
Whip heavy cream to medium peaks.
Gently fold one-third of the meringue mixture into the pumpkin mixture to lighten it. Fold in the remaining meringue, thoroughly incorporating it. Fold in the whipped cream. Pipe or spoon the mousse into serving glasses and cover with plastic until the mixture has set.
Serve with a dollop of sweetened whipped cream and gingersnaps.

For the pumpkin puree:
1 large cheese pumpkin (You may substitute hubbard squash or butternut squash if you cannot find cheese pumpkin.)
1 vanilla bean
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
2 tsp. orange zest
1/4 tsp. freshly grated ginger
1/8 tsp. ground cardamom

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.   
Cut the pumpkin in half and scrape out the seeds.  Place the halves, cut side up, on a lined baking sheet and bake until tender, about 1 1/2 hours. You should be able to insert a sharp knife into the pumpkin and feel no resistance when the pumpkin is done.
When the pumpkin is cool enough to handle, scrape out the flesh and puree in a food processor until it is very smooth.  Line a sieve with a double layer of cheesecloth and rest it over a clean bowl. Place the puree into the sieve and allow it to drain in the refrigerator overnight.
The next day, place 15 oz. of the puree into a clean food processor (you can reserve the drained pumpkin liquid to use in place of stock or water for a very flavorful squash or pumpkin soup and the remaining puree can be used for other pumpkin desserts).
Using a sharp knife, score the vanilla bean lengthwise and scrape the vanilla pulp into the food processor with the pumpkin puree.  Add the cinnamon, orange zest, ginger, and cardamom. Puree the mixture again. Pass the puree through a fine sieve and set aside for use in the above pumpkin mousse recipe.

For the gingersnaps:
(Yields 6 dozen cookies)

1 1/2 cups packed dark brown sugar
1 1/2 cups softened unsalted butter
1/4 cup molasses
1 large egg
1 T grated fresh ginger
1 tsp. lemon zest
3 3/4 cups unbleached all purpose flour
1 1/4 tsp. baking powder
2 T ground ginger
3 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground white pepper
1/4 tsp. ground allspice
2 T turbinado sugar

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the sugar and butter until light and fluffy. Add the molasses, egg, fresh ginger, and lemon zest and beat until well incorporated.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, ground ginger, cinnamon, white pepper and allspice. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture and mix until well combined.  Wrap tightly in plastic and refrigerate overnight.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Using a very small ice cream scoop or a teaspoon, scoop one piece at a time and roll it in the palm of your hands to form a ball and place each ball on a parchment-lined cookie sheet. Press down each ball with the bottom of a glass that has been dipped in flour to flatten each cookie. Sprinkle the top of each cookie with some of the turbinado sugar. Bake for about 10 minutes or until crisp, rotating the tray about halfway through the baking time to ensure even baking.
Cool the cookies on a wire rack and serve with pumpkin mousse.


Rachel Roy's
 Grandma's Apple Pie

“My grandma’s apple pie is legendary in my family,” says Rachel Roy. “She truly believed each apple pie she made was a craft of love. She loved serving her pies with vanilla ice cream or sharp cheddar cheese. My grandfather always used to say before his first bite of pie, ‘Apple pie without cheese is like a kiss without a sneeze.’ ” 

For the filling:
a variety of crispy apples: mix tart and sweet varieties (enough to mound into a deep dish)
1/4 - 1/2 cup white sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
1 T freshly squeezed lemon juice

For the crust:
2 cups all-purpose white flour
3/4 cup cold butter
1/2 tsp. salt if butter is unsalted
5 T cold water, more or less as needed

Heat oven to 425 degrees.

To make the filling:
Begin by peeling and slicing apples to about 1/8-inch thickness (my grandma used a mandolin).
Mix sugar and spices together. Taste apples to determine the amount of sugar and lemon juice needed to adjust sweetness and tartness. Toss sliced apples with sugar mixture. Add lemon juice if needed. Set aside to allow apples and sugar to mingle and create juice while making crust.

To make the crust:
Mix flour and salt.
Cut 1/2 cup of the cold butter into the flour with a pastry cutter until the mixture looks like coarse cornmeal. Add 1/4 cup of cold butter and cut in until it is the size of peas. Sprinkle cold water on the mixture one tablespoon at a time and toss with a fork. Add enough water until the mixture just holds together. Shape the pastry into two balls and flatten each.

To assemble:
Roll one portion of the pastry on a floured surface with a floured rolling pin. Roll to a size to fit the bottom of the pan and up the sides plus about an inch for sealing. Roll the remaining portion of the pastry to a size to cover the pie pan plus enough to cover a mound of apples, with room to seal. Pile apples into the pastrylined pie pan. Cover with pastry. Moisten edges of bottom pastry with water. Seal top and bottom pastry by pressing, folding under, and crimping with a floured fork. 
Make vent holes or slices in an interesting pattern.

Bake on the middle rack of a 425-degree oven for 15 minutes. Reduce temperature to 375 degrees and bake until a sharp knife inserted into a vent determines that the apples are tender.
Check after a 1/2 hour and then in 5-minute increments. 
If crust browns too quickly, cover loosely with foil for the last minutes of cooking.


Peter Som's
Pumpkin Panettone Bread Pudding

“This is a relatively new recipe in my family’s Thanksgiving repertoire, an adaptation of a regular bread pudding that my mom makes." says Som. "Now we have both traditional pumpkin pie AND pumpkin bread pudding because why not add more delicious food to the menu? That’s what Thanksgiving’s all about!”

10 cups cubed panettone
 2 cups half and half
1 15 oz.-can pure pumpkin
1 cup dark brown sugar
2 extra-large eggs
1 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise, and seeds scraped out
1/2 cups golden raisins.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Trim crust of panettone, cut into 1-inch cubes and place on sheet pan in single layer. Place in oven for 10 minutes until slightly browned. Place in buttered baking dish.
Whisk half and half, pumpkin, dark brown sugar, eggs, spices, and vanilla bean in large bowl. Mix in raisins. Pour entire mixture over bread cubes and let sit for 10 minutes. Bake for about 40 minutes until golden brown and—voilà! you’re ready to eat, preferably with sweetened whipped cream. Or ice cream. (And yes, this makes good morning-after leftovers!)



If you'd love to see what fashion
 is cookin' up next...


American Fashion Cookbook with receipes from your favorite designers...available HERE. Makes a great gift for the upcoming season!

What's your signature dish?

XO
Heather

Creamy Pumpkin Soup...

Welcome to the first foodie friday post! 

From time to time I will be posting recipes that I've tried & loved.

I know that I've missed the Halloween mark but wanted to post this Creamy Pumpkin Soup recipe while you can still get a fresh pumpkin!

This is a blend of a recipe that I found on pumpkinrecipes.org , one featured in O Magazine, and whatever else I added :)

Creamy Pumpkin Soup

Ingredients

                       2 lb. pumpkin (peeled, seeded, & cut into 1/2 inch cubes)

                       2-3 tablespoons butter or margarine.

                       1 medium onion, finely chopped.

                       2 teaspoons finely chopped garlic.

                       3 cups chicken stock.

                       1 heaping tablespoon tomato paste.

                       1/4 cup grated parmesan.

                       1 teaspoon salt.

                       1 teaspoon pepper.

                       1 tablespoon ceyenne pepper.

                       1/2 cup half & half or heavy cream.

Directions

Melt butter in a 4-quart saucepan over medium to medium-high heat. Add onions, garlic, salt, pepper and cook for about 4 minutes or until tender.    

Add pumpkin, tomato paste, ceyenne pepper, and cook for 2-3 minutes or until slightly tender.

Stir in chicken stock, blending well. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and let simmer for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Transfer in batches to a food prosessor. Cover tightly and blend until smooth.

(Careful when opening, mine seems to spray a little when I reopened and it was hot)       

Put blended soup back into sauce pan on low heat. Stir in half & half, parmesan cheese, and let cook for just a minute longer.

Serve & enjoy!

A perfect addition to any fall meal.

Let me here your thoughts!

Heather