Scoring rhubarb in early February I thought was a no-go, but I miraculously found a few overpriced forlorn stalks in a local grocery store. The check out woman gave me a weird look as I spent $20 for pretty sad looking fruit, but I didn’t care. I bought it all.

Berries can be easier to locate as South American fruit is available in winter. Frozen peaches work as long as they aren’t packed in sugar, and you have to dry them off to get rid of excess moisture. Neither of these fruits tastes the same as the local in season counterparts so you have to channel the summer fruit and adjust accordingly.

Recipes for winter publication pose problems even though they don’t rely on delicate summer fruit. Need cranberries in July? You won’t find them at Safeway. Luckily I found a half a bag in the back of my freezer. Here’s a tip I learned later on: Whole Foods has them in their freezer section all year.

Candy canes and fruit cake were last week’s search. I looked all over and asked a couple of stores if they had any stashed in the back leftover from last year. Thank goodness for Amazon. In a day they were on my door step.

Now that I am provisioned I have to get my head wrapped around the idea that even though I am cooking in shorts and flip flops I have to think Christmas. The good news is gingerbread men and women are as good in August as they are in December.

That being said, there is one dessert I make without much precision. It’s a favorite for Waterbar and Farallon staff meals. I call it Cream Dream. Technically it’s a trifle but it’s so much more. I don’t want to completely mislead you and give the impression it is completely a random kitchen sink dessert, but it’s close. You need to have dessert leftovers and heavy cream.  Creating the desserts to get those leftovers does require a recipe.

To make Cream Dream you need any combination of cake, cookie, brownie pieces or scraps, plus caramel and/or chocolate sauces.

Whip the cream with a little sugar until soft peaks. Layer the cut or broken up cake/cookie pieces, your sauces and the cream in a bowl. (Keep the sauces cold or at room temperature) Sprinkle in a few chocolate chips, nuts and coconut if you have them. You want enough cream so it holds together and isn’t dry, but not so much that all you taste is cream.  Layering everything rather than folding it together keeps the texture of the cakes and cookies intact. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

No Cream Dream ever tastes the same. They all depend on the flavor of your cakes and cookies. Our version usually has chocolate as invariably some of our leftovers are chocolate.

When I go out of my way to bake a special dessert for staff meal it never seems to be as popular as Cream Dream. Eyes light up when the staff sees it on the table with the savory food. The pastry cooks and I laugh, wishing all our baking was that easy.

Growing them takes patience and care. A member of the orchid family, the vine blooms once a year in the spring and must be hand pollinated within 12 hours of opening. When the beans are picked they look more like a green bean than the vanilla bean we would recognize in the store. After harvesting the beans are cured and dried, a labor intensive process that includes wrapping them in cloth to sweat, laying them in the sun to dry and placing them in air tight boxes. The time between harvesting and selling takes months.

Vanilla became a part of the American palate by a rather circuitous route. Cortez took vanilla to Spain from Mexico where it became popular throughout Europe. Thomas Jefferson brought it to the United States after one of his visits to France.

Madagascar is the largest producer of vanilla beans. They are called Madagascar Bourbon beans as they grow on the Bourbon Islands off the east coast of Africa. The name comes from the French who ruled that area and has nothing to do with bourbon from Kentucky. Bourbon beans are smooth, sweet and mellow.  The other vanilla bean I like is Tahitian. Their production is smaller and comes from a different variety of orchid. The flavor is floral and perfumy.  Mexico also produces good beans and extract. Be careful when you travel there and see bargain vanilla. Mexico does not have the same quality restrictions on vanilla and if you don’t pay attention you can buy something that tastes pretty bad.

At work I buy Nielsen- Massey vanilla extract by the half gallon and use it in cookies and cakes but there are recipes where I prefer to use a vanilla bean. I like to infuse it in other ingredients or scrape out the seeds from the pod for their intense flavor and the speckled appearance they offer. 

I use Madagascar beans when I want the vanilla to be a background flavor and help draw out other flavors like chocolate or coffee. I also like to use them with citrus for it pairs nicely with the acidity of the fruit.

All vanilla beans are expensive but Tahitian beans even more so. I reserve them for recipes where vanilla is the main flavor such as an ice cream or a crème brulee.

A bean should be plump and supple. When you rub it between your fingers you should be able to feel the seeds inside.  Since vanilla beans aren’t cheap you want them to be the best possible quality when you open your wallet. Fortunately for me restaurant suppliers have good ones but that doesn’t help the retail buyer.

Too often beans in the spice rack in the grocery store are dry and brittle.  To spend almost $10 on one bean and be able to snap it in two like a twig is frustrating. Sealed inside a glass jar, it’s hard to tell the quality by just looking. Experience has taught me to purchase my beans other places.

Surprisingly I have found good beans at Costco. They came in a glass tube. You can also find beans on line. The Vanilla Queen at www.vanilla.com sells good beans as does www.beanilla.com.

Here’s a recipe for vanilla ice cream. All you need is the chocolate and caramel sauces.

Vanilla Ice Cream 

6 large egg yolks

1/2 cup sugar

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cup whole milk

2 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream

1 vanilla bean, cut in half lengthwise with the insides scraped out

To make the vanilla ice cream: In a bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, 1/4 cup sugar, and salt in a bowl. Combine the milk, cream, vanilla bean and the remaining 1/4 cup of the sugar in a heavy bottomed saucepot. Over medium heat, heat the milk and cream until hot. Slowly pour the liquid into the egg and sugar mixture, whisking it together as you pour. (To keep the bowl with the eggs and sugar from spinning while you pour in the cream and whisk, place it on a towel.)

Return the cream and milk mixture back to the saucepot. Over medium low heat, cook, stirring continually with a heat resistant rubber or wooden spatula, until the custard reaches 175 degrees.

Strain the custard into a clean bowl and cool over an ice bath until at least room temperature. (Rinse off the vanilla bean and air dry it. Put it in your sugar container to flavor your sugar.) Refrigerate the custard for at least 4 hours or up to 2 days. Freeze according to ice cream manufacturer’s instructions. Place in the freezer until scoopable, at least one hour.

This rainy weather is perfect for baking. It’s comforting to be in the kitchen scooping cooking dough, sifting flouring and weighing out chocolate. By the time Christmas Eve Dinner comes around I am in full baking mode. It’s my favorite holiday for desserts; the high point of a month of nonstop baking.

There will be 23 people around the table for Christmas Eve at my house. Actually it will be two tables with some sitting on stools at the counter. It will be served family style. I will make two desserts – one chocolate and one fruit, so chocoholics and those who prefer something lighter are both happy. At least one of these I want to make a day ahead to spread out the work. I don’t want to have to be in fifth gear all day in the kitchen on the 24th. I want to enjoy putzing in the kitchen, baking, cooking and wrapping the last of the stocking stuffers. I don’t want to be exhausted at 6:00 when the first bottle of Champagne is uncorked.

I always pick classic desserts to make on Christmas Eve. It’s a traditional holiday and I want a dessert that is really good but matches the spirit of the holiday. This year I am making tiramisu and Meyer lemon pudding soufflés.

I haven’t made tiramisu for at least 10 years. It’s great for a crowd and is better made the day before. The last time I made it I had a house full of over eager eaters. With the tiramisu made the day before I knew they would start nibbling at it before the party and who knows how much would be left by the time I planned to serve it. To circumvent these human mice, I made it when they weren’t around then wrapped it completely in foil and labeled it “beef stock”.

Later they kept asking me where the tiramisu was and I said I was too busy and hadn’t gotten to it yet. The look on their faces when I unwrapped it to put on the table was priceless. Needless to say, I will never get away with that trick again but it was so good the first time I don’t need to.

Here’s my tiramisu recipe. Some people use lady fingers but I prefer to make a sponge cake. Lady fingers get too soggy and disintegrate. Sponge cake soaks up the espresso but still retains some texture. The cake cuts best when it is a day old.

You can use a turkey baster to soak the cake with the espresso. I will make the cake Wednesday and assemble the tiramisu on Thursday. Wrapped carefully and put in the fridge it will be ready for Christmas Eve.

Tiramisu

Serves 8 to 10

Mascarpone Cream

6 large eggs*, separated

1/2 cup granulated sugar

Pinch of kosher salt

2 cups (one pound) mascarpone cheese

Pinch of cream of tartar

1 recipe Sponge Cake (see below)

To assemble the tiramisu

8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, ground up in the food processor, very finely chopped or grated

1 3/4 cups brewed espresso or coffee (regular or decaffeinated), at room temperature

To make the mascarpone cream: Combine the egg yolks, sugar, and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whip attachment and whip on high speed until thick, about 3 minutes. Reduce the speed to medium, add the mascarpone, and whip until smooth and thick, about 30 seconds

Put the egg whites in a clean mixer bowl and whip on medium speed until foamy. Add the cream of tartar, increase the speed to high, and whip until soft peaks form. Using a spatula, gently fold the egg whites into the mascarpone cream in 2 additions.

To assemble the tiramisu: With a serrated knife, cut the sponge cake into quarters. Slice each piece in half horizontally like you were slicing a roll to make a sandwich. Spread a layer of mascarpone cream about 1/2 inch thick in the bottom of a 2 1/2-quart glass bowl. Sprinkle some of the chocolate on top. Place the cake pieces, cutting or tearing to fit as needed, in a single layer over the mascarpone cream. Brush the cake with some of the espresso and top with more mascarpone cream and chocolate shavings. Repeat the layers—cake, espresso, mascarpone cream, chocolate—until the bowl is full or you run out of cream or cake.  Your top layer should be chocolate.

Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours before serving. Overnight is great. Spoon into individual bowls to serve.

*If you are uncomfortable eating raw eggs use pasteurized eggs.

Sponge Cake

Makes one 11 1/2-by-17 1/2-inch cake

1 1/4 cups flour

2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

Pinch of kosher salt

5 large eggs, separated

1 1/4 cups sugar

5 tablespoons boiling water

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350 °. Grease and then line the bottom of an 11 1/2-by-17 1/2-inch baking pan with 1-inch sides with parchment paper. (If you don’t have a sheet pan this size uses both a 9 by 13 inch pan and a 9-inch pan. Put a little less than 3/4 of the batter in the larger pan. The cakes will take a few minutes less to bake.)

Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer with the whisk attachment whip the egg yolks and sugar on high speed until thick and pale yellow, about 2 minutes. Reduce to medium low speed; add the boiling water and vanilla extract and mix until combined, scrapping the sides of the bowl as necessary. Increase to high speed and again whip until thick, about 2 minutes. Reduce the speed to low and stir in the dry ingredients.

In a clean bowl of an electric mixer using the whisk attachment whip the egg whites on high speed until soft peaks form. They should be smooth and not clumpy. Fold half of the whipped whites into the batter and then fold in the remaining whites. Spread the batter evenly into the prepared pan.

Bake until golden brown and springs back when lightly touched, about 15 minutes. Cool to room temperature before cutting. If you have made the cake the day before, store it at room temperature uncovered.

Although they are not quite as popular as Meyer lemons you occasionally see trees in backyards around the Bay Area.  A persimmon tree with full grown persimmons is a strange site. A big storm can remove all the leaves and the orange fruit hang like ornaments among the bare branches. It looks as if someone hung each individual fruit by hand to make the tree look less barren.

The name persimmon comes from the Algonquin Indians who lived on the East Coast of the United States and Canada.  California has a good growing climate for persimmons but top world producers are China, Korea, and Japan.

The two most common varieties you see at farmers markets and in grocery stores are Fuyus and Hachiyas. Fuyus are squat and look like a slightly flattened tomato. The acorn shaped ones are Hachiyas.

Fuyus can be eaten firm or soft. On menus you often see them thinly sliced in salads.  I like to combine them with Little Gems, pecans and either a hard cheese like Manchego or a soft blue cheese. This combination is delicious.

Persimmons are eaten dried too. The Japanese have a traditional method for drying persimmons that dates back hundreds of years. For an interesting article about a family in the Gold Country who makes hoshigaki, Japanese for dried persimmons, go to: http://californiacountry.org/features/article.aspx?arID=282.

You have to ripen Hachiya persimmons before you can use them, which can take several days on the counter top. My trick is to put them in the freezer overnight and then defrost them on the counter. Freezing them helps break down the fruit and you have almost instant ripe persimmons. Once they come to room temperature they are soft and ready to use.

Some people like to eat ripe Hachiyas like an apple. Narsai David once told me they were one of his favorite fruits. Since they are full of Vitamin A and C, I tried to eat them straight but just couldn’t do it. Even when soft the tannins make them too astringent and bitter for my taste buds.

But for baking Hachiyas are great. My favorite dessert with persimmons is persimmon pudding. Served warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and some caramel sauce it’s a crowd pleaser.

Here’s my recipe.

Persimmon Pudding

Serves 8

About 5 ripe Hachiya persimmons

3 large eggs

1 cup granulated sugar

4 ounces (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted and cooled to warm

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground allspice

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

2 cups of half and half (or 1 cup of milk and 1 cup of heavy cream)

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter a 9-inch square baking pan.

Remove the stems from the persimmons and cut the flesh into pieces. Purée the persimmon flesh in a food processor until smooth. Strain the purée through a medium-mesh sieve to eliminate any bits of skin and seed. You should have 2 cups purée.

In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs and sugar until blended. Whisk in the melted butter.

Sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, ginger, cinnamon, allspice, and cloves onto a piece of parchment paper or into a bowl. Add the salt. Stir the dry ingredients into the egg mixture. Slowly pour in the milk and cream, stirring until combined. Stir in the persimmon purée.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake until a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean, 40 to 45 minutes. Let cool for about 10 minutes before serving. The pudding will sink as it cools.

Serve the pudding warm, scooped into bowls with vanilla ice cream and caramel sauce.

It can be reheat it in a 325°F oven for about 15 minutes.

Native Americans grew pumpkin so it was probably on the first Thanksgiving menu but not in the pie form that we know today. The Pilgrims didn’t have flour so they couldn’t have made a crust. If their pumpkin dish was sweetened they would have had to use honey as white sugar wasn’t around either.

I know many will disagree with my ambivalent feelings about this humble pie but there are better pumpkin desserts. You can carry on the tradition of pumpkin but go outside the box. Make pumpkin bread pudding, pumpkin ice cream cake, or cranberry pecan pumpkin upside down cake. All can be made a day ahead leaving more time to stuff the bird, go for a hike or watch football on TV.

If you are cooking the whole Thanksgiving dinner and are pressed for time, don’t worry about making your own pumpkin puree. Canned will work just fine. You can even find organic puree. Make sure to get plain puree and not one with added spices. In the latter the spice balance is way off.

To help you get started branching out; here’s a recipe for cranberry pecan pumpkin upside down cake. It will be on my table this year. What are you making for Thanksgiving dessert?

 Cranberry Pecan Pumpkin Upside Down Cake

Emily Luchetti

Serves 8-10

8 ounces (16 tablespoons) unsalted butter

1 cup firmly packed brown sugar

2 cups cranberries

4 ounces (1 cup) coarsely chopped pecans, toasted

2 large eggs

1 cup pumpkin puree

6 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 cup sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon salt

 Chantilly Cream (see recipe below)

 Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line the bottom of a 9-inch square pan with parchment paper.

Melt the butter in a small saucepot over medium heat. Add the brown sugar and whisk until smooth. Pour the brown sugar mixture into the bottom of the cake pan. In a medium bowl combine the cranberries and pecans. Place them in the pan over the brown sugar mixture.

In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, pumpkin puree, and oil.

Sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Stir the flour mixture into the pumpkin mixture. Carefully spread the batter over the cranberry pecan topping.

Bake until a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean, 35-40 minutes. Cool the cake for 10 minutes on a wire rack. Place a large plate or platter on top of the cake. Invert the cake and plate together. Remove the pan. Carefully peel off the parchment paper.

Cool completely before serving. Serve with Chantilly Cream.

Chantilly Cream                                 

Makes 2 cups

1 cup heavy (whipping) cream

3 tablespoons sugar

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Combine all of the ingredients and whisk until soft peaks form. Refrigerate until you are ready to use.

To get the berry flavor I want and to satisfy my strawberry cravings early in the season I either cook the berries in a crumble or roast the berries. Here’s a recipe for roasting strawberries. You can serve them with anything you would serve fresh sliced strawberries. They come out jam like but are whole so you can use them in desserts. There is quite a bit of sauce left over after you finish making the berries. Reduce it as the recipe states or you can use it to make another batch of roasted berries (I mix it 50-50 with fresh sauce ingredients). It is delicious served over ice cream without any berries. Hopefully this will tide you over until the really beautiful berries are in the market. As an added bonus the kitchen smells wonderful when they are in the oven.

Roasted Strawberries

3 pints (6 cups) fresh strawberries, hulled

3/4 cup Pinot Noir or other dry red wine

3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

3/4 cup light corn syrup

Preheat the oven to 200°F. Put the strawberries in a single layer in an ovenproof baking dish. In a bowl, whisk together the wine, balsamic vinegar, and granulated sugar until the sugar is dissolved. Whisk in the corn syrup. Pour the liquid over the berries. Place the pan in the oven and bake until the strawberries shrink and are jammy in texture, about 5 hours.

Strain the strawberry liquid into a heavy saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat, reduce the heat to a simmer, and cook to reduce the liquid slightly. Let cool to room temperature and stir it back into the berries. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Thank goodness for citrus in the winter. My dessert menus at the restaurants need some color and bright flavors. It even brightens up the pastry department and our moods. You can only handle so much rain and this week it’s not supposed to stop. I am not complaining about brown desserts as chocolate, caramel and nuts are all shades of brown but I need something to break it up. Ordinary oranges, limes and lemons are available as always but January also brings Meyer Lemons, Cara Caras, blood oranges, mandarins and kumquats. These varieties are only around now for a few months so take advantage of them while you can.

Cara Caras are very juicy pink fleshed navel oranges. They segment nicely for a plated dessert or served on top of cheesecake. Blood oranges (also known as Moro Oranges) with their deep red color are originally from Sicily and common all over Italy.  They make great sorbet. Both of these oranges are grown by Sunkist so are available across the United States. Meyer Lemons can be harder to find as they are not grown on a large commercial scale. In California they are called the backyard lemon as you can see the bright yellow fruit on trees in yards all over the Bay Area. I have nine small trees in the front of my house where the rhododendrons used to be. The lemons are a much better use of space. Only probably is I when I come up my driveway I love to see the trees full of lemons so I put off picking them. Cookbooks by California chefs call frequently for Meyer Lemons. This can be frustrating for people from other parts of the country as they can’t get them. (Last year I gave an East coast friend fifty Meyer Lemons for her 50^th birthday.) Meyers are a thin skinned lemon thought to be a cross between an orange and a lemon. They are sweeter and less acidic than regular lemons. They work wonderfully in desserts. Sometimes I will add a little regular lemon juice to give Meyer lemon curd a little lemon kick.

Here is my favorite recipe using Blood Oranges.

Blood Orange – Vanilla Creamsicle

Emily Luchetti

Serves 6

Blood Orange Sorbet

2 3/4 cups blood orange juice, strained (about 12 blood oranges)

1 cup sugar

2 3/4 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

Large pinch of kosher salt

Vanilla Custard

1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise with seeds scraped out

2 1/2 cups heavy (whipping) cream

1 cup milk

1/2 cup sugar

2 1/4 teaspoons plain gelatin

2 tablespoons water

 3 blood oranges, peeled and segmented

To make the sorbet: In a large bowl, combine the blood orange juice, sugar, lemon juice, and salt. Stir until the sugar dissolves. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours or up to overnight. Churn in an ice cream machine according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Freeze until scoopable, about 2 hours, depending on your freezer.

To make the vanilla custard: Combine the vanilla bean, seeds, cream, milk, and sugar in a medium saucepan. Heat over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until almost simmering. Turn off the heat and cover the pan. Let the vanilla bean steep in the liquid for 10 minutes.

Stir together the gelatin and the water in a small bowl. Let stand for 5 minutes. Strain the cream mixture into a bowl, discarding the vanilla bean. Stir the gelatin mixture into the cream with a heat-resistant plastic or wooden spatula. Let the liquid cool to warm, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes. (Stirring prevents the gelatin from sinking to the bottom of the hot liquid.) Pour the vanilla custard into 6 ramekins. Refrigerate until set, at least 4 hours.

To serve: Unmold by dipping the bottom of the ramekins in a bowl of very hot water. Run a knife around the inside edge of each cream and invert onto a plate. Arrange the orange segments around the creams. Place a scoop of sorbet on top of the vanilla custard. (You can also serve it in the dish if you don’t want to unmold it. Put the segments and sorbet on top.) Serve immediately.

In Advance: The creams may be made a day ahead. Once firm, cover with plastic wrap. Teh sorbet can be made a day ahead too.

Testing a recipe for a cookbook is different than testing and putting a dessert on a restaurant menu. I have to rely on 2 different skill sets. One is the creative side of my brain where I have the fun of brainstorming what sounds good. The other part is the meticulous measuring and documenting exactly how I make it. For a restaurant dessert I can write them in pastry “shorthand” as I know what level of experience the cooks have. I am also there to explain anything if they have questions. For a cookbook I have to think about what parts of the recipe a home cook could get confused on and make sure they don’t.  The recipes need to be much more precise. More people are making them and people interpret things differently. What does it mean to slice something thick vs. thin? What does whip until stiff mean? People have different kitchen equipment and ovens work differently. I can’t just say bake for 25 minutes. I have to give a clue of knowing when it is done- skewer clean? Cracked on top? As much as I love my KitchenAid stand mixer I know not everyone has one. If you use an electric hand mixer mixing can take several minutes longer. I have to account for this.

When I get an idea in my head for a book recipe, I first think about how it will work and then I go into the kitchen and test it. Very rarely is it finished in one try. It takes several attempts and sometimes up to 6 or so to get it just right. After I have tested something 6 times and I am not close I give up. I admit to myself it was a better idea than it was a dessert that someone would actually want to eat. Sometimes after 4 tries I feel I am getting close to having it correct but I will ask myself-Do I really like this or am I just tired of testing it and want to go on to the next recipe? It’s easy to lose perspective after you have tasted something that many times. Often that’s when I ask my husband to taste it or send the recipe to my home baker friends and relatives. I ask them to bake it and let me know what they think. This is very helpful as it keeps me on track. I write recipes for home cooks as it puts the control and fun in their hands. They don’t have to go to a restaurant to eat a good dessert. They can enjoy it at home. They get the pleasure of creating something with their hands and the pleasure of sharing it with others. I gauge a good recipe by if a home cook can 1) make it, 2) enjoy it and 3) want to make it again.

During testing it can be a bit discouraging when I have a recipe that has numerous penciled cross outs and notes in the margins and I decide I need to make it “just one more time”. When I get a recipe right and a home baker lets me know that they made a recipe of mine and they loved it, it’s all worthwhile. It gives me the energy to wrestle the next middle of the night idea I have to a working recipe that someone will bake over and over. If you want to be part of my testing team send me an email. I would love to include you in my recipe creations.

It’s official. I have finally decided what I will make for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day desserts. Making up my mind is not a simple task. There are so many choices. Since it is Christmas I want to make sure they are worthy of the occasion. For weeks I go back and forth muttering several options to myself. It drives my poor husband crazy. On Monday I will tell him we are having one thing and Wednesday I say something else. He will say “But what about the …. you were so excited about two days ago?”  Once he has heard me say the same dessert several days in a row then he figures that is what he will get to have.

I always choose classic desserts. It’s a traditional holiday so I like to go with something time-honored. In past years I have served Crepes Suzette, croquembouche, tiramisu, passion fruit soufflés, Baked Alaska and buche de noel. This year I have decided to make a frozen bouche de noel with chocolate cake and brown sugar ice cream. I will cover it in meringue and serve lots of chocolate and caramel sauces on the side. Come to think of it I better make two so there is enough for Santa. I leave a note telling him where to find leftover dessert. Funny thing it is always gone in the morning.

For Christmas Day we will have Gingerbread with warm apples and cider sabayon. While this is not a classic dessert by other people’s standards it has become part of our Christmas since I first developed the combination in 1991 when I worked at Stars Restaurant.

I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday.

Frozen Bouche de Noel

If you want to stagger the production over a couple of days, make the cake and ice cream on the 22^nd or 23^rd. Spread the meringue on the 24^th.

Serves 8 to 10

Brown Sugar Ice Cream

2 cups heavy cream

3/4 cup milk

1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1/8 teaspoon kosher salt

Chocolate Roulade

2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped

1 1/2 tablespoons water

6 large eggs, separated

2/3 cup sugar

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

1/8 teaspoon kosher salt

To make the ice cream: Combine the cream, milk, brown sugar, and salt in a heavy saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until almost simmering. Pour the mixture into a bowl and cool over an ice bath to room temperature. Refrigerate the custard for at least 4 hours or up to overnight. Churn in an ice cream machine according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Freeze until firm but still spreadable, about 2 hours, depending on your freezer.

While the ice cream is freezing, make the roulade: Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray an 11-inch-by-17-inch baking pan with nonstick cooking spray and line the bottom with parchment paper.

Melt the chocolate and water together in a double boiler over hot water. Stir until smooth.

Whip the egg yolks on high speed until light in color, 2 to 3 minutes with a stand mixer, 3 to 4 minutes with a hand mixer. Reduce to medium speed and add 1/3 cup of the sugar. Increase speed to high and continue to whip until thick and ribbony. On low speed or by hand, stir in the 1/4 cup of the cocoa powder and the salt. Stir in the melted chocolate.

In a clean bowl, whip the egg whites on medium speed until foamy and begin to increase in volume. Gradually whip in the remaining 1/3 cup sugar in a steady stream. Whip until satiny, stiff peaks form. In two additions, fold the whites carefully into the chocolate mixture. Gently and evenly spread the mixture in the prepared pan.

Bake for 25 minutes, or until the top of the cake springs back when pressed with your fingertip and a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.

While the cake is baking, lay a clean thin cotton dish towel on the work surface with a short end toward you. Dust an area of the towel the size of the cake pan with the remaining 2 tablespoons cocoa powder. Remove the cake from the oven and run a small knife around the inside edges of the pan. Place one of the long ends of the cake pan on the right side of the towel and invert the pan and the cake on top of the towel so it falls at the end of the towel closest to you and on top of the cocoaed area. Carefully remove the pan and then the parchment paper. If the cake is not sitting at the end of the towel, fold the towel under itself so it is. From the end closest to you, carefully roll the cake and the towel up together like a jelly roll. Let cool to room temperature, about 1 hour.

To assemble the roulade: If necessary, soften the brown sugar ice cream while the cake is cooling. It should be firm but spreadable. Carefully unroll the cake. (If it splits anywhere, carefully push the broken pieces together.) Gently spread the ice cream over the cake with a thin metal spatula, leaving a 1/4-inch border on all sides. Reroll the cake without the towel. Place on a large platter or baking sheet. Cover with plastic wrap. Freeze until firm, about 3 hours, depending on your freezer. Cover with meringue (see recipe below). If desired torch just before serving.

Meringue

1/2 cup egg whites (about 4)

1 cup sugar

In a bowl, whisk together the egg whites and sugar until combined. Put the bowl in a saucepan of simmering water and whisk constantly until the egg whites are very warm. Remove the whites from the hot water and whip with an electric mixer on medium-high speed with a stand mixer, or high speed with a handheld mixer, until stiff, glossy peaks form and the mixture has cooled to room temperature. Remove the ice cream log from the freezer. Using a small spatula, spread the meringue about 3/4 inch thick over the cake completely covering it. This can be done several hours in advance. Do not cover. Keep frozen until ready to serve.

Just before serving, using a butane torch, constantly move the flame over the meringue about 1 inch from the surface of the meringue until lightly browned. Or briefly put underneath a preheated broiler.

Gingerbread with Apples and Cider Sabayon

The gingerbread can be made a couple days in advance. Store at room temperature. The apples two days ahead and the sabayon one. Keep both of these refrigerated.

Yield: 9 by 13 inch pan

Gingerbread

1 cup molasses

1 1/2 cups boiling water

1 teaspoon baking soda

8 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

1 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1 large egg

2 teaspoons ground ginger

1 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

½ teaspoon kosher salt

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease the sides and bottom of a 9 by 13 inch pan.

Mix molasses, boiling water and baking soda together in a large bowl. Cool to room temperature.

With an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar until light. Mix in the egg.

Sift together the ginger, cinnamon, flour and baking powder. Add the salt

In three additions, alternately add dry ingredients and the molasses mixture to the butter mixture. Mix thoroughly after each addition to make sure there are no lumps.

Spread batter into the prepared pan. Bake for about 30 minutes until a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean. Cool before cutting.

 Apples

7 medium apples (Fuji, Gala, Golden Delicious, Braeburn)

1/2 cup sugar

2 tablespoons (Approximately) apple juice or water

1 tablespoon lemon juice

Pinch kosher salt

Peel, core and slice the apples 3/16 inch thick. Cook the apples with the remaining ingredients until the apples are soft but still hold their shape. If the liquid evaporates before the apples are cooked, add more apple juice.

Cider Sabayon

8 large egg yolks

1/2 cup sugar

Pinch kosher salt

3/4 cup sparkling apple cider, hard cider or 1/4 cup Calvados and 1/2 cup apple juice

1 cup heavy (whipping) cream

To make the sabayon: Fill a medium bowl two-thirds with ice and water to make an ice bath. Fill a medium pot one-third full of water and bring it to a low boil. In a stainless steel bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, sugar, salt, and sparkling apple juice until smooth. Place the bowl over the pot of water and cook, whisking constantly, until thick, about 2 minutes. Place the bowl in the ice bath. Cool, whisking occasionally until at least room temperature. Remove the bowl and discard the ice bath.

Whip the cream until soft peaks form. Fold the cream into the apple mixture.

Refrigerate until you are ready to serve.

Serve the gingerbread with the apples (warm or room temperature) and the apple sabayon.