recipes

Blueberry Cherry Sangria

Combine in a pitcher:

3/4 C blueberries

10 cherries, pitted and quartered

16 oz cheap red wine

zest of 1 lemon

2 tsp Luxardo Maraschino Cherry syrup (not that clown nose-red liquid. If you don’t have Luxardo, substitute simple syrup).

seltzer

ice

Fill 4 glasses with ice.

Pour the liquid and scoop in the fruit.

Top with seltzer.

Makes 4 servings.

I try to hold out on the hot chocolate consumption until I’m really really really cold. I’d say today would count. Since I have it so rarely, I like it to be good when I do have it. Thus usually involves making it myself. I have indulged in fancy shmancy hot chocolate mixes in the past, but you probably have everything you need to make it right on hand.

Spicy Vegan Hot Chocolate

serves 1

dry ingredients:
1 tbs brown sugar
2 tbs cocoa powder
pinch of salt
pinch of white pepper
pinch of cinnamon

wet ingredients:
1 cup vanilla soy milk

Mix the dry ingredients together; set aside.

Microwave the soy milk for two minutes. Gradually add the hot soy milk to the dry ingredients, stirring vigorously (or, ideally, using a hand-held milk frother). (If you used regular milk, add 1/4 tsp of vanilla extract to the hot chocolate at this point).

When fully combined, enjoy! The spiciness will melt through the most deeply chilled bones.

185 calories, 3 grams of fat, 3 grams of fiber, if you’re interested in such things.

one of these helps it get frothy, which enhances its deliciousness

Yum!

Even tastier in a Leonard Lopate mug.

Every morning Dalton wakes up much earlier than he needs to in order to make me a delicious latte. I assuage my occasional pangs of guilt about this by periodically baking a fresh batch of these biscotti, which he has with his coffee.

5 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup slivered almonds
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
6 eggs

Preheat oven to 325°.
Combine first 4 ingredients in a large bowl. Combine sugar, vanilla and eggs; add to flour mixture, stirring until well-blended (dough will be dry).Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface, and knead. Shape dough into four long rolls. Place two rolls on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Place the other two rolls on another baking sheet covered with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.

Bake at 325° for 30 minutes. Remove rolls from baking sheets to a wire rack, and let cool 10 minutes. Cut rolls diagonally into 1/2-inch slices, and place, cut sides down, on baking sheets. Bake 13 minutes. Turn cookies over, and bake an additional 13 minutes (cookies will be slightly soft in center but will harden as they cool). Remove from baking sheets; let cool completely on wire rack.

Yield: 10 dozen

Notes: Recipe is easily halved. The biscotti will keep, stored in tupperware or ziploc bags, for about four weeks