Sticky Toffee Pudding

Recipe from chef Michael Dotson Martins West Gastropub, Redwood City Sticky Toffee Pudding Serves 8-9 1¾ cups flour ¾ teaspoon salt ¼ teaspoon cinnamon ¼ teaspoon cloves 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg 8 ounces chopped dates 1 cup water 1 teaspoon instant coffee powder 1 ounce Scotch 6 ounces butter, room temperature 1 cup brown sugar 4 eggs, room temperature ½ tablespoon baking soda 1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Sift together the flour, salt and spices. 2. Combine water, instant coffee and Scotch; heat to boiling. Pour over dates and let soften 10 minutes; puree dates and liquid in food processor. 3. Meanwhile, using an electric mixer, cream the butter and brown sugar. Beat on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating until incorporated. 4. Add half the dry ingredients and mix on low speed until just incorporated. 5. Add baking soda to date mixture, then pour into batter, mixing until incorporated. Add remaining dry ingredients and mix until barely incorporated. Do not overmix. 6. Spray nine 3-inch ring molds lightly with vegetable oil, and place on a baking sheet. Spoon 2 ounces of batter into each mold. Bake for 12 minutes in a convection oven, rotate pan and bake 7 minutes more. (Or, pour the batter into a greased 9-inch round cake or springform pan and bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes, or until a tester comes out clean.) Remove cakes from rings when just cool enough to handle. Do not allow them to cool completely in ring molds or they will stick. Serve with toffee sauce. Toffee Sauce Makes about 3 cups 1 stick butter 2/3 cup brown sugar ½ cup granulated sugar ¾ cups corn syrup 2/3 cup heavy cream 1½ ounces Scotch Salt to taste In a large pot over medium heat, bring butter, sugars and corn syrup to a boil. Let boil for about 4 minutes. Carefully whisk in cream and Scotch -- it will hiss and steam like a caramel. Cool, and season. This makes more sauce than is needed but it's great over ice cream or just out of the jar.

APERTO’S TAGLIOLINI PEPATI

4 bacon slices

¼ cup olive oil

2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

2 jalapeno chilies, seeded and sliced

pinch of red pepper flakes

Tomato sauce (recipe follows)

1 stick unsalted butter

½ cup water

1 pound fresh tagliolini or linguine

3 cups arugula, stemmed

salt and pepper to taste

2 cups grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

TOMATO SAUCE:

16 ounces canned diced Italian tomatoes

Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

½ cup canned tomato puree (not paste)

¼ cup olive oil

½ onion , diced

1 garlic clove, sliced.

-Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Drain the tomatoes in a fine-meshed sieve over a saucepan. Leaving the sieve on the pan to continue the draining, bring the tomato juice to a simmer over medium heat and cook until reduced about two thirds. Transfer the drained tomatoes to an oiled 8-inch square baking dish, season with salt and pepper, and bake for 45 to 60 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the tomato puree and continue to bake, stirring frequently, until thickened, about 1 hour.

-In a medium skillet over medium heat, heat the olive oil and sauté the onion and garlic until golden. Remove the tomato mixture from the oven and add the reduced tomato juice, onion, and garlic. Stir to incorporate and set aside to cool. The sauce should be very thick.

-In a large nonreactive skillet over medium heat, cook the bacon until it renders its fat. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the bacon to paper towels to drain. Pour off the bacon fat and wipe out the pan with paper towels.

-In the same pan over medium heat, heat the oil and sauté the garlic until it begins to brown. Add the bacon, chilies, red pepper flakes, tomato sauce, butter, and water. Bring to a simmer.

-Meanwhile, in a large pot of salted water, cook the pasta until al dente, 30 to 60 seconds after the water returns to a boil.

-Add the arugula to the tomato mixture and cook until wilted, about 1 minute. Season with salt and pepper. Add the pasta to the sauce, then add ¾ to 1 cup of the cheese. Divide among warmed shallow soup bowls and serve at once, with the remaining cheese alongside.

Broccolini With Anchovies, Currants &Toasted Breadcrumbs

Serves 7 to 8 as a side dish

Feel free to substitute broccoli rabe for the broccolini in this sweet and salty side dish. It will be a little more bitter, and you'll only need 2 bunches. To make the toasted breadcrumbs, grind stale bread in the food processor until it resembles coarse crumbs, and saute on the stove with a little butter until golden and toasted.

• 3 bunches broccolini
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 6 oil-packed anchovies
• 1/4 teaspoon hot red pepper flakes
• -- Kosher salt and ground black pepper, to taste
• -- Juice of 1/2 lemon
• 3/4 cup currants
• 1/2 cup toasted coarse breadcrumbs

Instructions: In a large pot of salted boiling water, blanch broccolini for about 3 minutes, until slightly softened. Plunge into ice water to stop cooking; drain.

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the garlic, anchovies, pepper flakes, and salt and pepper to taste; saute, stirring, until the mixture is fragrant and the anchovies have melted, mashing them into pieces with a wooden spoon as you stir, about 3 minutes. Add lemon juice and currants, and saute for 1 minute more.

Add broccolini and toss to combine all of the ingredients. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until broccolini is crisp-tender, about 5 minutes, or cooked as desired. Season with more salt and pepper.

Transfer to a platter and sprinkle with toasted breadcrumbs. Serve immediately or at warm room temperature.

Per serving: 115 calories, 4 g protein, 19 g carbohydrate, 4 g fat (1 g saturated), 0 mg cholesterol, 75 mg sodium, 1 g fiber.

Sweet Potato & Butternut Squash Cakes With Spiced Yogurt

Makes about 3 dozen, to serving 10-12 as a side dish

This dish was inspired by Chronicle food editor Miriam Morgan's latke recipe. We decided to make them as a seasonal winter dish using sweet potatoes and butternut squash. The pancakes can be fried ahead and frozen for up to two weeks. When ready to serve, just heat in the oven at 400° to 425° for 10 to 15 minutes.

• Spiced yogurt
• 3/4 cup Greek-style yogurt
• -- Large pinch cinnamon
• -- Pinch ground cloves
• -- Pinch ground ginger
• -- Grated nutmeg to taste
• -- Honey, to taste (optional)
• Squash cakes
• 2 large sweet potatoes (about 2 1/2 pounds)
• 3 cups grated butternut squash
• 1 medium yellow onion, finely grated
• 6 large eggs
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh sage
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• -- Freshly ground nutmeg to taste
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• 6 tablespoons flour + more, as needed
• -- Canola oil, for frying

For the spiced yogurt: In a small bowl, mix the yogurt, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, nutmeg and honey, if using. The yogurt can be made ahead. Refrigerate until ready to garnish the cakes.

For the cakes: Peel the sweet potatoes, then shred them in a food processor or coarsely grate by hand. Transfer them to a large mixing bowl; add the squash, onion, eggs, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and the 6 tablespoons flour. The mixture should be wet and slightly loose.

Preheat the oven to 200°. Pour enough oil into a large frying pan to reach a depth of 1/2 to 3/4 inch. Heat over medium-high heat until hot but not smoking.

Form about 3 tablespoons of the sweet potato mixture into a loose ball. If the batter is too liquid-y to hold together, add a bit more flour. Place the ball into the sizzling oil and flatten with the back of a spatula until about 2 inches in diameter. Repeat to form several cakes, making sure not to crowd the pan.

Fry until the cakes are a dark golden brown, then turn to fry the other side, about 5-10 minutes total. Transfer to an ovenproof platter or rimmed baking sheet lined with paper towels. Keep warm in the oven while cooking the rest of the cakes. Pour out the oil as it darkens, wipe out the pan, and start with fresh oil every couple of batches. Add more flour, as needed, to keep batter from becoming too runny.

Serve cakes hot, topped with a dollop of the spiced yogurt.

To make ahead: Fry cakes until light golden brown on both sides, about 5 minutes total cooking time. Remove to paper towel-lined baking sheets and cool completely. Remove paper towels and freeze the cakes in a single layer on baking sheets until the cakes are hard. Transfer them to plastic food storage containers or plastic bags, arranging the cakes in layers between parchment. Freeze for for up to 2 weeks. To reheat, place frozen cakes on a rimmed baking sheet and bake at 425° until crisp and hot, about 15-20 minutes.

Per cake: 97 calories, 2 g protein, 7 g carbohydrate, 7 g fat (1 g saturated), 35 mg cholesterol, 13 mg sodium, 1 g fiber.