Hazelnuts, white chocolate, what’s not to like in a cookie? After the english muffins were such success from Model Bakery, I wondered what else could I make. Naturally I started looking straight at the cookie section and saw these beauties. The amount of white chocolate in here is kind of ridiculous, and this recipe makes HUGE cookies. As in you can only fit 5-6 on a baking pan at a time big. I was originally rolling normal size cookies and had way too much dough left over, so basically had to add another 1/2 cookie to each dough ball I already made to align with the recipe. Can you make…

Not sure who originally thought of this kind of cake, but what an idea. So, I honestly knew very little about this cake so I did a little digging about it’s history and according to the Alto Harley blog, “pineapple upside down cakes date back hundreds of years to when people would cook over oven fires with cast iron skillets. When they wanted a sweet treat, they would line the bottom of the pans with fruit, and pour batter on top. When the cake was ready, the pan was flipped over, revealing the gorgeous pattern of caramelized fruit on the top.” It’s a nice change up from traditional cakes, and…

Homemade English muffins sound pretty cool right? What if I told you that Oprah has these flown in from Napa Valley fresh, do I have your attention now? Also, she listed them on her favorite things list for 2016. Ok, so these mean business. The Model Bakery has been open since 1908 serving the Napa Valley and is a staple. One thing about these English muffins is that they are nottt cheap, $40 gets you a dozen muffins and a jar of preserves. $40!!! The Model Bakery cookbook is $20, and you can buy the ingredients for the extra $20 to make them all at home, perfect for us! In…

Even when baking at altitude, this was the best loaf that I have made so far. If you know about dutch crunch, you almost never pass on if it is available when getting a sandwich. Sometimes a little hard (understandably), but when fresh, OMG. A perfect combo of fresh, yet crunchy, and exactly what you are looking for in a sandwich roll. The origins are in fact Dutch, as they have the earliest discussions of a type of bread that includes a rice flour topping (which is what gives the bread its signature look) from the Netherlands. But they call the bread Tiger Bread there, which also makes sense based…

This is not a traditional dumpling, but I don’t know if I want to go back after these. Head chef and owner Danny Bowein said that he has historically had a bad experience with dumplings. So he set out to go and make his own breaking away from tradition. To improve the wrapper, he followed after Italian footsteps, minus the eggs. If you have made any of my stuffed pastas, you will see how similar the process is besides rolling out the dough. He landed on 00 Flour because he was looking for a similar chew in pasta, which is similar that you want in dumplings as well. After 00…

Welcome to the Altitude Series! The next few posts were all done on a little get away in Tahoe over 10 days. For me, there aren’t too many meals that rev my engine like fresh, hand-made, stuffed pasta (or fresh pasta in general), and this corn and crescenza cappelletti really does the trick. There are so many components to each dish, and although it may take time, the actual actions of making stuffed pastas are generally not that difficult. The end result is extremely satisfying because of the amount of hard work and effort you put into actually making each one near perfect. Cappelletti is another great style of stuffed…

There are recipes on this blog that you should be doing, then there are recipes that you better be doing. This is one of those recipes. Pop Tarts have always been a snack that has potential to be so much better. There is never quite enough filling, clearly a little stale, and qualifies as “just good enough” typically. Maybe a camping snack you need in a pinch, but never a staple in the pantry, except for little kids maybe. Well today, we are going to change all of that. Your house is going to smell like fresh croissants with about 1/10 of the work. What is great about this recipe…

Eating a pasta with some kind of thick sauce or gravy is something that is pat of almost every kids childhood. However the bolognese sauce has taken over so many iterations around the world, who knows if you have actually eaten anything close to an original recipe. A good bolognese is all about melding the flavors together, which takes a good amount of time. I’ve heard this from many chefs, but the saying goes, “good cooking waits for no one”. Which is especially true for pasta sauces. Bolognese is so beloved and protected in Bologna, that the recipe was codified and made official by the city in the 1970s. Even…

I am always trying to find and make more pasta sauces other than what is canned in the store. While they provide an extreme convenience at a great price, after a while I get so bored with them. The taste is never going to really blow you away, and always felt I could do a better job if I actually tired. Need a meal in a pinch, no problem. But if you have some extra time on your hands, go ahead and do yourself a favor and try out some new sauce. Bolognese has been tough for me in the past. Looking up recipes online only got me so far,…

I didn’t think I would actually make this dish, then I came across some cheap caviar and said why not. I thought my first caviar dish was going to be Oysters and Pearls from the French Laundry, but I am not ready for that. I really like asparagus, and am always looking for more ways to improve on that technique so I was eager to do this dish. Apparently I have been over cooking my asparagus for a long time now, I was shocked at how quickly we cook them for in this recipe. Cookbook – Beginnings – How I Like to Start a Meal Ingredients – Creme fraiche dressing…