La Cocotte Verte

Yet another member of the wide-ranging Mexican Wedding Cookie/Russian Tea Cake family, Almond Crescents are buttery, only lightly sweet, and somewhere between crisp and crumbly. Finely-milled almond flour and a touch of walnut oil are the secret to their rich taste and tender, delicate texture. Almond Crescents keep well stored in a tightly-sealed container, although their confectioner’s sugar coating can get a bit spotty-looking if they are stored for a while, so give them a final roll in the sugar before serving to restore their snowy-white appearance.

Linzer Torte is a holiday tradition in Austria and Hungary, a nutty, spiced cookie dough surrounds a filling of tart-sweet raspberry or apricot jam, then is topped with a lattice of the same nut dough. Named after the city of Linz, Austria, it’s the oldest-known torte in the world — the oldest surviving recipe dates back to 1650. It’s a cinch to make, but since the jam is a major component of the torte’s flavor, the jam needs to really shine. And if you make home-made jam, this dessert is going to be your new best friend — what better way to showcase your creation?

This is a showstopper of a dessert: a crisp nutty tart shell, a soft, rich layer of caramel studded with crunchy hazelnuts, topped with a dark chocolate layer that lies somewhere between a flourless chocolate cake and a ganache, garnished with sparkly caramelized hazelnuts. It’s a sophisticated balancing act between sweet, bitter, and salty flavors.

Plump, intensely chocolate, with a fudgy texture and a delicate shiny crust, these cookies are a chocolate-lover’s dream. Although chocolate purists may shudder at the idea, added hits of cinnamon and cayenne add warm, spicy notes that round out the chocolate flavors (as well as keep tasters trying to guess what on earth makes these cookies so deliciously different!)

Tiny green Lentils de Puy keep their shape exceptionally well when cooked. Here they’re studded with pan-roasted vegetables and enriched with chicken stock, made fragrant with herbs. A perfect pairing with roasted meats and a hearty wine!

Confit de canard (‘preserved’ duck, aka duck confit) is a traditional French dish of duck that is salt-cured, then slowly simmered in duck fat until meltingly tender. Traditionally, the duck confit was stored in sterilized jars under a thick layer of duck fat to preserve it. While making duck confit is a multi-day procedure, excellent duck confit is available canned and in vacuum pouches. Although it’s not strictly necessary to preserve the duck in these products, the fat is still added as a traditional touch. Briefly sauteed in a skillet, then given a quick crisping under the broiler, duck confit makes a fast and delicious meal.

No, it’s not a Tarte Tatin. It’s still delicious, and much less fiddly to make. Tart apples are caramelized, flavored with Calvados, and enriched with a little cream, then baked under golden puff pastry. Because the juicy filling is below the crust, rather than on top of it, the crust stays crisp and flaky. Serve with a dollop of creme fraiche, and a dash of cinnamon.

Properly roasted, potatoes produce a crisp and brown crust surrounding a creamy interior. The trick is to cover them during the first part of the cooking, so that the steam cooks the potatoes all the way through, then uncover them so they can acquire a rich brown crust. The garlic and rosemary are added after the potatoes have cooked, rather than before they go into the oven — cooking so long at such a high temperature gives the seasonings an unpleasant bitter taste

Pomegranate seeds (arils) are wonderful in salads, contributing brilliant ruby color, sweet-tart taste, and bursts of juiciness. Fennel’s brilliant greenish-white color and gentle licorice flavor offset them perfectly. As finishing touches, scallions add a savory punch, and a simple pink-red cranberry balsamic vinaigrette rounds out the flavors.

Onion confit is just onions, cooked long and gently, seasoned with a bit of balsamic vinegar and salt. That’s it. But during hours of simmering, the onions turn caramel-gold and their flavor changes from sharp and pungent to rich and sweet. It’s ridiculously simple to make, provided you have a heavy pan with a tightly-fitting cover (une cocotte!), and a few hours to let the onions reduce to a thick jam. Smear the jam on garlicky crostini and top with a thin shaving of nutty Petit Basque cheese to create an inspired appetizer — or snack!