The menu started with spicy shrimp with a sweet pineapple salsa and it just kept getting better with each subsequent dish. Dinner plates were piled high with salty mojo-marinated pork, sweet plantain and sweet potato mash, spicy black beans and rice and citrusy cabbage slaw. Although the pork is a lengthy (3 day process) the recipe below is well worth the effort.

Oh, and for dessert…coconut custard tart. Yum!

Mojo Marinated Pork Cubano (Lechon Asado)
chow.com
serves 6

For the spice rub:
2 tablespoons whole cumin
1 1/2 tablespoons whole black peppercorns
1 tablespoon whole coriander
2 tablespoons dried chile molido
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon paprika
5 pounds boneless pork shoulder (Boston butt)

For the mojo:
1/2 cup garlic, finely chopped
1/2 cup cumin, freshly toasted and ground
1/2 cup coriander, freshly toasted and ground
2 tablespoons jalapeño peppers, finely chopped
1 teaspoon Scotch bonnet peppers, finely chopped
4 cups canola or vegetable oil
7 cups orange juice
1 1/2 cups cilantro, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup sherry vinegar

For the spice rub:
In a dry sauté pan, toast cumin, peppercorns, and coriander over medium heat for a few minutes until spices just start to smoke. Remove spices immediately from the pan. Grind smoked spices in a spice or coffee grinder. Mix together with remaining ingredients (except pork).

Trim any excess fat off the pork, discard the fat, and cut pork into six pieces. Liberally massage all of the spice rub into pork pieces. Place pork in a large resealable plastic bag or in a glass dish. Cover and leave in the refrigerator 24 hours.

On the second day, make the mojo.

For the mojo:
Combine garlic, cumin, coriander, jalapeños, and Scotch bonnet peppers in a stainless steel bowl.

In a large heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium-high heat, heat oil until hot (approximately 175°F). Pour warm oil over spice mixture and let cool to room temperature.

Simmer 2 cups of the orange juice in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat until it is reduced to 1/2 cup. Cool to room temperature.

Combine oil-and-spice mixture, reduced orange juice, remaining 5 cups orange juice, cilantro, and sherry vinegar in a blender and blend until smooth (do this in batches). Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Add 4 cups of the mojo to pork, cover, and marinate another 24 hours.

On the third day, preheat oven to 300°F and arrange the rack at the bottom. Place pork in a large baking dish or in a large, heavy pot with a tightfitting lid, and add remaining mojo and enough water to cover pork in liquid.

Cover with foil or a tightfitting lid and place in the oven. Cook until pork is fork tender, about 4 to 5 hours. (Check pork periodically and add a little water if the liquid is reducing too quickly.) Serve.

Two cooking clubs have come and gone in the past six months. The last one I did not photograph, as I was just a few months pregnant and was not feeling up to it. It was held around Halloween, so the theme was a “Goulish Fall Feast” and featured caviar moons, a dark and stormy drink and bbq ribs. Kyle and I were assigned a shrimp and pumpkin bisque, which turned out to be fantastic (if we do say so ourselves). It’s a bit of work to make your shrimp stock, but it is definitely worth the effort! The recipe is at the bottom.

Chilled Avocado Soup with Spicy Breadcrumbs
Bon Appetit
Soup
1 large ripe avocado (11 to 12 ounces), halved, pitted, peeled, diced
1 1/2 cups (or more) vegetable broth or low-salt chicken broth
1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
Generous pinch of coarse kosher salt

Breadcrumbs
1 4x4x1/2-inch slice soft white sandwich bread with crust
1 tablespoon butter
3/4 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Preparation
Soup
Place diced avocado in blender. Add 1 1/2 cups broth, whipping cream, lime juice, and coarse salt. Puree until smooth. Transfer soup to 4-cup measuring cup; add more broth by 1/4 cupfuls to thin soup, if desired. Cover and chill at least 2 hours. DO AHEAD Soup can be made up to 4 hours ahead. Keep chilled.
Breadcrumbs
Finely grind bread in processor. Melt butter in medium nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add breadcrumbs to skillet; stir until golden, about 1 minute. Add paprika, coarse salt, and cayenne; stir until crumbs are crisp, about 1 minute longer. Transfer to small bowl and cool. DO AHEAD Breadcrumbs can be made 4 hours ahead. Cover and store at room temperature.
Pour cold soup into eight 1/3-cup glasses or other small glasses. Sprinkle each serving lightly with breadcrumbs.

Pumpkin and Shrimp Bisque
Epicurious: The Herbfarm Cookbook
1 pound large shrimp (16 to 20)

Shrimp Stock
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3/4 cup dry white wine
3 cups homemade or canned low-sodium chicken stock
Pinch saffron threads (about 24)
2 ribs celery, coarsely chopped
1 medium onion (about 8 ounces), coarsely chopped
4 fresh bay laurel leaves, torn, or 2 dried
3 3-inch springs fresh sage

2 cups pumpkin purée, fresh (see Note) or canned
1/2 cup heavy cream
About 3/4 teaspoon salt, less if using canned stock
Scant 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
Freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh sage

1. Shrimp stock: Peel and devein shrimp, reserving the shells. Cover the shrimp and refrigerate. Heat the olive oil in a medium (3-quart) heavy-bottomed saucepan over high heat until it begins to smoke. Add the shrimp shells to the pan and cook, stirring constantly, until they turn deep orange and are just beginning to brown, 3 to 4 minutes. This step—pan roasting the shells—gives the stock much of its flavor, so take the time to do it carefully. The roasted shells should release a concentrated, toasty, shrimp aroma that will fill your kitchen. Add the wine to the pan, first turning off gas flames to prevent the alcohol from igniting, then boil it over medium heat until all the liquid is evaporated. Add the chicken stock, saffron, celery, onion, bay leaves, and sage. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to the lowest setting. Partially cover the pan and simmer gently for 30 minutes. Strain the stock through a fine sieve, pushing down on the solids with the back of a spoon to extract all the liquid. Rinse out the saucepan and pour the stock back into it.
2. Soup: Whisk the pumpkin, cream, salt (omit if using canned stock), and cayenne into the shrimp stock. Bring the soup to a simmer, then cook very gently uncovered over low heat for 10 minutes. Stir in the lemon juice, taste, and season with black pepper and more salt if needed. (The soup can be made up to this point up to 1 day ahead store covered in the refrigerator. Keep the peeled shrimp in a resealable bag buried in a bowl of ice in the refrigerator.)
3. Finishing the soup: Pour the olive oil into a large sauté pan placed over medium heat. When hot, add the reserved shrimp and sage and cook, tossing often, until the shrimp is just cooked through, pink, and no longer translucent, but not curled into a circle, 2 to 3 minutes. They should still have a tender snap when you bite into them. Arrange the shrimp in warmed serving bowls or a tureen. Bring the soup back to a simmer and then ladle it over the shrimp. Serve right away.

The flavors were fantastic – each dish complemented the others yet was robust on its own. My favorite was the squash and carrot stew, but the lamb tagine was so tender that it’s hard not to mention it as well. As I can’t decide which recipe I liked best to share, I decided to go ahead and share them all.

Dolomint Cocktail
Cocktails of the World
30 ml Gin
30 ml Galliano®
30 ml Lime Juice
Soda Water
Mint Leaf
Ice Cubes

Pour gin, Galliano and lime juice over ice into a highball glass. Complete with soda water and rub mint on the edge of the glass. Garnish with a mint spring and serve.
*Amazing cocktail that will definitely be made again in the summer!

Moroccan Winter Squash and Carrot Stew
Bon Appetit, January 2006

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup chopped onion
3 garlic cloves, chopped
2 teaspoons Hungarian sweet paprika
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Pinch of saffron
1 cup water
1 14 1/2-ounce can diced tomatoes, drained
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
3 cups 1-inch cubes peeled butternut squash (from 1 1/2-pound squash)
2 cups 3/4-inch cubes peeled carrots
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro, divided
2 teaspoons chopped fresh mint, divided

Heat oil in large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion; sauté until soft, stirring often, about 5 minutes. Add garlic; stir 1 minute. Mix in paprika and next 8 ingredients. Add 1 cup water, tomatoes, and lemon juice. Bring to boil. Add squash and carrots. Cover and simmer over medium-low heat until vegetables are tender, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and chill.) Rewarm stew. Stir in half of cilantro and half of mint. Spoon into serving dish and sprinkle remaining herbs over.

Quinoa
Bon Appetit, January 2006

1 cup quinoa
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1/4 cup finely chopped peeled carrot
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
2 cups water

Rinse quinoa; drain. Melt butter with oil in large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and carrot. Cover; cook until vegetables begin to brown, stirring often, about 10 minutes. Add garlic, salt, and turmeric; sauté 1 minute. Add quinoa; stir 1 minute. Add 2 cups water. Bring to boil; reduce heat to medium-low. Cover; simmer until liquid is absorbed and quinoa is tender, about 15 minutes.

Lamb Tagine with Figs and Walnuts
Gourmet, Adventures with Ruth (Morocco)

1/2 teaspoon saffron threads
2 1/2 lb boneless lamb shoulder cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 medium red onions, sliced lengthwise
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
3 (3-inch) cinnamon sticks
12 oz dried figs (about 1 1/2 cups, preferably Calimyrna), hard ends discarded
3 tablespoons honey
1 cup walnut halves
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 small tomatoes, cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
1 tablespoon finely chopped cilantro

Lightly toast saffron in a dry small heavy skillet over moderately low heat, shaking skillet, just until fragrant, about 1 minute. Transfer saffron to a small dish, let cool, then crumble with fingers.

In a 12-inch tagine, or 3-qt shallow covered casserole, combine lamb, with oil, onions, ginger, turmeric, cinnamon sticks, 2 teaspoons salt, 3/4 tsp pepper, and reserved saffron, tossing to combine. Add 2 cups water to tagine and simmer, covered, 1 hour. Add figs and honey to tagine and simmer, covered, 30 minutes longer, checking occasionally toward end of cooking time to be sure tagine is not dry, adding more water if necessary to keep meat from burning and sticking to pot. Simmer tagine until lamb is very tender and most of liquid has evaporated.

While tagine is simmering, toast walnuts in butter in a small skillet, over moderate heat, stirring frequently, until a shade darker, then set aside.

To serve, arrange tomato slices over lamb and top each with a fig. Sprinkle with walnuts and chopped cilantro.

Moroccan Chicken Brochette
adapted from About.com: Moroccan Food

1 1/2 lbs. chicken breast, cut into 3/4″ cubes
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons paprika
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
2 cloves garlic, pressed or finely chopped
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Combine all ingredients except the chicken. Add the chicken, and mix well to fully coat the meat. Cover with plastic, and leave the chicken to marinate for several hours or overnight in the refrigerator. Transfer the chicken to skewers and grill or broil about 4 or 5 minutes on each side, or until the meat is done. Serve immediately.

Moroccan Stone Fruit Soup
adapted from cuisine.com.au

2 peaches or nectarines
4 apricots
4 red plums
100 ml freshly squeezed orange juice
1 tbsp orange flower water or rosewater
1 tbsp Cointreau or Grand Marnier
2 tbsp runny honey
2 tbsp sultanas (golden raisins will substitute for this)
2 cinnamon sticks, broken in half
1 tbsp flaked almonds
1 tbsp small mint leaves

Original Recipe: Slice the fruits in half, remove the stones and cut into segments. Place in a bowl. Combine the orange juice, orange flower water, Cointreau, honey, sultanas and cinnamon sticks in a saucepan and bring to the boil, stirring to melt the honey.

Pour the syrup over the fruit and leave for 10 mins for the fruit to absorb the flavours. Pile the fruits in four shallow bowls and spoon on the syrup. Add half a cinnamon stick to each bowl. Toast the almond flakes in a dry frypan until golden and scatter on top, with a few mint leaves.

Adaptation: As stone fruit is not in season anywhere when we had our cooking club, we adapted with the following. We made the sauce as directed, then served with thawed, frozen peaches and a scoop of cinnamon ice cream (vanilla ice cream would be great too).

*The greens was just kale sauteed with garlic and olive oil. I don’t know how Moroccan it is, but I just felt like we needed something green on the plate.

While Vickie (left) and Katie (right) finished some kitchen prep, Chad acquainted us with his friend, Mr. Patron. Classic shaken margaritas were the perfect start to this Mexican fiesta!

We had two starters – smoked gouda and caramelized onion quesadillas and charred tomatillo guacamole.

Dinner was the fried fish tacos – large chunks of fish beer battered and crispy fried served with tortillas and a fresh pico de gallo – rice, and poblanos stuffed with goat cheese and shrimp.

We were in charge of the poblanos so we had a lot of leftover roasted red pepper sauce. (I used it to make a delicious pasta sauce by mixing it with an equal portion of tomato puree and added browned Italian sausage from Seward. It was finished with some red pepper flakes and mild seasonings to taste.) The stuffed poblanos and roasted red pepper sauce comes from Bon Appetit December 2002.

Smoked Gouda and Caramelized Onion Quesadillas
Bon Appetit September 1995

2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter
1 onion, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon golden brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon white wine vinegar

1 1/2 cups grated smoked Gouda cheese
4 10-inch-diameter flour tortillas
2 ounces sliced prosciutto, chopped
2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter, melted

Melt 2 tablespoons butter in heavy medium skillet over medium heat. Add onion, brown sugar and vinegar; sauté until onion is golden brown, stirring frequently, about 25 minutes. Remove from heat. Cool to room temperature.

Preheat oven to 350°F. Sprinkle cheese over half of each tortilla, dividing equally. Sprinkle prosciutto and sautéed onion over cheese. Season with pepper. Fold other half of each tortilla over cheese mixture. Brush tortilla with some of melted butter.

Brush heavy large skillet with some of melted butter. Place over medium-high heat. Working in batches, cook quesadillas just until brown spots appear, brushing skillet with butter between batches, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer quesadillas to heavy large baking sheet.

Bake until tortillas are golden and cheese melts, about 5 minutes. Transfer quesadillas to work surface. Cut each into 6 triangles. Arrange on platter and serve hot.

Fried Fish Tacos
courtesy of Katie and RJ’s friends

1 quart vegetable oil
12 to 16 corn tortillas
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons salt
1 cup beer (not dark)
1 pound cod fillet, cut into 3- by 1-inch strips

Optional accompaniments: shredded lettuce, sour cream, avocado slices, chopped or sliced radish, red or green salsa, and lime wedges

Preheat oven to 350°F. Heat 1 inch oil in a 10-inch heavy pot (2 to 3 inches deep) over moderate heat until a deep-fat thermometer registers 360°F.

Meanwhile, separate tortillas and make 2 stacks of 6 to 8. Wrap each stack in foil and heat in oven 12 to 15 minutes.

While tortillas warm, stir together flour and salt in a large bowl, then stir in beer (batter will be thick). Gently stir fish into batter to coat. Lift each piece of fish out of batter, wiping any excess off on side of bowl, and fry fish in batches, turning once or twice, until golden, 4 to 5 minutes. Drain on paper towels.

Increase oil temperature to 375°F and refry fish in batches, turning once or twice, until golden brown and crisp, about 1 minute. Drain on paper towels.

Assemble tacos with warm tortillas, fish, and accompaniments.

Kyle and I were assigned to make the Gruyere Gougeres and the Stacked Crepes as appetizers. We had made gougeres in April from the Bon Appetit recipe, but I was happy to make them again because they are so light and tasty. New to us, however, was making crepes. Although the stacked crepes recipe was not my favorite (just a little bland to me) I have a new found love of making crepes. Since then we have made rhubarb crepes with candied nuts for breakfast and corn crepes with shredded pork and chipotle bbq sauce for dinner. I haven’t found the perfect crepe batter recipe yet, but I will continue my search – that’s for sure!

All the dishes at cooking club were really good. The French onion soup was rich and cheesy (perfect for a rainy day like today) and the salad was sharp with a hefty creamy serving of chevre…but my favorites were the martini, mussels and creme brulee.

I’m not usually a martini girl (except for the occasional extra dirty gin martini that always guarantees for an interesting evening) and I’m really not a vodka girl. So when this martini was mixed and placed in front of me, I had my doubts. But after one taste of the lightly sweet but crisp and cool drink, I knew this combination was dangerous. No alcohol could be tasted, just raspberry-pineapple goodness. I immediately told Kyle that he was driving home, then proceeded to polish off a couple.

Simply said, the mussels were pure heaven. I stopped eating fish and seafood awhile ago, one of those irrational things you do as a kid. Being a little stubborn (or maybe a lot), as a teenager I recall watching with bewilderment during a trip to the Northeast as my parents and sister donned plastic bibs and polished off lobster after lobster, dipping the sweet meat into melted butter. I also just watched as my dad and sister’s continually searched to find the perfect oyster on the half-shell. Their love for oyster bars just never was appealing. But the topper was a trip in 2007 to Europe, where my mom and Kyle oohed and aahed over the steamed mussels served in seemingly bottomless black pots wafting with the scent of white wine and garlic. I just didn’t understand.

But all that sideline observation has ended and I’m enjoying rediscovering fish and seafood. I especially love mussels, so when they were listed on the menu for our French cooking club night, I couldn’t wait! RJ and Katie were assigned to the dish. And although the recipe, which called for 2 pounds of mussels, would have been enough for the group given the amount of food we were had planned for the night, they knew better and doubled it. The result was a giant vat of beautiful mussels served in a fragrant white wine broth with tomatoes, herbs and saffron. If you make this recipe, be sure to have some hearty bread on hand to mop up the broth. I can’t wait to make these mussels when the weather turns warm again!

Last for the evening was the creme brulee. Jill and Brian were in charge of this dessert, which they baked and chilled earlier that day. We brought our kitchen torch and the group made an activity out of each torching his or her own dessert to create their own sugary, caramelized top. Everyone did a great job, but style points go to Chad, who broke out the big torch once our small one ran out of butane. The creme brulee was a classic recipe with vanilla and the texture was perfectly creamy and smooth. If there’s anything better than hearing the top of a creme brulee crack with a light tap of the fork, I certainly don’t know what it is.

Balthazar Martini
Balthazar Restauarnt, New York City
1 oz. chilled vodka
1 oz. pineapple juice
1/3 oz. Chambord
ice cubes

Combine ingredients in cocktail shaker. Shake vigorously to create a frothy head. Strain into a martini glass and serve straight up. Makes 1 martini.

Mussels in White Wine
2004, Barfoot in Paris
3 lbs. cultivated mussels
1/3 c. flour
2 T. unsalted butter
2 T. good olive oil
1 c. chopped shallots (5 to 7 shallots)
1 1/2 T. minced garlic (6 to 6 cloves)
1/2 c. chopped canned plum tomatoes, drained (4 oz)
1/2 t. good saffron threads
1/3 c. chopped flat-leaf parsely
1 T. fresh thyme leaves
1 c. good white wine
2 t. kosher salt
1 t. freshly ground black pepper

To clean the mussels, put them in a large bowl with 2 quarts of water and the flour and soak for 30 minutes, or until the mussels disgorge any sand. Drain the mussels, then remove the “beard” from each with your fingers. If they’re dirty, scrub the mussels with a brush under running water. Discard any mussels whose shells aren’t tightly shut.

In a large non-aluminum stockpot, heat the butter and olive oil over medium heat. Add the shallots and cook for 5 minutes; then add the garlic and cook for 3 more minutes, or until the shallots are translucent. Add the tomatoes, saffron, parsley, thyme, wine, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil.

Add the mussels, stir well, then cover the pot, and cook over medium heat for 8 to 10 minutes, until all the mussels are opened (discard any that do not open). With the lid on, shake the pot once or twice to be sure the mussels don’t burn on the bottom. Pour the mussels and the sauce into a large bowl and serve hot.

“First off, we will be touring the wine country to collect our wine for the meal and tastings of cheeses and crackers. Then we will be heading down into San Francisco to flavor some local feast. After we “taste” some wine and clear our pallets with cheese, we will be stopping off at Fisherman’s Wharf/South Beach for some Acme Chop House salad lasagna, followed by a quick jaunt to The Mission (district) where we will be visiting Panchita’s Restaurant #2 for some Pupusas. That’s the starters, still hungry?

Main menu will involve the poultry flavor and a bit of garlic to your liking in the heart of North Beach. The Stinking Rose is famous in San Francisco, but for those who are not garlic fans (forty clove garlic chicken), you can quickly hop over to Chinatown for some House of Nanking Paper Wrapped Chicken, sorry we opted not to display the Dim Sum on this menu. We’ll have some butternut squash brought in as well for dinner from the Grand Café in Union Square.

Finally, we’ll be hopping on the trolley car up and down famous Hyde Street to The Hyde Street Bistro for dessert. Chocolate soufflé anyone? The Hyde Street Bistro is my favorite, quaint, off the beaten path restaurant in San Francisco and their desserts are to die for. Coffee to top the night off in the Russion Hill area with some Buena Vista Pub Irish Coffee.”

Per our Cooking Club format, Kyle and I were given tasks of bringing a bottle of wine and some cheese for tasting and making papusas. Wine and cheese…easy stuff. Papusas? I had never even heard of them, much less made them. So I ‘phoned a friend’ for some help. She filled me in on how they should look and taste (El Salvadorian corn cakes filled with cheese or meat and served with a tomato sauce and a spicy pickled cole slaw), but then when left to my interpretation I messed up a pretty significant step. In short, corn flour is not a direct substitute for masa harina. Therefore the first batch of papusas, while not horrific tasting were heavy and sat in my stomach like a brick (these bricks are pictured above). Kyle, sensing a meltdown, ran to a hispanic market in Northeast, bought some masa harina and we quickly made a new batch for Cooking Club. Disaster averted, and I have to say they turned out quite tasty!

My favorites of the evening, however, were the Nanking Paper Wrapped Chicken – neatly folded envelopes of chicken with a light cilantro flavor – and the molten chocolate cake – no elaboration needed…it was molten, it was chocolate and it was cake. I included the recipe below that they used for these cakes, they will definitely be made at my house soon.

Overall I was impressed with the research of the menu and creativity to pull it all together. The next menu belongs to Chad and Vickie and there were rumors of a French cooking theme. Sounds like a good time to me!

Molten Chocolate Cakes
Makes 6

Sauce
4 ½ oz. bittersweet (not unsweetened) or semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
2 oz. unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1/3 c. hot water
¼ c. light corn syrup
¾ tsp peppermint extract

CAKES
5 oz. bittersweet (not unsweetened) or semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
10 TBSP (1 ¼ sticks) unsalted butter
3 large eggs
3 large egg yolks
1 ½ c. powdered sugar
½ c. all purpose flour

Vanilla ice cream

FOR SAUCE: Stir both chocolates in top of double boiler over barely simmering water until melted. Add 1/3 cup hot water, corn syrup and extract; whisk until smooth. Remove from over water. Cool slightly. (Can be made 2 days ahead. Cover, chill. Before serving rewarm in saucepan over low heat stirring constantly).

FOR CAKES: Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Butter six ¼ cup soufflé dishes or custard cups. Stir chocolate and butter in heavy medium saucepan over low heat until melted. Cool slightly. Whisk eggs and egg yolks in large bowl to blend. Whisk in sugar, then chocolate mixture and flour. Pour batter into dishes, dividing equally. (Can be made one day ahead. Cover. Chill).

Bake cakes until sides are set but center remains soft and runny, about 11 minutes or up to 14 minutes for batter that was refrigerated. Run small knife around cakes to loosen. Immediately turn cakes out onto plates, Spoon sauce around cakes. Serve with ice cream.

I found the recipes all on the Food Network recipe list. Actually, most of the recipes are from Emeril, which I hated to do but knew if I wanted some “kicked up” food from New Orleans, Emeril was the man to consult. I’m still not a fan of Emeril the personality, but after eating this brunch, I am definitely a fan of his recipes.

My favorites of the morning were the bloody mary’s, the frittata, the grits (which were amazing as leftovers with plenty of Louisiana hot sauce) and the cayenne-candied bacon. Honestly, spicy-sweet bacon? I’m in love.

The biggest disappointment for me were the eggs benedict. I don’t know what happened. The muffins were good, the eggs were cooked well (with runny yolks), the steak was seasoned well, and the Hollaindaise was tasty…but the sum of all the parts just didn’t add up for me. I’m beginning to wonder if I just don’t like eggs benedict. Does anyone know where I should go to put this to the test? Where are the best eggs benedict in the Twin Cities? I really need to figure this out.

Back to brunch…The morning was a lot of fun. We even got to do some cooking together, which usually doesn’t happen in our club. Vickie whipped up the syrup at my house and Katie (not me, the other Katie) was awarded the “utility cook of the day” by helping me with the waffles and the eggs benedict.

Looking back, perhaps it wasn’t a great idea to have this huge brunch the Sunday before Thanksgiving, since we had some big meals coming up. But in the moment that Sunday, I wouldn’t have changed a think. Then again, after two bloody mary’s on a Sunday morning, everything seems like a good idea!

Another successful cooking club night. Good food, good conversation…good times.