Desserts

Here is everything you want in one candy–chocolate, caramel, and nuts–and these truffles couldn’t be simpler to prepare. Make a big batch, box them attractively, and you have the perfect holiday gift. Makes about 40 truffles Ingredients 1 cup sugar 2/3 cup heavy cream 9 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped 2 tablespoons creamy peanut butter 1/4 teaspoon table salt 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1/2 cup finely chopped peanuts for coating Place the sugar in a heavy saucepan. Cook over medium-high… more »

When I was a kid, one of my all time favorite desserts was coffee ice cream and hot butterscotch sauce. I’m not sure if I loved it for he slightly bitter coffee taste counterbalanced by the sweet buttery sauce or for the canned whipped cream and Day-Glo red cherries on the top. I flatter myself that my tastes have matured as I’ve grown up, but sometimes I’m not so sure. Although I have indeed kissed off canned whipped cream and… more »

One of our favorite neighborhood restaurants is La Taza de Oro, a great little Puerto Rican spot on Eighth Avenue in Chelsea. The menu always features five or six entrees, accompanied by your choice of yellow or white rice and several different kinds of beans. (When Ruthie was three and four years old, she was such a nut for La Taza’s black beans that the counter guy there dubbed her Black ‘Bean and set her up with a little dish… more »