Category:  Holidays

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This is the best hummus we’ve ever made- it’s delicate, sweet and velvety. Make this Velvety Beet Hummus in five minutes. It’s a great starter for all palates!

Prep time: 5 minutes
Makes: about 3 to 3-1/2 cups

Ingredients:
One 14-ounce can garbanzo beans, drained
1 to 2 cloves garlic, peeled
2 tablespoons Tahini (this is sesame seed paste, available in Middle Eastern section of supermarkets)
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
4 tablespoons sunflower or safflower oil (or your choice of vegetable oil)
Juice from 1 to 1-1/2 limes
1 cup diced, cooked beets

Directions:
1. In a food processor, combine the garbanzo beans, garlic, Tahini, salt, olive oil, vegetable oil and lime juice.

2. Process to a paste.

3. Add the beets; process the mixture until smooth (you will see tiny specks of beet in the hummus).

4. Taste and, if needed, adjust salt and lime juice levels.

5. Transfer the hummus to a glass or porcelain serving bowl; garnish with olive oil and mint leaves. Serve with pita bread wedges, crackers or tortilla chips.

6. NOTE: This Velvety Beet Hummus can be made up to two days ahead, tightly sealed and refrigerated. Let stand at room temperature 1 hour before serving.
Text & Photograph ©2022 Nancy DeLucia Real

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These delicious cookies are fun to make. The best part is of all is that they’re Vegan!

Prep time: 20 – 25 minutes
Bake time: 12 to 14 minutes
Makes: 16 cookies

Ingredients:
1-1/2 cups almond flour (blanched)
1/4 cup melted coconut oil
1/4 cup agave or maple syrup
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup ground almonds or pistachios (optional)
1/4 cup raspberry preserves, stirred

Directions:

1.In a 2-quart mixing bowl, combine the almond flour, coconut oil, maple syrup and salt.

2. When mixture has combined to form a dough, wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate it for 2 hours.

3. After 2 hours, line a 18 X 12-inch baking sheet with parchment paper.

4. Preheat oven to 350°F.

5. Pull off about a one-inch piece of dough and shape it into a ball.

6. Repeat this with remaining dough until you have made a total of 16 balls.

7. If desired, roll each ball into ground almonds or pistachios.

8. Place dough balls about 2 inches apart on lined baking sheet.

9. Using a melon ball scoop, press down into center of each cookie, making a 3/4-inch indentation.

10. Fill each cookie center with about 3/4 teaspoon raspberry jam.

11. Place baking sheet with cookie dough on a rack positioned in center of oven.

12. Bake cookies 12 to 14 minutes or until light golden brown around edges.

13. When cookies are done, transfer baking sheet to a counter and let cookies cool 5 minutes.

14. When cookies have cooled, transfer them to an airtight container. Cookies will keep, refrigerated, up to 1 week.
Text & Photograph ©2021 Nancy DeLucia Real

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After I purchased sandwich cookie cake molds at a local Williams Sonoma® store, I was inspired to make this cake for our 2020 December holidays – (this is to memorialize a year of C19 lockdowns in March and in December).

Mirroring our current lives, the cake is simple, with no frills. But it’s delicious, too.

Enjoy this comforting dessert with your favorite coffee, tea or liqueur after your Chanukah, Christmas or New Year dinner!

Prep time: 20 minutes (cake); and 10 minutes (frosting
Bake time: 25 to 30 minutes
Serves: 12 to 15

Ingredients for the Cake:
3 tablespoons vegetable oil (safflower or sunflower) or unsalted butter (for greasing cake pans)
1/2 cup cocoa powder or more (for dusting cake pans)
2 cups all-purpose, unbleached flour
1-3/4 cups granulated sugar (unbleached)
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 cup water
3/4 cup milk (whole or low-fat)
1/2 cup vegetable oil (safflower or sunflower)
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 ounces melted, unsweetened chocolate (cooled)

Directions:
1. Heat oven to 350°F.

2. Grease two Williams Sonoma® Cookie Cake Pans or two 9-inch round cake pans.

3. Sprinkle cocoa powder over greased cake pans; shake off excess. Set pans aside.

4. Measure remaining ingredients in a large (12-cup) mixing bowl.

5. Beat 1 minute on low speed, constantly scraping bowl with a spatula.

6. Beat 3 minutes on high speed; scraping bowl occasionally.

7. Pour cake batter into pans until they reach 2/3 height. If there’s extra batter, grease and dust with cocoa a 2-cup baking dish (make a third cake to use for a separate purpose).

8. Place cake pans on a rack positioned in center of oven; bake for 25 to 30 minutes (bake small, extra cake for 15 minutes; check doneness).

9. Test doneness of cakes by inserting a pointed knife in center of each one. If knife comes out clean, the cakes are done.

10. Remove cakes from oven and set aside on a cooling rack or trivets on a counter for 15 minutes.

11. Invert the cakes onto a parchment paper-lined cutting board.

12. Meanwhile, prepare the Cream Cheese Frosting:

Ingredients for the Cream Cheese Frosting:
1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup unsalted butter
2 to 3 teaspoons milk (whole or low-fat)
1 teaspoon vanilla
4 cups powdered sugar

Directions:
1. In a large (12-cup) mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese, butter, milk, vanilla with handheld  mixer. Alternatively, use a stand mixer fitted with a bowl.

2. Gradually beat in powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time, on low speed, until smooth and spreadable. Set aside.

3. Meanwhile, using a spatula, turn one cake over and set it on a serving platter (with print side facing down).

4. Spread the frosting evenly over cake on platter.

5. Place the second cake, printed side up, on top of frosting.

6. Serve immediately by cutting cake into slices or refrigerate cake (covered) up to 2 days ahead.

7. If making this cake ahead, remove from refrigerator 2 hours prior to serving.
Text ©2020 Nancy DeLucia Real

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Prep time: 15 to 20 minutes
Decorates: 1 to 2 individual pastries

How about transforming a premade, individual cake, cookie  or donut into a Halloween ghoul? Have fun!

Ingredients (for 1 to 2 decorations):
3 cups powdered sugar
1 to 2 tablespoons cold water
Cocoa Rice Crispies (for hair decoration)
One 4.25 oz. tube Dec A Cake Green Decorating Icing
One 4.25 oz. tube Dec A Cake Blue Decorating Icing
One .75 oz. Dec A Cake Black Writing Gel
One .75 oz. Dec A Cake Red Writing Gel

Directions:
1. In a 4-cup bowl, mix the powdered sugar with 1 tablespoon water.

2. If needed, add a little more water until a thick glaze has formed.

3. Place the pastry on a dinner plate covered with waxed paper.

4. Pour enough glaze over the pastry so that it’s surface is completely covered.

5. Immediately transfer dinner plate with glazed item to freezer.

6. Chill 5 minutes until almost firmly set.

7. Transfer the plate with pastry to a work surface & sprinkle the Cocoa Rice Crispies on the ghoul to create “hair”.

8. Fit the Dec A Cake Green Decorating Icing tube with a pointed tip.

9. Looking at photograph herein, be inspired to decorate the pastry by create outer green eye circles, eyebrows & nose.

10. Next, fit the Dec A Cake Blue Decorating Icing tube with a separate pointed tip.

11. Create inner blue pupils inside green outline for eyes.

12.  Draw black pupil in center of pupils in eyes.

13. Draw black line for the mouth.

14. Add red fangs to the mouth line.

15. Decorate a second pastry, if desired. Transfer decorated Halloween ghouls to a serving platter & devour them!
Text & Photograph ©2020 Nancy DeLucia Real