Cioccolata calda

This weekend I'm off to visit my sister in Switzerland and when asked if she wanted anything from Italy she asked me for cioccolata calda. Italian cioccolata calda is a whole different animal from the hot chocolate we're used to in the US. It is much more dense, less sugary and coats the mouth (and the belly) with a rich gooey chocolatey taste. In the US we're accustomed to ripping open a packet of Swiss Miss (complete with those dried-out crunchy mini marshmallows), adding hot water and BOOM hot chocolate, but Italians aren't known for such pre-packaged quick fixes. I've only ever had this treat in bars here and never having seen anyone make it at home I had to do a little research into how it's prepared.

Here's a recipe for classic Italian cioccolata calda:

• 1/2 liter milk 
• 100 g dark chocolate (<70 % cacao)  
• 50 g sugar 
• 10 g potato starch 
• whipped cream

Melt the chocolate, some of the milk and sugar together in a saucepan at low heat. When the chocolate is melted and the mixute looks homogeneous slowly add the rest of the milk while stirring. Add the potato starch and stir well. Remove from heat one it has reached the desired density. (If you want it really dense you can add even more potato starch to thicken the pot..!) Pour it into the cup and add the whipped cream on top. Sprinkle with cocoa powder on top and voilà!

Just a regular Tuesday.

Creation from last night: Tigerkaka, or Marble cake.

While I was experimenting with cake my roommate Valery decided to try out a new lemon-y cocktail on me: lots of vodka, lemon juice, and lemon snaps. Wow! It made for a spectacular Tuesday evening at home. Enjoy the photos!

Let's not forget this morning: I made my first latte macchiato! It turned out deliciously well. Excellent way to start the day!

Happy Wednesday everyone!

"People who photograph food and display the pictures online"

I read this article a few days ago and think I'll start doing this on my blog. Some of the food I eat here is so beautiful I think it deserves to be showcased. Will especially be posting photos of baked goods and other dishes that I cook myself. This will also be neat to do when I go to Indonesia!
Check out what people are doing in the following NYTimes article:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/07/dining/07camera.html?scp=1&sq=pictures%20food%20&st=cse

Let me start here - some photos of Swedish SEMLOR that I baked a few weeks ago for mardi gras.

Swedish chef

I think my love affair with Milan is ending. We've had a great run, made amazing memories together and fallen in love over the years. Recently however, upon returning to Milan after skiing in the Swiss alps with my mother and sister, I realized that I might be moving on from my relationship with Milan. We just seem to be growing apart from one another.

In the past few months I have applied to a number of PhD programs in the USA and Canada. After a slew of rejections (I received my last rejection letter about 2 months ago) things have been suspiciously quiet on the PhD application front. This has given me plenty of time to make myself crazy with all the "what ifs?" that are swirling around in my head. So what if I'm not accepted anywhere? At this point I've already given my 3 months notice to my landlord and we've even found new renters; expected to move in the first week of June. Will I stay in Milan, even if my head and heart have already moved on? Or should I move closer to my family in New York, even though I don't have anything solid lined up there? Believe me, it's not an easy desicion.

I've recently been toying with the idea of changing careers (please don't tell my mom, she'll kill me). Yes being an engineer is rewarding and I love the work I do but there are other options and I have other passions which I might find just as much pleasure pursuing professionally. For example, I might want to try my hand at being a pastry chef. Baking has been a hobby of mine for a long time, and with positive feedback from friends and colleagues I've been motivated to consider this as an alternative to chemical engineering... I mean afterall, they are really similar: selection and preparation of just the right ingredients, mixing components in precise quantities, heating to a specific temperature for just the right amount of time to permit a chemical reaction to occur, and ensuring the final product comes out just right.

Who knows, I might be the next Swedish chef!

Kladdkaka

Here's a recipe for Swedish kladdkaka or "messy cake". It's delicious when it's slightly undercooked and should be served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or whipped cream. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 150 g margarine/butter
• 3 dl sugar
• 2 tsp vanilla sugar (or slightly less of vanilla extract)
• 1 dl cacao powder
• 2 eggs
• 2 dl flour

Melt the butter in a pot, stir in the sugars and the cacao. Add the eggs, flour, and vanilla, stir until smooth.

Pour the mixture into a sugared pan and put in the oven at 175 °C for approximately 20 minutes et voilà!

mia prima pizza

Last night I made my first pizza, from scratch!
Two kinds: cherry tomatoes and basil and sausage and onions.
Have you ever seen anyone so proud of pizza before?