Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Comforting recipes perfect for lazy days
These dishes feel like self-care and taste like a celebration
Some of the very best dishes are those that take a long time — time you never used to have. These comforting but festive recipes don’t require much prep time or hands-on attention, but they do need you to be around the house. You just have to wait while the dishes fill your home with the aromas you want this time of year.
Case in point: Braised brisket takes only 30 minutes to be ready for the oven, but its spiced, meaty scent will waft through the kitchen for the next four hours or so.
And it needs that time. If not cooked long enough, brisket’s leaner and more readily available first cut, or flat cut, can be tough and dry. The meat seems to tighten as it cooks until all of a sudden it relaxes into tenderness. After the meat is sliced, it gets heated in the sauce to further tenderize it and ensure it’s moist.
For a sweeter note, slow-cook clementines in syrup to make a confit. Segments of the fruit go into simple syrup, then into the oven for two to three hours. This process is more about transformation than preservation. During this time, they morph into something more complex, chewy, concentrated and kind of fancy.
They’re perfect for topping a simple ginger chocolate cake that’s everything a chocolate cake should be: easy, gorgeous and just rich enough. It may remain in your repertoire forever.
Makes: 8 to 10 servings
¾ cup unsalted butter (1 ½ sticks), plus softened butter for greasing the pan
12 ounces bittersweet chocolate (60%), broken into small pieces
¼ cup Dutch-processed cocoa powder, plus more for dusting
1 rounded tablespoon grated peeled fresh ginger
1 ¼ teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon kosher salt
1 (8-ounce) container crème fraîche (1 cup)
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon ginger liqueur or cognac (optional)
6 large eggs, separated
Clementine confit, for serving
1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease the bottom and sides of a 9-inch springform pan with the softened butter. Line the bottom with parchment and butter the paper.
2. Combine the butter and chocolate in a medium bowl, and set the bowl over a pan of barely simmering water. Stir occasionally until mostly melted and remove from heat. Continue stirring until smooth and let cool slightly. Add cocoa, fresh ginger, ground ginger, vanilla, salt, ¼ cup crème fraîche, ¼ cup sugar and the liqueur, if using. Whisk until smooth. Lightly beat the egg yolks in another bowl and whisk into the chocolate mixture until smooth. Set aside in a warm place to keep the mixture loose.
3. Meanwhile, use a stand mixer fitted with the whisk or a hand mixer and large bowl to beat the egg whites on medium speed until evenly foamy. Gradually sprinkle in the remaining ¾ cup sugar. Increase the speed to high and continue beating until the egg whites are very billowy and hold a peak.
4.Add ¼ of the whites to the chocolate mixture and whisk until smooth, then scrape into the bowl with the whites. Fold gently until no white streaks remain. Scrape into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Place on a baking sheet and onto the center oven rack.
5. Bake until center bounces a little when you gently shake the pan and a toothpick inserted 1 ½ inches from the edge comes out clean, 40 to 45 minutes. Cool completely on a rack.
6. Remove the ring and slide onto a serving plate from pan bottom. You can leave the paper in place. Gently pat any crumbling edges back onto the cake. Cake will last well wrapped at room temperature for a few days and can also be frozen.
7. When ready to serve, chill a bowl and whisk, and use them to whip the remaining ¾ cup crème fraîche. It will thin out at first, then hold its shape. Dust the cake with cocoa powder and slice with a hot knife. Serve each slice with a dollop of crème fraîche and some of the clementine confit.