frozen delights

It’s time once again for an Atkins break, which Marc dubs a “high carb holiday hoe-down.” That always makes me laugh. So this morning he went into the overburdened freezer to pull out some goodies that have been waiting for this day – still frozen, at this point:

lasagna

banana nut bread

We cut hunks off the lasagna, and cut a loaf of banana bread in half, to make an initial attempt at portion control. The banana bread was bizarre, when I made it, so this will be the first taste. Even though neither of us could eat it due to our diets, I had to make it last week because the bananas were way over-ripe, so I made it and froze it. We’ll see if it’s good, report to come and recipe, if it turns out better than I imagine.

LATER…..

The lasagna was simply amazing. And the broccoli was the most perfect he’s ever made, as long as I’ve known him. Perfectly cooked, and sauced with a buttery-toasted-almond lusciousness. Some really good bread for dipping in garlic olive oil, there was some serious moaning around the table, coming from me at least:

And the banana bread, meh. I mean it’s edible, for sure, but it’s kind of strange and not like any banana bread I’ve ever had. It’s sweet and full of nuts, so how bad could it be, but … well, meh. The photo makes it look better than it really is:

But the pinwheel/lazy girl’s rugelach? So good it makes you want to slap your mama. Seriously.

Make these cookies yourself and make new friends:

Pastry:
1 cup unsalted butter, softened at room temp.
1/2 lb cream cheese, softened at room temp.
2 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp salt
2 cups all purpose flour

Filling:
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 cup walnuts, toasted and finely chopped
1/2 cup semi or bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
4 tbsp unsalted butter, melted and cooled

Topping:
3 tbsp granulated sugar
1 tbsp light brown sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 egg white, beaten with 1 tbsp milk or water

To make your pastry dough, beat the butter and cream cheese until smooth. Add sugar and salt. Add the flour, and mix just until a dough forms. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and form the dough into 4 even pieces. Flatten each piece into a disk and wrap separately in plastic wrap. Refrigerate until firm, at least 2 hours or as long as 2 days.

Preheat an oven to 350°F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.

Take the dough out of refrigerator and leave it on your counter for about 10 minutes to soften slightly.

To make your filling, mix granulated sugar, brown sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl and set aside sugar mixture. In another bowl, mix together walnuts and chocolate. Set aside.

To make your topping, mix granulated sugar, brown sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl and set aside topping.

Lightly flour 1 dough disk and place between 2 sheets of plastic wrap (or parchment paper). Roll out into a 12×8-inch rectangle and 1/8 inch thick. Remove the top sheet of plastic.

With the long side in facing you, brush the dough with 1 tablespoon of melted butter, and then sprinkle with 3 tablespoons of the sugar mixture. Then top with about 1/3 cup of the walnut-chocolate mixture. Using a rolling pin, gently roll over the filling to help it adhere to the dough. Tightly roll into a log, seam side down.

Brush the top of the log with the egg wash and sprinkle with the topping. Cut the log into 12 pieces. Transfer to your prepared baking sheet, cut side down and 1 inch apart.

Bake until golden brown, about 22-25 minutes. Allow cookies to cool in pan for 5-10 minutes, and then transfer to cooling racks.