Serves 6
Bavarian Cheese Spread
Ingredients:
- ½ cup unsalted butter
- 4 oz. cream cheese
- 4 oz. Brie cheese, cut into small pieces
- 8 oz. Muenster cheese, cut into small pieces
- 1 ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 tsp. Hungarian hot paprika
- 1 tsp. Hungarian sweet paprika
- 1 tsp. chili powder
- ½ tsp. caraway seeds
- ½ white onion minced
- ½ red onion, thinly sliced, for garnish
- 4 red radishes, thinly sliced, for garnish
- 1 Tbsp. finally chopped fresh curly parsley, for garnish
- Sliced rye or sourdough bread, for serving
Directions:
In a food processor, combine butter and cream cheese and process until smooth. Add Brie and Muenster, and process until smooth. Add salt, hot and sweet paprika, chili powder, caraway seeds and white onion, and pulse until combined. Transfer to a bowl, cover, and refrigerate for at least one hour or up to one week.
Serve cheese spread garnished with red onion, radishes and parsley with sliced bread. Also tastes good on raw vegetables.
Pumpernickel Brownies
Makes 16 Brownies
- ½ cup unsalted butter, plus more to butter dish
- 4 slices pumpernickel bread, torn into small pieces
- 2 ¼ cup sugar
- ¼ cup brewed coffee
- 1 ¼ cups Dutch-process cocoa powder
- 1 tsp. baking powder
- 4 eggs
- 1 ½ tsp. kosher salt
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
Directions:
Preheat oven to 375°F and butter an 9-in. square baking dish. Spread pumpernickel pieces on a sheet pan and toast in the oven until they have crisped slightly, about 15 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside cool, then crush into coarse crumbs. Lower oven temperature to 350°F.
In a medium saucepan, melt ½ cup butter with sugar and coffee over medium heat, then simmer, stirring, just until sugar dissolves. Remove from heat and let cool slightly.
In a medium bowl, whisk together butter mixture, cocoa powder, baking powder, eggs, salt and vanilla until smooth. Add flour and stir into incorporated. Stir in chocolate chips and three-fourths of the pumpernickel crumbs. Makes a very stiff batter.
Pour batter into the prepared baking dish and scatter remaining pumpernickel crumbs evenly over the top. Bake for about 30 minutes, until just set; a cake tester or toothpick inserted into the center comes out a little wet. Let cool. Cut and serve.