Diamond Kerry - The Cherry bombe cookbook

KERRY & CLAUDIA WOULD LIKE TO THANK:

All the amazing women who let us share their stories and recipes in these pages.

The dream team that helped make this book a reality: Alpha Smoot, Claudia Ficca, Diana Yen, Katja Greeff, and Cindi Gasparre.

Donna Yen and Kate Miller Spencer. You two are the Bombe.

Alexandria Misch, Gillie Houston, Annabel Surtees, Gabi Vigoreaux, and Lauren Salkeld, for helping with all the nitty-gritty stuff and extra chores that go into making a cookbook.

Byrne Fahey, for cooking your heart out all summer.

The rock star assistants on the photo shoot: Dayna Seman, Anna Neidermeyer, Michelle Longo, Britta Siddell, Kyle Acebo, Jessica Leibowitz, and Chelsie Craig.

Andy McNicol, agent extraordinaire. Were glad we bumped into you at that Thakoon dinner.

The whole team at Clarkson Potter: Aaron Wehner, Doris Cooper, Angelin Borsics, Ashley Meyer, Rica Allannic, Stephanie Huntwork, Kate Tyler, Stephanie Davis, Natasha Martin, Heather Williamson, and Amy Boorstein. Thank you for believing in us and in so many female authors.

Our families, friends, and Chef Rob Newton.

Our Kickstarter supporters, all of our past interns, the crew at Heritage Radio Network, the tireless Jennifer Livingston, and all of our wonderful stockists.

Jean Armstrong and the team at Williams-Sonoma.

The talented ceramists who lent us their beautiful plates, platters, and glasses: MONDAYS, Henry Street Studio, Noble Plateware, Amelia Black Ceramics, and Mud Australia.

The lovely folks at Staub, KitchenAid, Le Creuset, and The French Farm.

All the indie shopkeepers who didnt know they were helping but did, including Caputos, A Cooks Companion, Sahadis, Kalustyans, Dual Specialty Store, and Sue and Joe at Santos Farm. Also, the crew at thekitchn.com for knowing what advice we needed before we did.

And last but not least, the Bombe Squad. Thank you for all your support and sisterhood.

BEET RICOTTA DUMPLINGS

WITH BROWNED BUTTER & SAGE

Evan Kleiman

These pillowy dumplings, topped with butter, sage, and a soft shower of grated Parmesan, taste earthy and ethereal at the same time. The host of the popular Good Food program on Los Angeles public radio station KCRW, Evan first discovered gnocchi made with ricotta years ago in Rome and was blown away. This dish is her tribute to that taste memory. The key to these gnocchi is using the freshest beets you can find, which add color and flavor, as well as basket ricotta, a dense type of ricotta that has been drained of extra liquid and contributes to the fluffy texture.

Makes 4 servings

pound red beets (3 or 4 small beets)

1 pound basket ricotta (see Tip)

1 large egg

1 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, plus more for serving

teaspoon kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

1 cup all-purpose flour, plus more for dredging

cup (1 stick) unsalted butter

cup fresh sage leaves

Preheat the oven to 450F.

Wrap the beets in aluminum foil and place them on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake until fork-tender, about 45 minutes. Remove from the oven, open the foil, and let the beets cool. Peel the beets and cut into 1-inch pieces. Transfer the beets to a food processor and pure.

Transfer cup of the beet pure to a large bowl and add the ricotta, egg, Parmigiano-Reggiano, salt, and some pepper. If you have extra beet pure, reserve it for another use. Mix well with a wooden spoon. Slowly stir in the flour, then stir until the dough just comes together. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours or up to overnight.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and lightly dust the parchment with flour. Heavily dust your work surface with flour. Drop a walnut-size piece of the dough in the flour, coat all sides, then roll the dough around with your palms to form a small ball. Set the dumpling on the prepared baking sheet and repeat until you have used all the dough. Place the sheet of prepared gnocchi in the refrigerator for 1 hour to firm up. The gnocchi can be formed up to 1 day ahead.

Heat a saut pan over medium-high heat, add the butter, and let it melt without moving the pan. When the butter has begun to brown around the edges, pick up the saut pan and swirl to keep the melted butter from burning. Add the sage leaves and reduce the heat to medium. Cook until the sage is crispy, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a gentle simmer over medium heat. Lift the piece of parchment off the baking sheet and slip the dumplings into the water. Cook until the dumplings float to the surface, 2 to 3 minutes, then cook for 1 minute more, until the dumplings are firm but tender. Using a slotted spoon, remove the dumplings from the water and place on a serving platter. Top with the browned butter and sage, sprinkle with Parmigiano-Reggiano, and serve immediately.

Tip: If you cant find basket ricotta, you can make your own. Put traditional ricotta in a sieve or a cheesecloth-lined colander set over a bowl. Cover with plastic wrap or a dishtowel and refrigerate for 8 hours or up to overnight.

MANICOTTI

WITH CHERRY TOMATO SAUCE

Sarah Gavigan

While manicotti made with pasta sheets can be a belly bomb, Sarahs classic version made with crepes is surprisingly lighta good thing, since youll want seconds. Instead of traditional red sauce, she uses cherry tomato sauce, which contributes to the brightness of the dish, as do the fresh herbs in the ricotta. Even though Sarahs chef adventures have been very cross-cultural, this Nashville restaurateur, who owns the eateries Otaku, POP, and Little Octopus, grew up in an Italian-American household where dishes such as this one were customary fare. Her manicotti is a fun recipe to make with friends, as they can stuff the crepes as you work the skillet.

Makes about 20 crepes (5 servings)

Sauce

2 quarts Sicilian cherry tomato sauce (see Tip)

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Cheese Filling

28 ounces ricotta cheese

2 large eggs

1 cup finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

1 cup finely chopped fresh mint

1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1 cups freshly grated Pecorino Romano cheese

Crepes

4 large eggs

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon kosher salt

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

cup freshly grated Pecorino Romano cheese

Preheat the oven to 325F.

Heat the sauce: Bring the tomato sauce to a simmer in a medium pot. Season with salt and pepper.

Make the cheese filling: Put the ricotta in a large bowl and mix in the eggs one at a time. Stir in the herbs, nutmeg, and Pecorino. Set the mixture aside.