Moist, chewy, flourless cookies are all about the chocolate

Not only is chocolate the star of this recipe, it practically is the whole recipe -- and the better the chocolate you use, the better the cookies will taste.

I used dark Belgian chocolate. Nuts are the other major component in these cookies. I used some of my stash of Missouri pecans, which I froze soon after they were  harvested last fall.

If you don't have local nuts on hand -- or Belgian chocolate, for that matter -- use whatever tastes good to you. You can even make this recipe with milk chocolate instead of semisweet or dark.

What's missing from this recipe is almost as notable as what it contains. These cookies are made without flour (meaning they're gluten free), vanilla or other flavorings, and egg yolks.

These are basically meringue cookies. Over the years, I've made several other versions, all made with cocoa powder. Those were good, but these are even better.

CHEWY CHOCOLATE-NUT MERINGUE COOKIES
Yield: About 30 cookies

3/4 cup pecan halves
6 ounces dark chocolate, coarsely chopped
3 egg whites, at room temperature (see note)
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup granulated or superfine sugar

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two large cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Toast pecans in a large ungreased skillet just until they become fragrant and begin to brown, stirring frequently and watching closely. Transfer to a plate and let cool completely, then chop finely. Set aside.

Place chocolate in a medium glass bowl. Place over a saucepan of barely simmering water, making sure the water doesn't touch the bottom of the bowl. Cook, stirring frequently, until melted. Set aside to cool. (Alternately, melt chocolate in the microwave at 80 percent power, stirring every 30 seconds and watching carefully to prevent burning.)

Place egg whites and salt in a large mixing bowl. Beat on high speed until soft peaks form. With mixer running, slowly add sugar in a thin stream. Beat until sugar dissolves and stiff, glossy peaks form, about 3 to 4 minutes.

Scoop about 1 cup meringue into cooled chocolate. Stir gently with a whisk until well combined. With a flexible spatula, scrape chocolate mixture into the remaining meringue. With the whisk, fold gently until no streaks remain. Sprinkle nuts over meringue mixture; fold gently with the spatula.

Using two spoons, drop mounds of meringue on cookie sheets, leaving about 1 1/2 inches between cookies. Bake until cookies are set and no longer shiny, about 10 to 12 minutes. If baking two racks at once, switch them from the top to bottom shelf and rotate the sheets from front to back after 6 minutes.

Slide parchment onto wire racks; let cookies cool completely before removing from parchment. (Cookies will be fragile.) Store in a tightly sealed container.

Note: Eggs are easier to separate when they are cold. Let the whites warm to room temperature before you beat them.

Adapted from a recipe created by Dierbergs.

Goat cheese and smoked salmon quiche has a hash-brown crust

I thought I'd come up with an original idea: goat cheese quiche in a hash-brown crust. Inspiration came from a light lunch in a New York City restaurant (the quiche) and a leisurely breakfast at my daughter's apartment (the hash browns).

I Googled "goat cheese quiche" to get an idea of the proportions of egg to cheese to milk, and what popped up? Lots of links to Martha Stewart's goat cheese quiche with hash-brown crust.

I borrowed her recipe for the crust, substituting oil for butter and greasing the pan well instead of laboriously lining it with parchment. (I also used a pie plate instead of Martha's springform pan.) For the filling, I riffed on a recipe I've had for years, swapping goat cheese for the sour cream and adding fresh dill, green onions and smoked salmon. Martha, never one to shy away from excess, calls for 11 eggs in the filling of her quiche. I used four.

You can vary the filling any way you like, perhaps using cooked crumbled bacon or sausage or sauteed spinach or mushrooms or roasted red pepper. Just make sure that you cook the vegetables until as much liquid as possible evaporates. Otherwise, the quiche may be watery.

GOAT CHEESE AND SMOKED SALMON QUICHE IN A HASH-BROWN CRUST
Yield: 6 servings

16 ounces frozen hash brown potatoes, thawed completely
5 eggs, divided
2 tablespoons vegetable oil, olive oil or melted butter
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 cup milk
6 ounces goat cheese
1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill
1 tablespoon chopped green onion
2 ounces smoked salmon, flaked into small pieces

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Generously grease a deep-dish pie plate.

Squeeze as much moisture as possible from the potatoes; place in a large bowl. In a small bowl, whisk together 1 egg, oil or butter, salt and pepper. Add to potatoes; mix well. Pat potatoes into pie plate, making a compact, even layer across the bottom and up the sides. Bake until the potatoes are firm and start to brown, about 25 to 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, whisk the remaining 4 eggs with the milk. Break the goat cheese into small pieces and add it to the egg mixture, then whisk until smooth. Whisk in the dill and green onion.

When the crust is done, remove the pie plate from the oven and reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees. Pour the egg mixture into the crust. Scatter salmon evenly into the filling. Return to the oven. Cover the edge of the crust with a pie shield or aluminum foil to prevent burning. Bake until the filling is set, puffed and starts to brown, about 35 minutes. When done, a knife inserted into the center of the filling will come out clean.

Let stand for 5 to 10 minutes, then slice and serve.

Note: The salmon, cheese, dill and green onions provide so much flavor that the filling doesn't need salt or pepper.

"Passover Made Easy" is imaginative, attractive and frequently gluten-free

"Passover Made Easy: Favorite Triple-Tested Recipes" takes potato starch to a new -- and delicious -- level. The bonus? Most of the recipes in the book are gluten-free, so even if you don't observe Passover, this book is worth a look.

(Potato starch is just what it sounds like -- a pure white powder made from potatoes. It's often used as a thickener, but the authors of this book frequently employ it as a flour. You can find potato starch in the spring at supermarkets that carry Passover foods, and Amazon sells several brands.)

Leah Schapria, author of cookkosher.com, and Victoria Dwek, managing editor of the kosher food magazine Whisk (published weekly by Ami Magazine), have compiled 60 interesting recipes in this attractive new book ($15.99 Mesorah Publications, Ltd.). The dishes that rely on potato starch include crepes (which double as egg-roll wrappers and lo mein noodles), crackers, chicken nuggets with apricot dipping sauce, banana french toast,  frozen lemon wafer cake, and chocolate-nut biscotti.

The book is beautifully photographed, and each chapter begins with step-by-step explanations of how to plate one of the dishes, which is a nice touch.

My only quibble is that the book seems geared toward experienced cooks; the ingredient lists and directions can be inexact. If you need details -- what type of chocolate to use in a cake, how much oil to pour into the pan when deep-frying, the size of a squash best-suited for a specific recipe --  this book probably isn't for you. If you're an experienced cook who's looking for something new and unusual, however, I think you'll find a lot to like.

These nuggets are a family-favorite meal that can be enjoyed year-round. The authors suggest also using the batter to make fried fish or onion rings.

(To see a recipe for Spaghetti Squash Kugel from "Passover Made Easy," click here.)

SCHNITZEL NUGGETS WITH APRICOT DIPPING SAUCE
Yield: 4 servings

For sauce:
1/2 cup apricot jam
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup ketchup
1 tablespoon lemon juice or vinegar
1 garlic clove, crushed (see tester's note)
1 pinch salt
1 pinch coarse black pepper

For chicken:
1 cup potato starch
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon paprika
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup water
2 teaspoons oil, plus more for deep-frying
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 1/2 pounds chicken cutlets, cut into nuggets

Prepare the sauce: In a small saucepan, combine jam, sugar, ketchup, lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until sugar is dissolved. Set aside while you prepare the chicken.

Prepare the chicken: In a medium bowl, stir together potato starch, salt, paprika and baking powder. In a small bowl, stir together water, 2 teaspoons oil and eggs. Add to dry ingredients and mix well. Stir in chicken.

Heat about 2 inches of oil in a medium saucepan. Place over medium-high heat. When oil begins shimmering, add chicken nuggets a few at a time, letting excess batter drip back into the bowl. Fry nuggets in batches if necessary, taking care not to crowd the pan. Fry until golden, about 5 to 6 minutes; drain on paper towels.

Remove crushed garlic from sauce. Serve nuggets with dipping sauce or toss sauce and nuggets together in a hot skillet.

Tester's note: The recipe suggests preparing the sauce while the nuggets are frying. I made it in advance, which gave the flavors time to meld. In addition, I put the garlic through a press rather than crushing it.

Recipe adapted from "Passover Made Easy" and photo from "Passover Made Easy" used by permission of the publisher.

Savory Spaghetti Squash Kugel is gluten-free, dairy-free, kosher for Passover

Recipes that swap spaghetti squash for spaghetti are often unsuccessful. Despite their similar appearances, the two ingredients taste nothing alike.

This recipe, however, is an exception. The flavor of spaghetti squash blends perfectly with an abundance of onions and a touch of garlic in a satisfying, savory side dish.

Kugels are a Jewish dish that can be sweet or savory and usually feature egg noodles or potatoes. Some are made with dairy ingredients, while others, meant to be served with meat, contain no milk. I've seen dozens of variations -- I've even judged a kugel contest -- but this version was new to me.

It's one of 60 recipes in a new book, "Passover Made Easy," by Leah Scapira and Victoria Dwek. (For my review of the book and their recipe for Schnitzel Nuggets With Apricot Dipping Sauce, click here.)

The authors give two methods of precooking the squash: baking it for an hour or microwaving it for 10 minutes. I went with the microwave. As I was getting ready to scoop out the seeds, my eye fell upon a dipper-type ice cream scoop. I gave it a try and was happy to discover that it removed the seeds easily and quickly.

SPAGHETTI SQUASH KUGEL
Yield: 6 servings

1 large spaghetti squash (see tester's note)
1 tablespoon oil
2 onions, finely diced
1 garlic clove, minced
4 eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon coarse black pepper or less to taste

To precook squash in the oven: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Wash squash and place in a loaf pan. Bake for 1 hour. Remove from oven and let cool. Slice squash in half and remove seeds. Raise oven temperature to 400 degrees.

To precook squash in the microwave: Cook for 1 minute to soften. Cut in half and remove seeds. Place cut-side down in a dish with 1/2 inch of water. Microwave for 8 to 10 minutes. Let cool.

Meanwhile, heat oil in a saute pan over medium heat. Add onions and garlic. Saute onions until soft, 5 to 7 minutes.

Using a fork, scrape the strands of squash into a large bowl. Add onions; mix well. Add eggs, salt and pepper; stir to combine. Pour into a greased 9-by-13-inch baking pan. Bake until kugel is crispy on top, about 1 hour.

Tester's note: The original recipe didn't specify the size of spaghetti squash. I used a small squash and baked the kugel in an 8-by-10-inch dish. If you use a small squash, you might want to reduce the number of eggs to 3 or use small eggs and reduce the amount of black pepper to 3/4 teaspoon.

Recipe adapted from "Passover Made Easy" and photo from "Passover Made Easy" used with permission of the publisher.

Wrap up dinner with cheesy chicken enchiladas

If you have leftover cooked chicken or turkey on hand, this is the recipe for you. If you don't, keep it in mind next time you pick up a rotisserie chicken -- especially if you buy one of the giant ones sold at the warehouse stores. Now that our kids are out of the house, those chickens are too big for one meal but too good a value for me to pass up. I chop or shred the leftover meat and freeze it to use in recipes like this one.

Despite the enchilada sauce and the Southwestern seasoning, these enchiladas are mildly spiced. If you'd like more heat, use more seasoning or add chopped chiles to the filling. Sliced black olives make a nice addition to the filling too.

Using light cream cheese in the filling helps keeps the fat and calorie count down. You can use reduced-fat shredded cheese too, but it won't melt as well as the regular variety. Subbing reduced-fat for regular shredded cheese would save about 8 calories and three-fourths gram of fat per enchilada.


CHEESY CHICKEN ENCHILADAS
Yield: 5 or 6 servings (see note)

1 (12-ounce) bottle enchilada sauce (for a gluten-free variation, see below)
1/2 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium onion, minced
3 cups chopped cooked chicken (or turkey)
1/2 cup cup chicken broth
1 cup (8 ounces) soft light cream cheese
1 teaspoon salt-free Southwest-style seasoning
10 to 12 6-inch corn tortillas
3/4 cup shredded Mexican-blend cheese or more to taste
Low-fat sour cream, for optional garnish
Sliced black olives, for optional garnish
Sliced avocado, for optional garnish

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spread 1/4 cup enchilada sauce in the bottom of a 9-by-13-inch baking dish.

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. When oil begins to shimmer, add onion; cook until it starts to brown. Stir in chicken or turkey. Add broth, reduce heat to low and let simmer until most of the broth has been absorbed. Add cream cheese, seasoning and 1/4 cup enchilada sauce; stir until well blended. Remove from heat.

Wrap three or four tortillas at a time in damp paper towels and microwave on high until softened, about 20 to 30 seconds. For each enchilada, spoon 1/3 cup filling in a strip down the center of a tortilla; roll the tortilla around the filling. Arrange enchiladas snugly in the baking dish.

Spread the rest of the sauce over the enchiladas. Sprinkle evenly with cheese.

Spray a piece of aluminum foil with nonstick cooking spray. Cover the baking dish, sprayed side down. Bake for 20 minutes, then remove the foil and bake until enchiladas are heated through and the cheese is bubbly, about 15 minutes longer.

Per enchilada (made with chicken breast): About 220 calories and 8 grams total fat.

Gluten-free variation: Substitute a thick, smooth salsa for the enchilada sauce.

Note: This recipe can be halved and baked in a 7-by-12-inch baking dish for about 25 minutes.

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