Cafe Fernando

Brownies for Dolce & Gabbana

I have to admit, I was a bit lost when Dolce & Gabbana requested me to create a recipe for their digital magazine, Swide.

As soon as I read that email, I wished I were Pierre Hermé. He’d know exactly what to do. Who am I to create anything for D&G?

Right after I picked my self-confidence up off the floor, I visited their website for inspiration and came across the Fall/Winter 2011 runway show. As I watched one seductive dress after another, I knew it had to be something with chocolate. Plus, I had the honor of shopping side by side with Domenico and Stefano at Fouquet in Paris, so I know how much they like chocolate.

Now, I do not know much about fashion. My knowledge might even be limited to a few episodes of Project Runway, and the encounter at Fouquet will probably be the closest I’ll ever get to a D&G anything, but I do know my chocolate recipes. And I certainly know a great brownie. One that had the honor of being featured in a Washington Post article by a hero of mine. Yes, I had to bake those brownies.

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Devil’s Food Cake for Design Sponge

I am a big fan of Design Sponge‘s “In The Kitchen With” column. Every Friday, they feature talented cooks, bakers, photographers and food stylists from all around the world and publish a recipe for the rest of us to drool over. So when Kristina asked me if I’d like to contribute a recipe and photos for the column, I was simply floored.

Here’s what I came up with: Devil’s Food Cake with Whipped Biscoff Ganache and Chocolate Shards.

Moist and fluffy cake layers with a velvety ganache in the middle. Pure comfort food.

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Oatmeal Sandwich Bread

In order to keep up with my busy schedule these days, I pick a day a week and spend half of it prepping food for the rest of the week. I have a supply of homemade tomato sauce in the freezer that can feed an army, so I take a freezer-bag of tomato sauce, a bag of tomato puree – and pesto while I’m at it – and transfer them to the refrigerator to thaw. I use the tomato sauce (which only has garlic, olive oil, salt and a dash of vinegar) for pasta dishes and the occasional casserole. If I’m craving soup, I use the tomato puree for this Roasted Tomato Soup. If not, I use it in multiple dishes – most recently this Egg in a Cup dish. The pesto goes a long way, too. I use it for a quick pasta, Caprese salad, or use as a topping whenever I order Pizza Margherita.

Next, I wash a mountain of greens, wrap them in wet paper towels and put them in zip top bags so they keep fresh and crisp for the remainder of the week. The freezer is full of cookies from trials for the book and I’m constantly baking, so no worries on the dessert front.

I also bake a bread. Last week it was this Oatmeal Sandwich Bread from “Good to the Grain” by Kim Boyce. I had been meaning to experiment with different flours for the longest time and this book seemed like the ideal starting point.

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