Recipes Archives - Page 2 of 2 - Cooking With Spirits

Superfine Sugar

Superfine sugar is favored for sweetening drinks or preparing a meringue. Caster sugar is the name of very fine sugar in Britain, so named because the grains are small enough to fit though a sugar "caster" or sprinkler. It is sold as "superfine" sugar in the United States.

Because of its fineness, it dissolves more quickly than regular white sugar, and so is especially useful in meringues and cold liquids. It is not as fine as confectioner’s sugar, which has been crushed mechanically (and generally mixed with a little starch to keep it from clumping).

If the recipe calls for superfine, powdered, or brown sugar, you can actually make any of them at home from regular white sugar. "If you don't have it in the house, you don't have to run out to the store—it's totally fine to make it yourself, All you need is a blender (or food processor) and a bit of ingenuity.

Name Variations

bar sugar
instant dissolving sugar
berry sugar
castor sugar
caster sugar
casters' sugar
caster's sugar

How to Make Superfine Sugar

f you don’t have any caster sugar on hand, you can make your own by grinding granulated sugar for a couple of minutes in a food processor (this also produces sugar dust, so let it settle for a few moments before opening the food processor). For one cup: Grind one cup and two teaspoons of white granulated sugar in a blender, coffee bean type grinder or food processor for 30 seconds.

Rimming the Glass with Sugar

Many cocktails, including our lemon drop cocktail, call for rimming the glass with superfine sugar. The rim of the glass is moistened just a bit and then dipped into the superfine sugar. Lightly tap the side of the glass to remove any excess sugar.

Let us know in the comments section if you have any questions or tips related to making superfine sugar at home.

The Williams Sonoma Essentials of Italian cookbook states that it was invented in the 1980s by a Roman chef for a vodka company that wanted to popularize its product in Italy.

Along with the penne pasta, this dish generally contains cream sauce mixed with tomatoes or red sauce, which are a combination unusual in Italian cooking because the acidity of the tomatoes tends to make the oil in the cream separate.

Why Add Vodka?

The vodka is an emulsifier, allowing the water and lipids to remain mixed. Vodka is also thought to release certain flavors from the tomato that would otherwise be inaccessible.

INGREDIENTS

Kosher salt
1 medium onion
4 garlic cloves
4 oz. Parmesan cheese
2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
1 4.5-oz. tube double-concentrated tomato paste
½ tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
2 oz. vodka
¾ cup heavy cream
1 lb. Penne
Basil leaves (for serving)

INSTRUCTIONS

Fill a stockpot or other large pot three-quarters full with water and heat over high. Toss in a handful of salt and bring to a boil while you do your other prep.
Peel and finely chop 1 onion.
Firmly smash 4 garlic cloves with the flat side of a chef’s knife and remove the peel.
Grate 4 oz. Parmesan on the smallest holes of the box grater.
Heat 2 Tbsp. oil in a Dutch oven over medium (position it next to the pot of water). Add onion and garlic and cook, stirring constantly, just until onion is starting to brown around the edges, 5–7 minutes.
Add entire 4.5-oz. tube tomato paste and ½ tsp. red pepper flakes and stir until paste evenly coats onion. Continue to cook, stirring often, until paste is deep red and starting to brown on the bottom of the pot, 5–7 minutes.
Add 2 oz. vodka to deglaze the pan and stir to incorporate, scraping the bottom of the pot. Reduce heat to low.
Using a heatproof glass measuring cup, scoop about ¼ cup boiling water from the pot, then add ¾ cup heavy cream to measuring cup (this brings up the temperature of the cream so it won’t break when you add it to the pot).
Slowly add warmed cream to Dutch oven, constantly stirring, until a smooth sauce forms. Remove from heat.
Add 1 lb. penne to the pot of boiling salted water and cook according to package instructions until al dente. About 1 minute before the timer goes off, use a heatproof measuring cup to scoop up about 1 cup pasta cooking liquid. Heat Dutch oven over low.
Using a spider, transfer rigatoni to Dutch oven along with any water that’s piggybacking on the pasta.
Add ½ cup pasta cooking liquid to Dutch oven and stir to incorporate, then gradually add half of Parmesan, constantly stirring to melt the cheese. You should have a smooth, glossy sauce that coats each piece of pasta. Season with salt and add a splash more pasta cooking liquid to thin sauce, if needed.
Divide pasta among bowls. Top with remaining cheese, dividing evenly. Drizzle with more oil, then tear basil leaves over.

VODKA SAUCE RECIPE

Cooking with Spirits test Kitchen

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Ingredients

Kosher salt
1 medium onion
4 garlic cloves
4 oz. Parmesan cheese
2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil plus more for drizzling
1 4.5- oz. tube double-concentrated tomato paste
½ tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
2 oz. vodka
¾ cup heavy cream
1 lb. Penne
Basil leaves for serving

Instructions

Fill a stock pot or other large pot three-quarters full with water and heat over high. Toss in a handful of salt and bring to a boil while you do your other prep.
Peel and finely chop 1 onion.
Firmly smash 4 garlic cloves with the flat side of a chef’s knife and remove peel.
Grate 4 oz. Parmesan on the smallest holes of the box grater.
Heat 2 Tbsp. oil in a Dutch oven over medium (position it next to pot of water). Add onion and garlic and cook, stirring constantly, just until onion is starting to brown around the edges, 5–7 minutes.
Add entire 4.5-oz. tube tomato paste and ½ tsp. red pepper flakes and stir until paste evenly coats onion. Continue to cook, stirring often, until paste is deep red and starting to brown on bottom of pot, 5–7 minutes.
Add 2 oz. vodka to deglaze pan and stir to incorporate, scraping bottom of pot. Reduce heat to low.
Using a heatproof glass measuring cup, scoop about ¼ cup boiling water from pot, then add ¾ cup heavy cream to measuring cup (this brings up the temperature of the cream so it won’t break when you add it to the pot).
Slowly add warmed cream to Dutch oven, stirring constantly, until a smooth sauce forms. Remove from heat.
Add 1 lb. penne to pot of boiling salted water and cook according to package instructions until al dente. About 1 minute before the timer goes off, use heatproof measuring cup to scoop up about 1 cup pasta cooking liquid. Heat Dutch oven over low.
Using a spider, transfer rigatoni to Dutch oven along with any water that’s piggybacking on the pasta.
Add ½ cup pasta cooking liquid to Dutch oven and stir to incorporate, then gradually add half of Parmesan, stirring constantly to melt cheese. You should have a smooth, glossy sauce that coats each piece of pasta. Season with salt and add a splash more pasta cooking liquid to thin sauce, if needed.
Divide pasta among bowls. Top with remaining cheese, dividing evenly. Drizzle with more oil, then tear basil leaves over.

One of the best homemade pasta sauces ever, hands down. Who knew a little onion, tomato paste, and cream could create such big flavor.

Savory Beef Stew with Red Wine

How to Make Your Own Superfine Sugar or Castor Sugar