There are some foods that I refuse to make without a crowd, mostly because I know I’ll inhale these types of dishes with great gusto. Spinach & artichoke dip would fall in that category. Sure, it sounds healthy. Turns out, it’s not (#wompwomp).

It is, however, entirely delicious and a great appetizer when consumed in small quantities. If I make something like this without a party coming up or friends stopping by, I’d no doubt eat the entire thing.

My new roommate moved in over the weekend. After a long weekend of lugging awkward furniture in and out of cars, elevators, and doorways, we were spent. Not only that, the landlords (the nicest, sweetest, most amazing kind) were stopping by for an annual check in and to meet my new roomie. I whipped up a quick batch of classic spinach & artichoke goodness, and stirred in some of the magical Chili Beak to make it even more fantastic.

Landlords and tenants alike bonded over creamy dip and microbrews. The Chili Beak was the perfect flavor contrast to the creamy mix of creme fraiche, cream cheese, and mayonnaise, but still not so overpowering that we couldn’t taste the spinach and artichoke hearts. I wish every annual meeting could be this delicious.

This dip will keep well for about four days once combined. I like making this in advance of a gathering and popping it in the oven just for that magical reveal. So here’s your warm, decadent dip for flatbread and veggies.

Spinach Artichoke & Chili Dip
Serves 6-10 as an appetizer

• 3 handfuls fresh spinach, thick stems trimmed
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1  shallot, chopped
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1/3 cup cream cheese
• ½ cup creme fraiche
• ½ cup mayonnaise
• 8 ounces marinated artichoke hearts, chopped
• 4 tablespoons Chili Beak
• ¾ cup grated Parmigano Reggiano

Blanch spinach in a pot of salted water for about 1 minute, or until wilted. Remove to a colander to cool. Once cooled, squeeze all water out of spinach with your hands. Wrap a clean dish towel around spinach and press once more.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Saute shallot in olive oil over medium heat, until softened and beginning to brown. Add spinach and continue stirring until most oil has been soaked up by the spinach. Season with salt and pepper and allow to cool slightly. Whisk cream cheese, creme fraiche, and mayonnaise until smooth. Fold in artichoke hearts, spinach mixture, Chili Beak, and grated Parmigiano. Transfer to a 9-inch baking dish and bake for about 20 minutes, or until the top is browned and bubbling. Serve with baguette, crackers, or flatbread and fresh veggies.

I’ve developed a newfound affection for Southern cooking over the last two years. It’s not something I make as often as the Mediterranean fare, but it’s always an anticipated and welcomed evening for myself and my hungry friends. We’ve always begun with staples fried chicken and buttermilk biscuits, then added vegetable sides depending on seasonality. I was craving a spicy component with this last Southern kitchen evening, and it landed in an unlikely place: my biscuits.

I love a fun twist on a classic recipe, and I love it even more when Chili Beak makes creating that twist easy and delicious.

Biscuits are one thing I have a firm opinion on and process for. I may be a New Mexican at heart with my roots firmly planted in Utah, and my cooking may be mostly Mediterranean, but I still believe in my biscuit method.

Unwavering opinions:
1. Always use buttermilk: you’ll end up with shorter, drier, blander, and definitely sadder biscuits without it.
2. Never over mix: we want big pieces of butter here. Big bits equals big, flaky air pockets
3. Never twist your biscuit cutter: when cutting, you want to use a straight up-and-down method; twisting closes off those butter pockets and makes biscuits less flaky.

With all that out of the way, let’s talk about the biscuit.

They are, of course, perfect as a side for supper; however, my favorite time to consume these is during breakfast. Egg, cheese, biscuit, extra Chili Beak, and a cup of coffee make for my perfect Saturday morning. Enjoy!

Chili Beak Biscuits
Makes 10-16 biscuits

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2  teaspoons sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 10 tablespoons cold, unsalted butter, cut into small chunks
• 3 tablespoons Chili Beak, solids only
• 3/4 cup buttermilk

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Scoop 3 heaping tablespoons of Chili Beak into a fine mesh sieve. We’ll use the solids for the biscuits. Save the oil for brines, salad dressings, or to finish roasted veggies.

Whish flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt together. Mix in pieces of butter with a pastry cutter, two knives, or pinch between your fingers until the mixture resembles a very coarse meal (remember, big chunks are your friend). Stir buttermilk and Chili Beak in until mixture forms a raggy dough. Use your hands to finish mixing until the dough just comes together. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for at least 20 minutes.

Roll dough out until about 3/4- to 1-inch thick. Use a biscuit cutter to cut straight through dough. (I use a larger size cutter for breakfast sandwich biscuits, smaller when used for a dinner side). Set biscuits on a parchment-lined baking sheet about 2 inches apart. Bake until biscuits are golden brown, about 12-15 minutes depending on the size of your biscuits. Serve warm with butter and more Chili Beak. We also tried some with raspberry jam, the sweet/spicy combo was delicious.

Our addiction to Chili Beak around Caputo’s is palpable. We douse our eggs, salads, sauces, pizzas, and anything else we’re currently consuming with the stuff.

To be honest, I’m not a fan of hot sauce, in general. But this is a game changer.

In the past, I’ve shied away from hot sauces because the overwhelming acidity overtakes the flavor of whatever it’s added to. Chili Beak is a great way to add some heat and additional flavor, without sacrificing the integrity of your dish.

We’re dedicating this week to Chili Beak, and we’re starting off with breakfast—my favorite meal. Shakshuka is a Middle Eastern dish that’s said to have originated in Tunisia. Eggs are poached in a tomato-based sauce often made with onions, peppers, and cumin, which is a perfect savory breakfast dish. It’s also something I’m happy to eat for evening meals, as well. Shakshuka makes for a lovely centerpiece at the table, one that epitomizes family-style eating.

Serve Shakshuka with plenty of flatbread or veggies for dipping, and you have a fun, delicious meal. Added bonus: versatility. You can include potatoes, beans, or whatever you have on hand, and make this dish your very own. Of course, you’ll want to have loads of extra Chili Beak as a final garnish and for extra heat.

Here’s to the start of a great, delicious week. Cheers!

Chili Beak Shakshuka
Serves 4-6

• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 Anaheim peppers, diced
• 1 small yellow onion, diced
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
• 5 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 28oz can crushed tomatoes
• 3 tablespoons Chili Beak, plus more for garnish and serving
• 8 eggs (we love using fresh eggs from Clifford Family Farm)
• Warm pita, for serving
• Freshly chopped parsley

Heat olive oil in a large skillet or cast iron pot over medium-high heat. Add peppers and onions, stirring occasionally, until browned, about 8 minutes. Stir in garlic, cumin, and paprika. When garlic has softened, add tomatoes, Chili Beak, and 1/2 – 1 cup of water. Reduce heat to low and simmer until thickened, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes.

Crack eggs over tomato sauce and cover until whites are just set, about 5 minutes. Spoon sauce over egg whites and garnish with parsley and more Chili Beak. Serve immediately with pita and veggies.

Those of you who have gotten to know me through my classes or personal interactions at the store know that my early time at Caputo’s was not marked by my great love of cheese. The most unique cheese that I ever took home was manchego. Now don’t get me wrong, I still love manchego, but I was just a man in the spring of his youth who knew not what cheeses the world had to offer.

That was before I met my first true cheese love, Leonora. Oh goddess, oh muse.

Leonora is an alpine goat’s milk cheese from Leon, Spain, with a mild, natural rind. This is a cheese, that to quote one of Caputo’s finest employees, “Makes me hate other cheeses.” Yes, it’s that good.

In terms of production, a single herd of goats produce the milk for this delicate four-pound log of cheese. The rind is ashed and has naturally-occurring molds. The cheese is not meant to be aged for an extended period of time and should be enjoyed when the rich cream layer is just beginning to drift down from the rind into the flaky, flinty paste.

The texture alone makes this cheese a must, it could taste like cardboard and still be worth it. Leonora’s flavor is citrusy, grassy, and creamy and dissolves with leisurely pace if allowed to linger on the pallet.

Remember, though, this is not merely a cheese blog, this is a love story.

After about a year of deeply-felt, hot-burning, mutual love between myself and Leonora, the light loaves of joy seemed to be arriving in ill-health. They began to come in already too advanced to enjoy—beaten up and depressed, things were changing. We had no choice; Caputo’s had to stop carrying a cheese which arrived in too poor of shape to sell. That was more than five years ago. Leonora and I had to go our separate ways; we had to grow on our own. I did not see my love for five years.

In December, I was breaking down pallets when I saw a familiar box. I did not want my hopes to get the best of me, but as I saw the label on the side, I could not help but become ebullient. My darling Leonora had returned to me! I rushed the case upstairs, trying not to let my emotions get the better of me. It had been a long time, and I had been hurt before. We opened the box and tried it. My friends, Leonora is back—and better than ever.

Stop what you are doing, quit your job, cancel your vacation, get up from lunch and come to Caputo’s for some Leonora.

Trust me, with me around, it is not going to last in the cases for very long.

Leonora is featured in this month’s Cravings.

I’ve done it. Consider those rainy day blues cured—forever and ever. The treatment? Mozzarella di Bufala. Evan recently wrote about Mozzarella di Bufala, and I agree with every single thing he said. It’s a gem of a cheese that’s steeped in history and is a perfect reminder of warm, summer days. Our recently released sale this week on this life changing cheese has me in a much better mood than the current weather situation would normally have me in. This is the time of the year when I begin to look forward to tomato season, mostly so I can consume them in mass quantities with mozzarella and basil. Since there aren’t any mid-August tomatoes laying around, here are 10 ways to enjoy Mozzarella di Bufala with May’s very own seasonal ingredients:

1. Lasagna

Thinly slice your Mozzarella di Bufala and layer between pasta sheets and ricotta for an even more delicious cheese layer in this famous dish. Follow your favorite recipe or substitute it for Burrata in our Asparagus and Burrata Lasagna from last year. Mozzarella will melt deliciously into any baked pasta dish, but this one is my personal favorite.

2. Pizza

This is the most perfect use of Mozzarella di Bufala. Take our frozen pizza dough, a can of crushed tomatoes, and some basil home with your mozzarella, and you have the makings for the most traditional pizza ever. This pizza is why Napoletanos created Mozzarella di Bufala in the first place …. I’m sure of it.

3. Bruschetta

Fancy toast is all the rage right now. Say what you will, but I think bruschetta is the O.G. fancy toast. Select any number of toppings to combine with your Mozzarella. My favorites are locally fire-roasted tomatoes and artichokes, kale pesto, olive tapenade, or thin slices of prosciutto.  Serve cold or toss these under the broiler to begin the melting process of your precious Mozz.

4. Prosciutto Wraps

This is the easiest way to get our cheese from plate to mouth other than eating it by itself. Wrap thin slices of prosciutto around slices of mozzarella and basil leaves. Drizzle with oil and enjoy immediately. If you’d like to make this more of a meal than a snack, add other veggies or lay wraps atop dressed greens. Speaking of salads …

5. Spinach, Pea, & Herb Salad

Dress Spinach, snap peas, basil, and mint with lemon juice, olive oil, and salt. Toss chunks of mozzarella over the top and you’re now looking at my favorite springtime salad.

6. Eggs

Pick your means of cooking eggs, and I’ll give you a place for the mozzarella. Omelette? Toss it in with your veggies. Frittata? Sprinkle chunks in before baking. Fried? Between bread and egg, of course! Eggs love Mozzarella di Bufala almost as much as our cheese mongers do.

7. Arancini

Tonight, make risotto. Lots of risotto. Tomorrow, make arancini. These little fried balls of rice and other delectable ingredients are heavenly, but they’re even better when rice is packed around pieces of mozzarella before frying. Just think about cutting into a warm fried ball of rice that gives way to melty Mozzarella in its center. You’d better wipe away that drool before it lands in your lap.

8. Salt, Oil, Pepper

This was my Nonna’s favorite appetizer, and I’m sure it had everything to do with how quickly it quieted the entire room. Sprinkle an entire ball of mozzarella with sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, then drizzle your very best condiment grade olive oil over it. Serve with crackers or warm bread and enjoy the peace and quiet while you finish making dinner.

9. Roasted vegetables

Roasting brings out all the natural sugars from veggies like beets or carrots. Find your favorite recipe for these or roast simply with salt and oil and serve over slices of mozzarella. In this case, the simplicity is as beautiful as the flavors.

10. Strawberry and Balsamic

It almost sounds like dessert, doesn’t it? Lay slices of mozzarella out in a circle on a salad-sized plate and top with sliced strawberries, hazelnuts, and chopped basil. Finish this dish by sprinkling the entire plate with sea salt, and then a drizzle of your thickest or favorite balsamic.

April, you love it or you hate it. I love it, and I love this month’s cravings. We kept it short and sweet for April since we’re all busy scrambling to clean up Easter eggs and get our taxes submitted. Here’s what we can’t get enough of this month:

CHEESE: Leonora

If you’ve visited any of our stores recently, namely downtown, there may have been an incredibly eager cheesemonger or two nearly force-feeding you a sample of this little beauty. What you’re experiencing is cheese geekiness in its more exhuberant, pure form. Leonora was an all-star staff favorite years ago at Caputo’s. We lost it for a long period. All of a sudden this winter, it was back, gracing our cases and palettes with its acidic perfection. This log of pure goat’s milk cheese from Leon, Spain has an intense acidity in its flaky, dry interior, but blanaces itself with a cream line just beneath its thin rind that makes it its own best friend. Wanna guess what I like to pair with Leonora? More Leonora. If that’s an unacceptable answer, then I’d say white wine. All the white wine, to be exact. Stay tuned for musings from Evan and make sure to come by for a taste of this cheese. It’s a knockout. But be warned, no one has ever loved Leonora more than Evan.

SWEET: Marou Ben Tre 78%

Don’t look at me, Matt always says it best when it comes to the chocolate obsessions.

“Marou evokes many thoughts and emotions. From exhilaration, lust, fear, and back to comfort. It is an incredibly complex and exotic chocolate. It manages to be ethereal and visceral at the same time. On the one hand it is like an exotic and mysterious woman whispering in a language you can’t remotely comprehend. On the other it is like a musical journey from slow Asian instrumentals to death metal.

Using 100% Vietnamese ingredients including shade grown cacao from 5 different provinces, Marou captures aromas and flavors never before experienced by our Western palates. While it will take us much more tasting to really get to know the soul of Marou’s chocolate, one is perfectly clear. The two French expatriates behind Marou live in Vietnam make chocolate that is a cousin to French, but distinctively Vietnamese. Marou makes globalization look sexy.”  -Matt Caputo

Yep. Marou. The Ben Tre region along the Mekong River lends itself to cacao that is well balanced and not too acidic. It’s a thing of Vietnamese beauty, and one that I’ve loved using this for budinos and flourless cakes. My craving extended beyond the bar, but be sure to give this a try next time you visit one of our stores. You’ll see what Matt’s talking about.

SAVORY: Salame Beddu Cacciatorini

We’ve got a soft spot for small batch salami, and boy does this fill that soft spot with delicious, porky goodness. Salame Beddu is a small artisanal production in St Louis that is nothing short of exciting. I first tried this at a recent dinner gathering with some work pals. One of our warehousing guys brought it along as an afterthought and hostess gift for yours truly. Turns out it was the star of the entire evening (even more so than my famous Amatriciana). We couldn’t get enough and immediately polished off the piece, and then we couldn’t stop talking about it. Seriously, half the night’s discussion was about this new brand none of us had ever heard of. Salame Beddu passed the taste test well before we heard their lovable story of artisanal passion and dedication to quality. Due to such a small production and recent well-deserved attention, we may run out of this little guy. But fear not, we’ll stock whatever we can get from our friends in St. Louis. Everything we’ve tried is equally as delicious as the devilishy spicy Cacciatorini.

After the Easter decorations are stashed away for 2016 and you’ve submitted those pesky taxes, you’re going to be hungry. And you’ll definitely want something tasty and satisfying, whether it’s pork, cheese, or chocolate. You deserve, we’ve got your back on this one.

I couldn’t give you a week of fennel pollen without throwing some sweet treats at you, now could I? Another reason I love fennel pollen is its ability to transcend the lines that often divide sweet and savory ingredients. It’s often easy to place an ingredient beneath the sweet or savory banner, but that is not the case here. If someone asked me to choose using fennel pollen in either sweet or savory applications for the rest of my life, I’d be hard-pressed to choose.

This cake is the stuff of legend as far as I’m concerned. It’s not too sweet and gets a hint of tanginess from the buttermilk that is only amplified by the vanilla creme fraiche dolloped on top. I’ve served this for birthdays, team gatherings, dinner parties, and pity parties. The fennel pollen takes this to a place where warm cake and bright, summery fennel flavors meet and have a dance party on your taste buds. Naturally, you’ll want to throw some poached pears or berries on the side of this, which I fully support. This cake- and the creme fraiche- loves fruit. Try it with whatever is in season, or keep it simple with the creme fraiche. Either way, your life needs a little sweetness and you deserve an extra dose of fennel pollen. Enjoy!

Fennel Pollen Buttermilk Cake
Serves 12

• 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 stick unsalted butter, softened
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup light brown sugar
• 4 large egg yolks
• 1 1/2 teaspoons fennel pollen
• 2/3 cup buttermilk
• 1 cup crème fraîche
• 1/2 vanilla bean, split and seeds scraped
• 1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar

Preheat the oven to 350°. Butter a 9-inch cake pan and line it with a 9-inch round of parchment paper. Butter the parchment paper.

In a bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. In a large bowl, using a handheld mixer, beat the butter with both sugars at medium-high speed until light and fluffy. Add the yolks, one at a time, beating well between additions. Beat in fennel pollen. At low speed, alternately beat in the flour mixture and the buttermilk until almost blended. With a rubber spatula, finish folding the mixture together just until smooth. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 35 minutes, until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Transfer the cake to a rack to cool completely.

In a small bowl, combine the crème fraîche, vanilla seeds and confectioners’ sugar.

Unmold the cake onto a plate, top with vanilla crème fraiche, and serve.