dsmWeekly: January 31, 2024

There are no wrong ways to celebrate World Nutella Day, but these cinnamon rolls might be one of the best.
Photo: Dera Burreson. Stylist: Sammy Mila.

FOOD & DINING

Three magic words: Nutella cinnamon rolls

Hear ye, hear ye: Let it be known far and wide that Monday, Feb. 5, is World Nutella Day.

The first jar of the chocolate-hazelnut spread hit stores 60 years ago. It had evolved from a thicker hazelnut paste, known as gianduja, which a northern Italian baker named Pietro Ferrero laced with cocoa during World War II. It was a way to stretch cocoa when chocolate was scarce.

As you might expect, Nutella’s marketing team has all kinds of suggestions to ring in #worldnutelladay. Here in Iowa, we recommend Overnight Nutella Cinnamon Rolls from a recipe Karla Walsh spotted a few years ago on Ally Billhorn’s blog, Ally’s Sweet and Savory Eats.

Billhorn, who lives in Wilton, made her first homemade cinnamon rolls a few years ago and quickly realized the results were much better than the store-bought versions from a can. She experimented with mix-ins and toppings, including pumpkin cinnamon rolls, strawberry cinnamon rolls and this chocolate-hazelnut variation.

“I love Nutella and I love cinnamon rolls. Why not marry the two?” she said. “I don’t think people realize cinnamon rolls can be stuffed and layered with anything — jam, chopped nuts, Nutella, almond paste — there are so many options.”

Here’s what you’ll need from the store. You can find straightforward directions with the full story online.

Overnight Nutella Cinnamon Rolls
Yields 12 to 14 rolls

For the dough:
1 packet dry active yeast
4 tablespoons warm water
1 cup warm milk or heavy cream
1/4 cup sugar
1 beaten egg
3 1/2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons melted unsalted butter

For the filling:
4 tablespoons butter, softened
3/4 cup Nutella

For the frosting:
4 tablespoons butter, softened
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 cups powdered sugar
3/4 cup Nutella
1/4 cup milk or heavy cream

Britney Coleman stars as Bobbie in the national tour of "Company." Photo: Matthew Murphy

BEST BET

All the single ladies: You’re in good ‘Company’

Times have changed in the half-century since “Company” first hit Broadway in 1970. The plight of a guy who is still unmarried at the ripe old age of 35 no longer seems so worrisome or even rare.

But the musical by Stephen Sondheim and George Furth can still strike a chord if you’ve ever heard the tick-tock of a biological clock or wondered how to “live your best life,” to borrow a very 21st century phrase. (See also: #YOLO, #FOMO.)

In the latest revival, which won five Tony Awards in 2021 and opens a weeklong run Tuesday at the Des Moines Civic Center, Bobby is now Bobbie, a single woman whose married friends keep pestering her to get married and settle down.

The Week Ahead

“Our Town,” (7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 2 pm. Sunday): If it’s been a while since you’ve been to Grover’s Corners, revisit the small town and its wise and wide-eyed residents in a new staging of the classic. Catch the show at the Des Moines Playhouse through Feb. 18.

“Equus” (7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday): Tallgrass Theatre Co. in West Des Moines stages the 1973 play about a psychiatrist’s efforts to treat a young man who’s obsessed with horses. It continues through Feb. 18.

Kathy Griffin (8 p.m. Friday): The self-described “D-List” comedian visits Hoyt Sherman Place to launch her first tour in six years.

Des Moines Choral Society (7:30 p.m. Saturday): The choir hosts the Iowa State Singers and the Drake Choir at St. Ambrose Cathedral for “A Celebration in Song,” where they’ll premiere a new commission from the notable composer Marques Garrett.

Hélène Grimaud (7:30 p.m. Tuesday): The Civic Music Association’s annual Lauridsen Great Pianists Series continues its hot streak with a visit from the internationally acclaimed French pianist at Hoyt Sherman Place.

HOME & GARDEN
Garden party: The 46th annual Des Moines Home and Garden Show will take over the Iowa Events Center Feb. 22-25 with garden displays, presentations and the return of the Made In Iowa Market, featuring exhibitors and products from around the state. Speakers include Ati Williams from Netflix's "Hack My Home" and HGTV's "DC Flippers," and HGTV's Patric Richardson, “The Laundry Guy.” Visitors can explore seven featured gardens, watch farm-to-table chef demonstrations and try out the “potting bar” hosted by Art Terrarium. Find the full schedule and purchase tickets online.

ARTS & CULTURE
Terrace Hill Tea & Talk: Visit Terrace Hill every Saturday this February for the annual Tea & Talk series to hear from various local experts. For $10 per program or $35 for a season pass, guests can attend presentations in the Terrace Hill drawing room, followed by tea and treats. The series features speakers Ben Page and Jenny Richmond from Des Moines Parks and Recreation, Sandra Gerdes from Better Homes & Gardens, Kelly Shrock from the Des Moines Public Library Foundation, and Tim Goldman from Faith and Grace Food Garden. All proceeds will benefit the gardens of Terrace Hill. Purchase tickets in advance.

ARTS & CULTURE
Art Center wing reopens: The Des Moines Art Center recently reopened its Richard Meier wing after major upgrades, including the restoration of its original 1985 hardwood floors, fresh paint and a reinstallation of the galleries. The improvements are part of the Art Center’s 75th anniversary campaign, which includes other projects to enhance accessibility, renovate galleries and install new lighting. The reopened galleries feature several new acquisitions, including works by María Berrío, Cannupa Hanska Luger and Teresita Fernández. As always, admission is free.

Wang Lu's "Surge" opens this weekend's concerts at the Des Moines Civic Center. Photo: Deirdre Confar

COMMUNITY

Des Moines Symphony's new work offers ‘unstoppable momentum’

By Michael Morain

When the composer Wang Lu moved to New York City in 2005, two things surprised her: “The air was so fresh,” she said. “It was so quiet.”

It’s all relative. Wang, 41, grew up in Xi’an, a city of 13 million in central China, and studied music at a conservatory in Beijing. She remembers riding on the back of her dad’s bike on the way to piano lessons, passing noisy construction sites, open-air markets and all the clamor of urban life.

She included bits of that cacophony in “Surge,” the 6-minute piece that will open this weekend’s Des Moines Symphony program under the baton of guest conductor Keith Lockhart from the Boston Pops. The concerts start at 7:30 p.m. Saturday and 2:30 p.m. Sunday at the Des Moines Civic Center.

“There’s this unstoppable momentum,” she said of the new piece. “It’s like a huge chunk of ice that just fell from a glacier.”

Wang wrote “Surge” for the New York Philharmonic, which premiered it last year in a program with works by Sibelius and Tchaikovsky. This weekend marks its second outing, in a program with Bartok’s Concerto for Orchestra and Barber’s Violin Concerto, featuring the 15-year-old virtuoso Amaryn Olmeda.

Wang teaches music at Brown University, in Rhode Island, and comes from a musical family. Her father was an opera singer, and she is part of a generation of Chinese musicians who were taught to revere the Western canon — Bach, Beethoven, Brahms and the like.

But she isn’t intimidated to compose new music that will rub elbows with time-tested classics. She’s written music inspired by the birth of her first child, layoffs at a textile factory in her hometown and even the frantic buzz of online dating.

Since “Surge” will open this weekend’s concerts, which she plans to attend, she likened it to uncorking a bottle of wine before a big meal. “When I go to a concert,” she said, “I want to have a full experience.”