Fig Tart

I just realized the danger of winging a recipe. Victor declared this tart to be one of the five best things I have ever made - and while I have a pretty good idea of what I did, I didn't measure or write anything down.

Curses, says I.

It was a bit of a clean-out-the-refrigerator idea. I had a pie crust made from Sunday, figs that needed using, some ricotta cheese that needed using, and a can of almond paste in the cabinet from Dubya's first term. Time to make a dessert, eh?!?

Making a tart was my first idea because I had that single pie crust, so I started rooting around for what to do. I didn't feel like making a pastry cream, I didn't want to blind-bake a tart shell. I wanted something really good and I was feeling really lazy. I grabbed the step stool and found the can of almond paste on the top shelf of the baking cabinet - back in the corner behind some Wilton Meringue Powder I think we brought from San Leandro.

The can was in good shape, no rust, no bulges, and when I opened it, it actually smelled like almond paste. Score one for the lazy guy.

I thought mixing it with cream cheese would be good for the base but we didn't have any - but we did have some ricotta left from when Victor made the eggplant rolatini. I thought some corn syrup might help pull it together, but I espied a jar of Lyle's Golden Syrup with a few drops remaining, and went for it, instead. I almost added an egg yolk, and then decided against it. Some vanilla went in. Then it almost got pistachios on top - because figs and pistachios go really well together - but pistachios and almonds?!? I forewent the nuts.

The end result was nothing short of miraculous.

Victor's first remark was that it reminded him of the holidays. We've done a lot of cookies and desserts with almond paste over the years so that makes sense. And it was light in texture and heavy on flavor. Not a bad combination.

So here are the measurements I think I used - and the ones I will use the next time I make this.

Fig Tart

  • pastry for single crust pie
  • 3/4 pound fresh figs
  • 1 8oz can almond paste
  • 3/4 cup whole milk ricotta
  • 3 tbsp Lyle's Golden Syrup
  • 1 tsp vanilla

Roll out pastry to about a 13"-14" circle. Place on sheet pan - on parchment paper, if you have it.

Break up almond paste and slowly mix in the ricotta - making sure the almond paste is breaking up and mixing in. Add the vanilla and Golden syrup.

Spread the almond cream evenly over the crust leaving a 3" border all around.

Thickly slice the figs and place then atop the almond cream.

Fold the pastry up over the filling, crimping as you go along.

Bake in a preheated 400°F oven for about 45 minutes.

Cool and serve!

Give it a try. It may be one of the best five things you've ever made!


Sweet and Savory Tarts

The Queen of Hearts she made some tarts
All on a summer’s day. 
The Knave of Hearts he stole the tarts
And took them clean away. 
The King of Hearts called for the tarts
And beat the Knave full sore. 
The Knave of Hearts brought back the tarts
And vowed he’d steal no more. 

The things that pop into one's mind while one is cooking...

It is reasonably fitting, I guess... I've been called a queen, I did make tarts, and it is a summer's day. Fortunately, no one stole anything or had to be beaten. Score one for the good guys.

The tomatoes are finally coming in at a pretty fast pace - we'll be making a vat of sauce this week  - and I'm always looking for different ways to use them. As much as I like it, one does not live by tomato salad, alone.

I also had apricots I wanted to use up in a dessert of sorts...

I headed over to my go-to recipe sites but didn't see anything overly wonderful. I headed over to the Martha Stewart website and found a Tomato Tart recipe that sounded promising. There was also a recipe for an Apricot Tart with Pistachios on Puff Pastry...

My thought process was I could make one batch of dough and use it for both tarts. Heck with the puff pastry. An idea was born... I didn't end up doing either of her recipes, although the apricot tart filling is pretty close. I also added thyme to the pastry for the tomato tart. Both tarts are similar in their making - a filling on the bottom with something on top and something on top of that. Really basic stuff.

I made them one after the other and baked them together.

Pastry Dough for Two Tarts

  • 2 1/2 cups flour
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 8 oz butter, cut into small pieces
  • 1/2 cup ice water
  • 2 tsp chopped fresh thyme - hold back and use only for savory tart

In a food processor, add flour, salt, and butter. Process until butter is mixed in well.

With machine running, add most of the water and process with on and off turns until a good dough forms. Divide dough in half. Wrap one half in plastic and refrigerate about 30 minutes. Return the second half to the food processor, add the fresh thyme, and quickly incorporate it into the dough.

Wrap the dough in plastic and place in 'fridge for 30 minutes.

Tomato Tart

  • 8 oz porcini mushrooms
  • 2 large tomatoes
  • 1 1/2 cups shredded cheeses
  • Salt & Pepper

Puree mushrooms and set aside.

Blanche tomatoes to remove skin. Set aside.

Roll out dough and line tart pan. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Spread mushroom puree over crust.

Top with half of the cheese.

Slice the peeled tomatoes and cover cheese, overlapping them as you go. Generously salt and pepper the tomatoes.

Cover with the remaining cheese and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Place in oven and bake 35 minutes. Remove and cool to room temperature.

Slice and enjoy!

This was really good - really good! The mushrooms added an unexpected flavor and the tomatoes were cooked but still held together. And the cheesy goodness just topped it off. Perfectly crumbly crust...

Yeah... this one worked.

And on to dessert...

Apricot and Pistachio Tart

adapted from Martha Stewart

  • 1 1/4 cups unsalted pistachios, chopped, divided
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1 cube (stick) butter
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • Pinch of salt
  • 1 1/4 pounds apricots (about 6), cut into 1/4-inch-thick wedges
  • 2 tbsp turbinado sugar

Place 1 cup pistachios and 1/2 cup sugar in food processor. process until pistachios are fairly well chopped. Add butter, egg, and vanilla, and process to a paste.

Roll out dough and line tart pan.

Spread pistachio filling over pastry.

Top with quartered apricots.

Mix remaining 1/4 cup of chopped pistachios with the 2 tbsp turbinado sugar and sprinkle on top.

Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Bake in a preheated 400°F oven for 35 minutes.

Cool and enjoy!

Both of these were really easy to do. The hardest part was cleaning the food processor several times.

The crust is really easy to make and is pretty no-fail. It will also make any double-crusted pie you want to do.

I see more of these in our future...


Berry Cake in a Pie Plate

My original plan this weekend was to make a Bourbon Barrel Cake. I have to admit, that for a store-bought cake, these things are pretty good. On the other hand, there are more artificial ingredients, flavor and texture enhancers, and additives in it than I will normally go for. Hell - even the bourbon is an extract! Powdered milk, powdered eggs - whites and yolks and their accompanying stabilizers - all add to the chemical shitstorm.

There's a reason that your basic home cook can't replicate a store-bought or cake-mix cake - they don't have a chemistry degree or access to those commercial ingredients. And as scratch baking has slipped to the wayside, the cake mix flavor and texture has become the standard that one wants and then feels like a failure when they can't do it.

Loved the cake, knew I wasn't going to buy one, and then decided that making one this weekend was going to give me more cake than I needed - not wanted, needed. Let's face it, I could down half a cake without batting an eye. I love my desserts and really love boozy desserts.

I have an idea for making one, but I'm saving it for a crowd.

I didn't make that - yet - but we have to have our dessert, so... I decided on a Berry Cake. We had blackberries and raspberries in the 'fridge so off I went.

The recipe is a bit of a single layer right-side up upside-down cake, made in a pie plate. I think the concept originally came from Martha Stewart, but I didn't write it down, so I'm not positive. It seems like a Martha recipe, though!

Berry Cake

  • 6 tbsp butter
  • 1 1/2 cups flour
  • 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • pinch salt
  • 1 cup sugar plus more for top
  • 1 egg
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 12 oz mixed berries

Preheat oven to 350°F/180°C. Butter a 10-inch pie plate.

Mix flour, baking powder, and salt and set aside.

Mix butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Mix in egg, milk, and vanilla.

Slowly add flour mixture and mix just until blended.

Place in buttered pie plate. Arrange berries on top of batter, pressing into batter. Sprinkle top with 2 tablespoons sugar.

Bake cake 10 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 325°F/160°C and bake until cake is golden brown and firm to the touch, about 1 hour.

Cool and enjoy!

This really was a better match for the weekend - a nice crunch from the sugar on top, the cake was light, and the berries perfectly sweet.

And the Bourbon Barrel Cake is still a concept that's going to happen.

Reasonably soon.

 

 


Pineapple Dump Cake

I just made 20 cakes for work, tomorrow.

Folks who know me know that I very rarely talk about my work. Although I really do like my job and have a fun time there, work is work and home is home. Being the often loud and opinionated person I can be, it's just safer to keep the two lives separated.

That being said... once in a while something rather unique comes up and it's fun to talk about it - like making 20 cakes.

We're having a regional challenge this weekend to see which store can sell the most of a few certain products - and Pineapple Tidbits just happen to be one of them. The challenges are fun - the whole store gets involved and we get to be even zanier and crazier than we usually are. We have quite a few sample stations being set up around the store with lots of pretty unique pineapple concepts. Folks will be in costume - it's a big Luau theme - and we have decorations and fun stuff happening everywhere.

The only thing missing will be Mai Tai's and Blue Hawaii's...

We came up with the dump cake as one of them - and then realized our little countertop oven just wasn't going to be able to keep up with all the things we need to do - so off to home I went, armed with boxes of goodies to make them at home.

It's great having double ovens. I had 8 cakes going at a time and had everything done in about three hours. It's nice to know I can still play production baker now and again...

Dump cakes are not part of my normal repertoire - I've made them at work, before, but never at home. We came up with what we thought was a good recipe and when I started the first one, I realized we were being waaaay too generous with the pineapple and the coconut - it never would have worked in an 8x8 pan. A quick rewrite and the following is our soon-to-be-award-winning recipe!

Pineapple Dump Cake

One of the easiest desserts on the planet!

  • 1/2 bag Pineapple Tidbits (8 oz from a 16 oz bag)
  • 1/2 cup Unsweetened Coconut
  • 1 box Vanilla Cake Mix (1 layer cake mix)
  • 1/2 can Pineapple Juice (4 oz from an 8 oz can)
  • 1 stick butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350°. Spray an 8x8 pan with cooking spray.

Place 1/2 bag Pineapple Tidbits in bottom of pan.  Top with 1/2 cup shredded coconut. Sprinkle dry cake mix on top of pineapple/coconut.

Drizzle 1/2 can of pineapple juice over dry cake mix.

Next, drizzle melted butter on top.

Place in 350° oven and bake for 60 minutes.

Cool. Eat warm or at room temperature.

So go bake a cake, this weekend - but buy the ingredients from me. We want to win this!


Kolaches

We caught an episode of Cooks Country on PBS a couple of weeks ago. It's a variation of America's Test Kitchen, because... why have one PBS cooking show when you can have two?

But that's neither here nor there...

The program showed the making of a Czech pastry called a Kolache. The dough intrigued me, because I've made a lot of sweet doughs in my time, but this one really was put together a bit differently.

I have to admit that far too many Cooks Country/Illustrated recipes are just too convoluted. They often take a simple, innocuous dish and rework it into something totally different with little resemblance to the dish they were recreating - with an additional 25 steps just for grins and giggles.

Seeing something that looked pretty straightforward was refreshing - and it sounded really good.

While I had lots of practice with Danish Pastry in my early years, I really wasn't introduced to sweet dough until my Navy days... When I was finally assigned to the USS Ranger (CVA-61) I was put right into the bake shop because I had that baking background. The ship was in dry dock at Hunters Point Naval Shipyard in San Francisco and all of our baked goods were bought locally. My biggest job was portioning - cutting the pies and cakes into 8 slices, placing them on plates on sheet pans, and putting the sheet pans on rolling carts to wheel over to the chow line. For this I had been sent to Commissaryman Class "A" School. But... It beat actually having to work.

The day we came out of drydock, we sailed under the Golden Gate Bridge and into the Pacific Ocean for 24 hours to see how things were working. There was a Chief Petty Officer named Brown who was overseeing the bake shops - when the ship was underway, there were two of them - one forward and one aft. The forward bakeshop was the bread bakeshop and was still closed at this point. Old Brown had about 3 months until retirement and just didn't give a shit for nothin' - except he like fresh-baked sweet rolls. He decided we were going to make sweet rolls for the crew for breakfast the following morning. Did I mention I was the only person assigned to the bakeshop at that time?

Brown said he would help me make these and to work we went. The Armed Forces Recipe Card Service is a collection of maybe a couple thousand recipes all scaled to 100 portions. It's simple math to multiply or divide any recipe for any quantity you need. This is early 1972. Pre-computer. There were actual index boxes of recipe cards all scaled at 100 portions. I think we needed to make something like a thousand cinnamon rolls - so it was going to be two batches of 5 times the base recipe. Made the first batch of dough and let it start rising while we made the second batch.

This is an online version of a recipe - updated for the 21st century. We didn't have frozen eggs... I had to crack them.

In the meantime, another lifer buddy of Brown's came in with a bottle of cheap whiskey and the two of them had a few shots. And then a few more. And then Brown decided I could finish and he went off to bed.

I had two batches of dough proofing all over hell and back, a wall of 27 ovens that didn't work right - some heated top only, some bottom only, some along the sides, some down the middle... not one of them worked correctly - and never did the entire time I was on that ship. Over time, we learned which ones did what and just did a sheet pan ballet moving them around to bake things off with relatively little effort.

But on that first night, this not-even-20-year-old had no idea what was working and what wasn't - and I had never made a thousand of anything before in my life. I had been bouncing around San Diego waiting for orders, so I really wasn't doing anything other than serving on a chow line now and again. I sure as hell wasn't making a bazillion cinnamon rolls. Dough was proofing, over-proofing... I'd punch it down, get a batch rolled out and onto sheet pans - and watch it over-proof before I could get another one into the non-working ovens.

I was up most of the night, but I did it - and in a few short weeks I was really honing the production baking skills. That first night really was a disaster, but I learned a hellava lot.

One thing I learned was I didn't want to be a production baker when I grew up. When I baked after Uncle Sam's Yacht Club, it was going to be just for fun.

And that leads us up to today.

Watching cooking shows is fun. Deciding whether to make something is fun. If it ain't gonna be fun, I ain't gonna do it. I've reached the age where I don't have to.

I followed the recipe pretty closely - except I proofed my yeast in the milk because I never use rapid rise/instant yeast. And while I really had no reference point for these things, they were really really easy to make - and they taste even better. A hellava lot better than those cinnamon rolls of yesteryear.

Extremely easy to make. Maybe three hours start-to-finish, but most of the time was letting the dough rise. I was out planting in the garden between steps.

If you like to bake, this is one I really do recommend.

Kolaches

adapted from Cooks Country

INGREDIENTS

DOUGH

  • 1 cup whole milk
  • 10 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
  • 1 large egg plus 2 large yolks
  • 3 1/2 cups (17 1/2 ounces) all-purpose flour
  • 1/3 cup (2 ounces) sugar
  • 2 1/4 teaspoon instant or rapid-rise yeast
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt

CHEESE FILLING

  • 6 ounces cream cheese, softened
  • 3 tablespoons sugar
  • 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon grated lemon zest
  • 6 ounces (3/4 cup) whole-milk or part-skim ricotta cheese

STREUSEL

  • 2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons all-purpose flour
  • 2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons sugar
  • 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces and chilled
  • 1 large egg beaten with 1 tablespoon milk

INSTRUCTIONS

1. FOR THE DOUGH: Grease large bowl. Whisk milk, melted butter, and egg and yolks together in 2-cup liquid measuring cup (butter will form clumps). Whisk flour, sugar, yeast, and salt together in bowl of stand mixer. Fit stand mixer with dough hook, add milk mixture to flour mixture, and knead on low speed until no dry flour remains, about 2 minutes. Increase speed to medium and knead until dough clears sides of bowl but still sticks to bottom, 8 to 12 minutes.

2. Transfer dough to greased bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Adjust oven racks to upper-middle and lower-middle positions. Place dough on lower-middle rack and place loaf pan on bottom of oven. Pour 3 cups boiling water into loaf pan, close oven door, and let dough rise until doubled, about 1 hour.

3. FOR THE CHEESE FILLING: Using stand mixer fitted with paddle, beat cream cheese, sugar, flour, and lemon zest on low speed until smooth, about 1 minute. Add ricotta and beat until just combined, about 30 seconds. Transfer to bowl, cover with plastic, and refrigerate until ready to use.

4. FOR THE STREUSEL: Combine flour, sugar, and butter in bowl and rub between fingers until mixture resembles wet sand. Cover with plastic and refrigerate until ready to use.

5. Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. Punch down dough and place on lightly floured counter. Divide into quarters and cut each quarter into 4 equal pieces. Form each piece into rough ball by pulling dough edges underneath so top is smooth. On unfloured counter, cup each ball in your palm and roll into smooth, tight ball. Arrange 8 balls on each prepared sheet and cover loosely with plastic. Place sheets on oven racks. Replace water in loaf pan with 3 cups boiling water, close oven door, and let dough rise until doubled, about 90 minutes.

6. Remove sheets and loaf pan from oven. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour bottom of 1/3-cup measure (or 2 1/4-inch-diameter drinking glass). Make deep indentation in center of each dough ball by slowly pressing until cup touches sheet. (Perimeter of balls may deflate slightly.)

7. Gently brush kolaches all over with egg-milk mixture. Divide filling evenly among kolaches (about 1½ tablespoons per kolache) and smooth with back of spoon. Sprinkle streusel over kolaches, avoiding filling. Bake until golden brown, about 25 minutes, switching and rotating sheets halfway through baking. Let kolaches cool on pans for 20 minutes. Serve warm.

They are light, they are rich, and you're going to want to eat several at one sitting. And making 16 of them is so much easier than making a thousand...

And I froze half of them...

 


Preparing for a Blizzard

The weather forecasting for tonight and tomorrow has run the gamut - from a huge storm to no big deal to a big storm to ::drum roll, please:: a blizzard. Yes, a blizzard. Middle of March, anywhere from 12" to 2 feet of snow, falling 3" to 4" per hour for several hours... sleet... gale-force winds... white-out conditions... the whole shebang. While I haven't officially called out from work for tomorrow, odds are I will be homebound. A blizzard.

Naturally, one needs to properly prepare for these things. Today, Victor made Gnocchi. I baked Bread and made Peach Rice Pudding. I mean... in the worst of times one must maintain a sense of decorum, right?!? What would the neighbors think if we were forced to eat boxed macaroni and cheese?!? [note to neighbors: we don't have any boxed macaroni and cheese in the house...]

But I digress... Read down for the recipes.

I did my Monday grocery shopping early to avoid the panic-buying throngs, but the shelves at the local Acme were already looking a bit bare at 9am. There were a few folks in the store with huge overflowing carts of food. I figure the worst case scenario of 2 feet of snow would mean - maybe - 36 hours in the house from the start of the storm until the end and roads were cleared enough to venture out. Five meals. Some of these folks were buying for the apocalypse.

Five meals. At any given moment we have food in the house for a week. The only reason I went shopping at all was to get strudel bites and mini corn muffins for Nonna. They are her morning ritual. I really could have just made them, but I also wanted to get gas for the car in case we lost power and needed a charging station for electronics. I need to be able to read my Kindle... And if we did lose power and the temperature in the house dropped, I guess we could park Nonna in a warm car for a while... On the other hand, I did buy a big box of Duraflame logs as insurance against the power going out...

But back to food.

Victor started things off with gnocchi. He pretty much just created the recipe as he went - potato, flour, ricotta, and egg.

Potato and Ricotta Gnocchi

  • 2 cups riced potato
  • 1/2 cup ricotta cheese
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 1/2 cups "00" flour, plus more for dusting

Combine the potato, ricotta, eggs and 1 teaspoon salt in a large mixing bowl. Slowly add the flour, mixing well.

Bring the dough together in a ball and cut off one-quarter of it. Dust the work surface with all-purpose flour to prevent sticking, and roll the cut-off piece of dough into a long rope about 5/8 inch in diameter. Cut the rope into 5/8-inch pieces. Roll the pieces off the times of a fork or off a gnocchi board. Dust some parchment paper with flour and place the gnocchi on it to prevent sticking. Repeat with the rest of the dough.

Cook the gnocchi in boiling water for about 2 minutes.

Drain and serve with your favorite sauce.

We had them with homemade meatballs and Victor's homemade sauce. Totally awesome, Delish.

That was half of the batch on the tray. I froze another tray for another day.


The bread was a loaf of James Beard's French-Style Bread. It's one of the most simple, basic breads around. been making it for years. Always good.

James Beard’s French-Style Bread

Ingredients

  • 1 package active dry yeast
  • 2 tsp sugar
  • 1 cup warm water (100° to 115°, approximately)
  • 1 1/2 tsp salt
  • 3 cups flour
  • 1 egg, mixed with water
  • sesame seeds
  • 3 tbsp cornmeal

Directions

Combine the yeast with sugar and warm water in a large bowl and allow to proof. Mix the salt with the flour and add to the yeast mixture, a cup at a time, until you have a stiff dough. Remove to a lightly floured board and knead until no longer sticky, about 10 minutes, adding flour as necessary. Place in a buttered bowl and turn to coat the surface with butter. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, 1½ to 2 hours.

Punch down the dough. Turn out on a floured board and shape into a long, French bread-style loaf. Place on a baking sheet that has been sprinkled with the cornmeal but not buttered. Brush loaf with egg wash and then liberally sprinkle with sesame seeds. Slash the tops of the loaf diagonally in three or four places. Place in a cold oven, set the temperature at 400° and bake 35 minutes or until well browned and hollow sounding when the top is rapped.


And then we have dessert... Peach Rice Pudding.

I picked up a bag of frozen peaches at the store, thinking I might make a peach upside down cake.  I got home and thought Peach Pudding. I mentioned it to Victor and then said, or maybe rice peach pudding - and that was that.

Peach Rice Pudding

  • 1 cup rice
  • 4 cups milk
  • 2 eggs
  • 2/3 cup sugar
  • 1/4 cup cornstarch
  • pinch salt
  • 4 tbsp butter
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1 tsp peach extract
  • 1 lb peaches, chopped

Cook rice and set aside.

Mix sugar, salt, and cornstarch in a saucepan. Add eggs and mix. Slowly add milk and mix well, making sure there are no lumps. Cook over medium heat and bring to a boil. Stir in cooked rice. Continue stirring and cook about 5 minutes or until thickened.

Stir in peaches, and then add vanilla, peach extract, and butter.

Place in bowl with plastic wrap on top to keep skin form forming.

Refrigerate completely.

We have enough rice pudding to last a week, plenty of bread for sandwiches or toast - or breadcrumbs - and pasta and a dozen jars of sauce downstairs.

We're set, Mother Nature! Bring it on!


Guinness, Whiskey, and Bailey's Cupcakes

I went into work this morning just as the snow was beginning to fall. 30 minutes after punching in, I was punching out - no need to hang around on a snow-day.

8:30 in the morning found me in the kitchen with a recipe for cupcakes that a coworker had mentioned - made with Guinness, Irish Whiskey, and Bailey's Irish Cream.

8:30 ayem - definitely time to break out the booze and start baking, right?!? Especially this booze - Readbreast is some seriously good Irish Whiskey. Seriously good. I've always liked my Jameson, but this really takes it up a couple of notches.

I got out all the necessary ingredients and realized I didn't have a bottle of Guinness! I did have a bottle of Sierra Nevada stout, however, so that had to suffice. I wasn't going to head out into the Blizzard of '17 for a bottle of beer when I had something at home that would work.

The recipe comes from the Browneyed Baker. It's her most-requested recipe, so I'm not going to reprint it, here. Head over there and grab the recipe. Suffice to say, it is worth making.

First thing is making the batter. Guinness, cocoa powder, and butter are all melted and mixed together. It's a thinner batter than many cake recipes you may be used to. I dripped it everywhere and made a mess filling the cupcake holders. Messes R Us.

After the cupcakes cool, you make a ganache with more chocolate and Irish Whiskey. I used the Readbreast, today, just because I wanted to show it off. I have Jameson's in the cabinet, as well - and next time I make them I'll use it.

Then it's cut a little hole in the cupcake and fill with the ganache.

 

And then top with the Bailey's Irish Cream frosting.

The recipe makes 2 dozen cupcakes - more or less. I got 21, today, but may have been a bit too generous with the first few... I did use a scoop, but I think the first ones were a bit fuller. No harm.

And what do those yummy cupcakes look like inside?!?

The cupcake is chocolatey, moist, and just a tad boozey. You taste the stout but it's not overpowering. It's nice. Different. The whiskey ganache is pure decadence. As in pure decadence. It is really rich and a little goes a long way. And the icing really is the icing on the cake. The Bailey's really comes through in it - all the frosting is is butter, powdered sugar, and the liqueur, so there's nothing to mask it.

I really do suggest you stop what you're doing and head right over to Browneyed Baker and make a batch, today!

 


Christmas Eggnog Cake

It's a really quiet Christmas Day around here. Almost too quiet. Both of us are used to loud, raucous family gatherings, so it's a bit strange to be home in a relatively quiet house. Nonna just isn't up to traveling to North Jersey anymore - she got carsick the last two times she went, so I don't see any more trips north, for a while. We miss the fun, but it is what it is...

So with a mere three in the house, there's lots of time to do things. Like bake a cake. And what to do when you have a quart of eggnog in the 'fridge? Why... make an Eggnog Cake, of course!

I was first going to make my mom's Eggnog Pie, but changed my mind on the way to the kitchen. I do that often...

A quick Google Search brought up a score of the exact same recipe, so I went for it.


Eggnog Cake

All Recipes.com

Ingredients

Cake:

  • 1/2 cup butter, room temperature
  • 1 1/4 cups white sugar
  • 3 eggs, room temperature
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/4 teaspoon finely grated lemon peel
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup prepared eggnog (or see notes for recipe)
  • 2 tablespoons bourbon whiskey

Frosting:

  • 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 1/2 cups prepared eggnog (or see notes for recipe)
  • 1 cup butter, room temperature
  • 1 1/2 cups white sugar
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1/4 teaspoon rum-flavored extract
  • 1/8 teaspoon finely grated lemon peel
  • 1/2 cup finely chopped toasted pecans (optional)

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour two 9-inch round baking pans.
  2. Beat 1/2 cup butter and 1 1/4 cups sugar with an electric mixer in a large bowl until light and fluffy. Mixture should be noticeably lighter in color. Add eggs, one at a time, allowing each egg to blend into butter mixture before adding the next. Stir in 1 teaspoon vanilla extract and 1/4 teaspoon lemon peel, mixing well.
  3. Combine 2 cups flour, baking powder, and 1 teaspoon salt in a bowl. Pour flour mixture into the batter alternately with 1 cup eggnog, mixing until just incorporated. Stir in bourbon. Divide batter evenly between prepared pans.
  4. Bake in preheated oven until cake springs back when touched lightly with a fingertip or a toothpick inserted in the centers comes out clean, 30 to 35 minutes (test both cake layers). Cool in pans for 10 minutes before inverting on a wire rack to cool completely.
  5. To make frosting, combine 1/4 cup flour and 1/4 teaspoon salt in a saucepan. Gradually whisk in 1 1/2 cups eggnog, whisking until smooth.
  6. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring frequently. When mixture boils, cook for 2 minutes, whisking constantly, until thickened. Remove from heat and let cool completely to room temperature.
  7. Beat 1 cup butter and 1 1/2 cups sugar in a bowl until light and fluffy. Mix in cooled eggnog mixture, 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract, rum extract, and 1/8 teaspoon grated lemon peel. Beat on high speed until mixture is fully incorporated and frosting is fluffy.
  8. Spread cake with plain frosting between cake layers, over the top and on the sides. Coat the sides with toasted pecans, pressing the nuts onto sides in small handfuls. Refrigerate until serving time.

The frosting is interesting - you cook a batter of sorts with eggnog and flour, let it cool, and then whip it in to butter and granulated sugar. It's very soft and fluffy - easy to work - and definitely needs to get into a refrigerator to set up.  Both the cake batter and the icing tasted great on their own.

And it was a hit! We may have to add this onto the Holiday Baking List!


Scallops, Pesto, Homemade Bread, and Blueberry Pound Cake

Nonna wasn't here for dinner tonight. That means we get to reach back into our creative minds and do some fun things she probably wouldn't like or be able to eat. Her tastes really are changing and while she's never been what one would call and adventurous eater, she's starting to dislike a lot of things she used to love. I kinda figure what the hell - she's 90 and can eat what she wants - but it does make cooking a bit of a challenge, at times.

So with her not here, we get to be a bit silly in our approach to dinner.

I had scallops thawing and went to La Cucina Italiana website for a bit of inspiration. The site is in Italian - I use the Google translate - and one of the first recipes I saw was for an appetizer with a halved scallop and a quail egg on a brioche toast. Earlier today, my sister who knows how much I love eggs on things had posted a picture of a sweet potato hash with a poached egg on top that she made. It had me drooling on my keyboard. When I saw the scallop and quail egg appetizer, I knew I had a great idea for dinner.

I made a loaf of Pepper and Cheese Bread this afternoon and knew a couple of thick slices of that toasted would sit in for the brioche. Whole scallops for halves, poached eggs for quail eggs, and dinner was set. Almost. I wanted something to take the toasted bread up a few notches... Victor's Pistachio Pesto was the clinching ingredient.

It was really simple. I sauteed the scallops in a bit of olive oil and butter, added a splash of white wine, a squeeze of lemon, and a pinch of salt & pepper. They went on top of the toasted bread I liberally spread with homemade pesto. The scallops went on the plate and the egg went on top. I chopped some pistachios for garnish but forgot to use them. Oh well.

The bread was a take on a recipe I've made before.

07-24-16-bread-1

Pepper Cheese Bread

  • 1 pkg active dry yeast
  • 1 cup warm water
  • 1/3 cup cream
  • 3 1/2 cups flour
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 1/2 cups shredded cheese
  • 1 or more hot peppers, minced
  • 1 egg

Mix yeast with water and cream to proof. In a stand mixer, add half the flour and begin to mix. Slowly add the grated cheese, the peppers, and the rest of the flour, mixing until it all holds together. Continue mixing for about 10 minutes or until a firm, smooth dough is made.

Form into a ball, rub a bowl with oil, coat dough, cover with a clean kitchen towel, and let rise until doubled.

Punch down, turn out to counter, and form it into a loaf - round, long, or braided.

Place on a baking peel liberally coated with corn meal. Cover, and let rise until doubled.

Preheat oven with baking stone to 375ºF (190°C).

When dough has risen, brush with an egg. Bake for 40-45 minutes or until nicely browned and hollow-sounding when tapped.

Cool on wire rack.

07-24-16-bread-2

And just because, Victor made dessert - a Blueberry Pound Cake.

07-24-16-blueberry-pound-cake-2

Blueberry Pound Cake

  • 1 cup butter
  • 4 eggs
  • 2 cups flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • pinch salt
  • pinch nutmeg
  • 1 cup sugar
  •  1 1/2 tsp vanilla
  • 1 1/2 cups blueberries
  • demerara sugar

Preheat oven to 325°F (160°C).

Mix dry ingredients and set aside. Cream sugar and butter until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition.

Slowly add dry ingredients and mix just until combined. Stir in blueberries.

Spread into a standard loaf pan and sprinkle with demerara sugar.

Bake 55-65 minutes. Cool about 15 minutes in pan and then remove to cool completely on rack.

My stomach is smiling!


Chocolate Ganache Cheesecake

 

I made my favorite "Worlds Greatest Strawberry Cheesecake" except I didn't use the strawberries...

World's Greatest Cheesecake with Chocolate Ganache

The Crust:

  • 3/4 cups walnuts, coarsely ground
  • 3/4 cup chocolate cookie crumbs
  • 1 3 oz Valrhona chocolate bar
  • 3 1/2 tbsp butter, melted

The Filling:

  • 4 pkgs cream cheese, room temperature
  • 4 eggs
  • 1 1/4 cups sugar
  • 1 tbsp vanilla extract
  • 1/4 cup whipping cream

The Topping:

  • 16 oz sour cream
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract

The Ganache:

  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 12 oz bittersweet chocolate
  • 1 tbsp vanilla

Putting it together: Preheat oven to 350º.  Mix crust ingredients and press evenly into bottom of 10″ springform pan.  Set aside.

Cream the cheese until light and fluffy.  Mix in eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Add sugar, vanilla, and whipping cream, mixing until smooth and light. Pour into pan and bake 60 – 70 minutes. Remove from oven and cool about 15 minutes.  Keep oven on.

Mix topping ingredients and spread onto top of cheesecake to within about 1/2 inch from edge.  Return to oven and bake about 7 more minutes.  Cool completely, cover, and refrigerate at least 24 hours (2-3 days is best.)

On day you’re going to serve, make ganache.  Heat cream.  Remove from heat and stir in grated chocolate.  Stir until smooth.  Add vanilla.

Remove cake from pan.  Spread ganache over cake.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.

It really was a stellar day.  And while we did eat a lot, at least it was spread out over 5 hours.

Our next feast with them is tentatively scheduled for July at their house to celebrate my and Linda's birthdays.

I can't wait.

They feed us the same way.


Coconut Yogurt Cake

I have been wanting to make a certain cake from the latest issue of Fine Cooking magazine since I received the copy in the mail. It's the Very Vanilla Layer Cake with the Very Vanilla Frosting.

It's really striking a chord with me, but I can't justify a 3-layer cake with a foot of frosting on it, right now - I'm trying to be good and lose a pound or two. Yesterday, my resolve was waning and I grabbed the magazine and headed into the kitchen - and saw another recipe for a yogurt cake.

Now, I'm not one of those folks who pretends that if you put something in a dessert that all of a sudden it's 'healthy.' It's not. It's still dessert. However, the yogurt cake was much smaller than the layer cake. I wasn't getting something more healthy, I was just getting less cake. That works for me.

05-29-16-coconut-yogurt-cake-2

The recipe is Key Lime Coconut Yogurt Cake.

I was all out of key limes, but I did have a bottle of Fior di Cedro that has been sitting on the liquor cabinet since we brought it back from Rome - 4 years ago. Fior di Cedro is a liqueur along the lines of a Limoncello. Cedro is a citrus that hails from Calabria and has a smooth and mellow taste. We tried it at a specialty liquor shop when we were in Rome and grabbed a bottle. Time to use some of it! I mean, really. Four years to keep something like this is ridiculous!

I added 2 tbsp to the batter in place of the lime juice and the zest, and then made the syrup with it in place of the lime juice. I have to admit this came out pretty good.

The cake itself is ridiculously light and tender and it had juuuuust a hint of the Fior di Cedro flavor. Nonna snuck in and had a slice at 10am.

Methinks the recipe will work for any number of variations, so stay tuned...

 


Chocolate and Sour Cherry Torta

Easter treat that deserved a post of its own!

Crust

  • 1¼ cups unbleached all-purpose flour plus more for dusting
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
  • ½ cup (1 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into pieces plus more for greasing pan

Filling

  • 3 large eggs
  • 7 ounces bittersweet chocolate (70%), finely chopped
  • ½ cup blanched almonds
  • ⅓ cup unbleached all-purpose flour
  • ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 10 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
  • ⅔ cup sugar
  • 1½ cups sour cherries in syrup, drained (from 24-ounce jar)
  • 1 bittersweet chocolate bar for shaving

For Crust: Place flour, sugar and salt in the bowl of a food processor; process for a few seconds to combine. Add butter, and process until mixture resembles coarse meal, about 10 seconds. With machine running, add 3 tablespoons ice water in a slow, steady stream through the feed tube, just until the dough holds together. Do not process for more than 30 seconds. Turn out dough onto a work surface; flatten to form a disc. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 1 hour or up to 1 day before using.

Heat oven to 350º with rack in middle. Grease the 9-inch springform pan with butter, then dust with flour. On a lightly floured work surface, roll out dough to a 12-inch round. Fit crust into pan. Chill in refrigerator until ready to fill.

03-27-16-easter-3

For Filling: Separate eggs, placing 3 yolks in one bowl and 2 whites in another (save remaining white for another use). In a heatproof bowl in a microwave oven, heat chopped chocolate at medium power at 15-second intervals, stirring between intervals, until melted, about 1½ minutes; set aside to cool. In the bowl of a food processor, combine almonds, flour and salt; pulse until mixture resembles fine flour.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk, beat together butter and 7 tablespoons sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. With machine running, add egg yolks one at a time, incorporating between additions. In a slow and steady stream, add melted chocolate. Reduce speed to low, then add almond flour, mixing just until incorporated.

03-27-16-easter-4

Fold in half the cherries. In a large, clean bowl, beat together egg whites and remaining 3 tablespoons sugar until shiny, soft peaks form.

03-27-16-easter-5

Gently but thoroughly fold whites into chocolate mixture. Spread remaining cherries in bottom of prepared crust, then pour in batter.

03-27-16-easter-6

Bake until filling is puffed and just set, 50 to 55 minutes. Let cool in pan on wire rack for 15 minutes, then run a thin, sharp knife around edge of pan to loosen. Remove pan sides. Let cake cool completely.

Just before serving cake, hold chocolate bar with a paper towel. Pass a vegetable peeler over the side of the bar to create shavings. Pile shavings on top of cake. Dust with cocoa.