A Flaky and Delicious Savory Handpie

Inspiration comes from many places. I get newsletters from a few cooks and bakers and sometimes I use the recipes that are included. A few days ago my email had a newsletter from Lukas Volger in Family Friend and the recipe was for a filo, blue cheese and spinach dish which he was suggesting as a vegetarian entree for Thanksgiving. It is something that you can make the filling for ahead of time, the dish can bake at the same time as rolls or even a casserole, and it would also taste fine at room temperature.

As is often the case, I used this as a jumping off place for my own dish. I had most of the filling ingredients on hand except for the leek and the parsley, but I didn't have any filo dough. I had the frozen spinach, ricotta, and blue cheese, but I also had one leftover chicken thigh, already grilled, that needed using up...so this wouldn't be vegetarian. I had a roll of ReadyCrust pie dough, so that was an easy substitute for the missing filo. This also meant that I didn't have to use any melted butter.

I used half an onion instead of the leek, some dried thyme instead of the parsley, and I made this as two large hand pies. You can cut each of them in half to serve, so this serves four and uses half the quantities of the filling. It does take a bit of work, but I think you'll enjoy this entrée. The photos show the baked but uncut hand pie. If you are really hungry, don't cut them...in which case this recipe will serve 2, not 4. I served ours with a mixed greens salad with lots of veggies in it and a balsamic dressing. The sharpness of the dressing was a good foil for the fairly rich and cheesy filling and buttery crust.

You can make this vegetarian by leaving out the chicken. If you make this after Thanksgiving and you roast a turkey, you can make small cubes of cooked turkey to replace the chicken and it will still be delicious...and use up some leftover turkey!

Spinach and Blue Cheese and Chicken Hand Pies
based on the Spinach & Blue Cheese Phyllo Pie in Lukas Volger newsletter Family Friend

2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 large onion, finely chopped
1/4 teaspoon table salt
5 oz. frozen spinach, thawed
1 large egg
1/2 cup whole-milk ricotta
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
black pepper to taste
2 oz. blue cheese, crumbled
1 cooked chicken thigh, cut into 1-inch dice
1 round ready made pie pastry like Pillsbury ReadyCrust, at room temperature
1 teaspoon flour
egg wash of 1 egg plus 1 teaspoon water, beaten together

In a skillet over medium heat add the oil once the skillet is hot. Add the chopped onion and the salt and stir to coat with the oil. Cover and steam for about 5 minutes, then uncover and continue cooking until the onion is soft, 5-7 minutes more. Set aside.

Drain the thawed spinach and then squeeze out as much liquid as you can. Add to the onion mixture and stir. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, then whisk in the ricotta until smooth. Add the  thyme, black pepper, blue cheese, chicken and spinach/onion mixture and combine. Set aside.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Lightly flour a work surface and roll out the pie dough circle. Using a rolling pin, increase the size to about 12-inches in diameter. Using a sharp knife or bench scraper, divide the dough in half, cutting across the middle.

Take one of the half circles and place on a parchment lined baking sheet. Mound half the spinach filling mixture on the one side of the half circle, leaving a little more than an inch of uncovered dough all the way around. Flip the half with no filling over the half with filling, matching the straight side with straight side and the curved side with curved side. Use a pastry brush to brush some egg wash on the uncovered dough next to the filling. Press the top dough down all around to seal all sides. Use the tines of a fork to press the edges to seal completely. Use the pastry brush to coat the top of the hand pie  and the sealed edges with egg wash.  Cut a steam slit of about an inch and a half in the center top.

Repeat with the second half circle and the rest of the filling.

Bake in a preheated 400 degree oven for about 40 minutes, or until the pastry is golden brown and the filling bubbles a bit at the steam vent. Cool for about 10 minutes. Slice each hand pie in two to make two pie wedges. Serve hot, warm, or at room temperature.

For a vegetarian version, omit the chicken.

More Cookies!

The orange cookies in the previous post were delicious and the recipe is a new one from King Arthur Baking, but sometimes I find recipes in old magazines or in cookbooks that have sat on the shelf for a while. Today's cookies are from just such a book, butter, sugar, flour eggs by Gale Gand from 1999.  I love bar cookies because they usually go together quickly and don't require a lot of fussy decorating. This one is fun because you make the shortbread style dough, freeze it, and then grate it to create the bottom and top crusts. In the middle is a layer of raspberry jam, although I suspect that you could use any flavor and it would still be wonderful. I tried to grate the dough on a box grater, but found that using the large hole disc on my food processor worked just as well and went far more quickly. Frozen dough requires a lot of muscle power to grate on a manual grater!

I used the plain version of this dough, but you can also sub in some cocoa powder for some of the flour to have a chocolate-raspberry combo. Do try this one...so easy and so delicious! You probably have all of the ingredients on hand already.

Austrian Raspberry Shortbread Cookies
From butter sugar flour eggs, by Gale Gand, Rick Tramonto and Julia Moskin, 1999

This rich, ladylike cookie goes well with tea, particularly a flowery tea like rose hip.

1 pound (4 sticks) unsalted butter, slightly softened
4 egg yolks
2 cups granulated sugar
4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup raspberry jam, at room temperature
1/4 cup confectioners' sugar

Cream the butter in a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment (or using a hand mixer) until soft and fluffy. Add the egg yolks and mix well.

Mix the granulated sugar, flour, baking powder, and salt together. Add to the butter/egg yolk mixture and mix just until incorporated and the dough starts to come together. Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface and form into two balls.

Wrap each ball in plastic wrap and freeze at least two (2) hours or overnight (or as long as a month for later baking).

Heat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Remove one ball of dough from the freezer and coarsely grate it by hand or with the grating disk in a food processor into the bottom of a 9 x 13-inch baking pan or a 10-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. Make sure the surface is covered evenly with shreds of dough.

With the back of a spoon, or a flexible spatula, spread the jam over the surface, to within 1/2-inch of the edge all the way around.

Remove the remaining dough from the freezer and coarsely grate it over the entire surface. (If using the food processor, grate the first ball of frozen dough and spread that over the bottom, spread the jam,  then grate the second ball of frozen dough and spread that shredded dough evenly over the jam, all the way to the pan edges.)

Bake until light golden brown, 30 to 40 minutes. As soon as the shortbread comes out of the oven, dust with the confectioners' sugar.

Cool in the pan on a wire rack, then cut into bars with a serrated knife.

I lined the pan with parchment, leaving an overhang on two ends to help removed the baked and cooled cookies from the pan, then used a long, serrated bread knife to cut the cookies into squares.

NOTE:
To make this a chocolate shortbread cookie, substitute 1 cup cocoa for 1 cup of the flour.

Starting to Look at Christmas Cookies

Perhaps Christmas seems far away to you, but we are one month and a couple of days away from when our daughter and her family will arrive for the holidays, so I'm starting to think about what I'll bake. When you  get older it seems to take much longer to do anything, so planning for Christmas will surely take longer than it used to, too.

I've already started. King Arthur Baking had a refrigerator cookie recipe that I saw recently and then made. It's a slice-and-bake cookie with orange flavors from candied orange peel and orange oil. You roll the dough log in sparkling sugar, which gives some shine and a lot of crunch to the finished cookie. I like them, but I think for Christmas I'll use candied ginger and some powdered ginger instead, plus I'll use red and green sanding sugar to give a bit of Christmas colors to the cookies. One of my family is allergic to orange, so ginger will be a better bet, plus it's a great flavor for winter. If I do try it that way I'll try to post about it, giving the changes. Do note my findings at the bottom of the recipe, about baking time and heat. Every oven is different, so adjust the time and temperature to suit your oven.

These are pretty easy to create. Like most slice-and-bake cookies, the dough can either be chilled before baking or frozen. The latter lets you start early...a bonus when you are getting ready for the holidays! They are also delicious, citrusy cookies, so it's great to bake them right away, just to enjoy.

Orange Sparkle Slice-and-Bake Cookies

Yield: 6 dozen cookies

3/4 cup (75g) Candied Orange Peel
2/3 cup (132g) granulated sugar
2/3 cup (76g) confectioners' sugar
1/4 teaspoon Orange Citrus Oil
1 3/4 teaspoons table salt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon almond extract
18 tablespoons (255g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 large egg
3 1/4 cups (390g) unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 cup (113g) Sparkling Sugar/sanding sugar

 If orange peel is the least bit dried out, place in a small bowl and cover with hot water. Cover and set aside. If peel is very moist, just set aside.

 Beat together the sugars, orange oil, salt, and extracts until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

 Add the butter and beat on medium-low speed until smooth, 3-4 minutes. Scrape the bowl and beaters, add the egg, and beat until fully combined, about 1 minutes.

 If you soaked the orange peel, strain it and press gently to removed excess moisture. If the peel was very moist, get ready to add it.

 Add the flour and orange peel, and beat on LOW speed until combined, about 30 seconds.

 Transfer the dough to a clean work surface. Divide the dough in half (about 500g per piece) and shape each half into an 11-inch long log.

 Spread the sparkling sugar across the middle of a piece of parchment, then roll each log in the sugar to completely coat.

 Wrap each log in a long piece of plastic wrap and refrigerate until very firm, about 1-2 hours. Alternately, freeze for up to two weeks.

 When ready to bake, remove any frozen logs from the freezer and allow to thaw for 1 hour. If refrigerated, remove from fridge, unwrap and you are ready to slice and bake.

 Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

 Take one log of unwrapped (and thawed if necessary) dough and slice into 1/4-inch thick rounds. Rotate the log about 90 degrees every few slices to maintain a neat circular shape.

 Place the sliced on two parchment-lined baking sheets (I used baking sheets with a light spray of butter flavored baking spray instead of parchment), placing the cookies about 2-inches apart.

 Bake for 14-18 minutes, or until edges are golden brown. Let cookies cool on the pan for about 10 minutes, then transfer to a rack to cool completely before serving. Repeat the slicing and baking and cooling with the remaining dough, or save in the fridge to slice and bake later, up to one week.

 I found that 400 degrees F and 14 minutes were too long for my cookies, so keep an eye on the first batch since you may need to remove them from the oven a lot sooner than 14 minutes. You can see from the photos that mine were a darker brown on the edges than 'golden' and the centers were the golden brown color.

Chicken Tortilla Soup Perfect for Rainy Weather

It was a rainy weekend in the Northwest last weekend and I was happy to be there...I love the rain. I took a walk with Aaron along the river and it started raining as we walked.  The ducks didn't mind getting rained on.

The next morning I took another walk around the neighborhood and it started raining about half way through my walk. I noticed that the red leaves of the maples looked even more red against the dark, rain soaked bark of the trees.

One evening while I was visiting we made Chicken Tortilla Soup using the Instant Pot. We combined a few recipes from the Internet and it was delicious, flavorful soup! It's based largely on the recipe at Kristine's Kitchen, so I think Kristine for a great, easy recipe. If you don't have an Instant Pot, you can achieve close to the same results in a soup pot but it will take longer. Just sauté the onion and garlic in the olive oil in the soup pot, add the liquids, seasonings, and beans, then bring them to a boil. Add the chicken, cover, reduce to simmer and simmer for about 30 minutes. Take a piece of chicken from the pot and see if you can shred it with a fork. If not, return to pot and simmer another 10 minutes. Shred all the chicken, return it to the soup pot. Add the rest of the ingredients and simmer another 10 minutes to heat everything through, then serve with toppings on the side.

The soup base is created by cooking onions in olive oil, then adding garlic and letting the residual heat cook the garlic. To that you add tomatoes, seasonings, beans and chicken broth. This liquid mixture is used to cook the chicken, which is eventually shredded once cooked.

After the chicken is cooked, you add corn and a few more seasonings to the soup. I think that the addition of lime juice takes it to a higher level. An array of toppings makes it possible for each person enjoying the soup to tailor their toppings to their taste.

As we get closer to winter I'm sure that you'll find that this soup is just the thing to warm you up when the evening is chilly.

Instant Pot Chicken Tortilla Soup
Serves 6

 2 teaspoons olive oil
1 large onion, chopped fairly small
4 cloves garlic, minced
1  14.5 oz. can fire roasted or regular diced tomatoes in their juice
1-2 teaspoons chili powder
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon oregano
1  15 oz. can black beans, rinsed and drained
4 cups low sodium chicken broth
1 pound boneless skinless chicken thighs (about 6)
1 cup canned or frozen corn, drained if canned
juice from one large (or two small) lime(s)
salt and pepper to taste

 Serving toppings: crumbled tortilla chips or strips, sour cream or plain Greek yogurt, shredded cheese, avocado slices or dice, fire roasted diced green chiles, chopped cilantro.

 Instructions:

Add olive oil to Instant Pot insert and turn on sauté function. Add the onion and cooking, stirring, until softened, about 3 minutes. Turn off Instant Pot. Stir in minced garlic.

 Add the tomatoes, chili powder, cumin, black beans and chicken broth. Stir well, scraping up any bits stuck to the bottom of the pot. Nestle the chicken into the liquid.

 Place the lid on and set it to the closed position. Move the steam valve to the sealing position.

Set the Instant Pot to manual/pressure cook, high pressure, for 9 minutes. The Instant Pot will take about 20 minutes to reach pressure and then the cook time will start counting down. When the cook time is done, allow the pressure to release naturally for 10 minutes. Then, carefully move the steam valve to the venting position to release the remaining pressure. Can do this with the handle of a long spoon.

When the float valve drops down, the pressure has been released and it is safe to open the Instant Pot. Carefully remove the lid. Remove the chicken to a clean plate and let it rest for a few minutes.

Stir the corn into the Instant Pot, along with the lime juice. Cover and let it sit for 5 minutes. While this is happening, shred or cube the chicken.

Return the chicken to the pot. Season soup to taste with salt and pepper, chili powder, and/or hot sauce. Serve with toppings as desired.

Leftover soup can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Amazing Caramel Apple Pie

I love apple pie, but Sweetie usually doesn't. He prefers berry pies or custard pies or stone fruit pies.

This past weekend I visited my family in Redmond, WA and my grandson and I made a great apple pie that even Sweetie likes. You bake it in a cast iron skillet (if you have one), use pre-made pie crust dough, and you combine the apples with a caramel sauce that's easy to make. I suspect that the caramel sauce is the key to why this pie is so amazing. There is even some left over to drizzle over the pie slices when served. You can even add a scoop of ice cream for total decadence. That's what Aaron and Raine did and it does look wonderful. (see photo above). I had mine with just the sauce...and it was awesome.

The most time consuming part of this recipe is the baking...about an hour, but possibly a bit less...but the next hardest is preparing the apples. I recommend using apples that don't release a lot of juice but have a good, tart/sweet flavor of apple. If you know that your apple will release lots of juice, pre-cook them in the microwave until barely limp, then drain them before adding the caramel sauce. Reserve the drained liquid for another use if you like. Thickened up it could make a nice topping for pancakes.

                                             Mixing caramel sauce with apples

Because you mix some of the sauce with the apples, you get the flavors of the sauce. I like to have both Pie Spice, which is a combination of cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and allspice, and vanilla. I also like you to be able to taste the salt for that sweet-salty combo, but you can reduce it to 1/2 or 3/4 teaspoon if you like. The bourbon is also optional, but it goes really well with the apples and spice.

This is a great pie to bring to a holiday gathering, so bookmark it for November and December, if you like.

Skillet Caramel Spice Apple Pie
a variation of a recipe on myrecipes.com
Serves 8

1 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup butter (1 stick, 8 tablespoons)
3 tablespoons non-dairy creamer (I use Vanilla Silk Soy Creamer) or 1/2 & 1/2
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon Penzey's Pie Spice, or cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon bourbon (optional)
1 set of prepared pie crusts (I used Pillsbury ReadyCrusts)
3 pounds apples, peeled and cut into 1/2" thick slices (we used Galas and Honeycrisp)
2 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 lg egg yolk, lightly beaten (reserve egg white for sealing crusts)
1 tablespoon water
1 teaspoon sanding sugar (optional)

In a medium pot melt the margarine or butter. Stir in the brown sugar, , soy creamer or 1/2 & 1/2,  salt and pie spice or cinnamon. Over medium-high, cook the mixture, stirring until it bubbles. Continue cooking, stirring for 2 more minutes until mixture begins to thicken. Remove from the heat. Stir in the vanilla and, if using, the bourbon. Cool almost to room temperature, about 30 minutes, stirring at about 10 minutes to keep a skin from forming.

Fit one pie crust in the bottom and press up the sides of a 9" cast iron skillet. Put in the refrigerator to chill.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees, making sure that one rack is in the bottom position in the oven.

Toss apples with 2 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch in a large bowl. Pour 1/3 cup cooled caramel sauce over the apples and toss to coat.

Remove prepared crust from the fridge. Pour apple filling into prepared crust. Place remaining pie crust over apple filling. Seal by lightly coating the exposed side dough in the skillet with egg white and pressing the top crust to it. Crimp crust edges together.

Use a sharp knife to cut 6 - 8 one inch slits in top crust to let steam escape ( I goofed and only cut two steam vents). Whisk together egg yolk and water and brush over crust. If desired, scatter sanding sugar over.

Bake on bottom rack of preheated over for 55 minute - 1 hour. After about 30 minutes, shield crust with foil if needed to prevent excessive browning.

Bake until crust is golden, apples tender, and filling bubbly. Transfer to wire rack and cool completely 3 hours. Serve & enjoy.

So Many Years of Blogging

Little did I know in October 2006 that I would enjoy blogging so much that I'm still doing it in 2024...eighteen years later. Over the years I've made friends, learned so, so much, challenged myself to try new things and expand my cooking and baking skills, improved my writing and photography, had fun with writing short stories of times in the Land of St. Honore', compiled an Index of over a thousand recipes (probably closer to 1, 500 by now!), and had the satisfaction of really feeding my many enthusiasms.

I hope that you have enjoyed at least one of the hundreds of posts, perhaps have tried a recipe or two...or more, and are willing to wander about in the blog discovering stories and recipes and challenges that you can take up.

Thank you to the Daring Bakers, Cake Slice Bakers, and especially to the Bread Baking Babes for inviting me in and encouraging me to grow as a baker. We've had such fun times together!

Come back again...I still have more things to cook and bake and photograph and share with you through this blog. I value your comments and for taking this journey with me, dear reader.

Seedy Braided Bread

You may have noticed that I haven't been baking bread very  much these days. There is a reason...weight. Sweetie has been losing weight, partly by eliminating carbs for most of his meals and partly by making wise choices for the rest of his diet, plus he is spending a lot more time being active. I have been less careful in my choices and haven't been quite as active, but I have also been cutting back on carbs and eating more fruits and veggies. 

So what's a bread baker to do when she isn't eating bread? Bake it for others, right? Most of the posts for the past few months that include bread, pastry, cookies, etc. have had elements of my giving away a portion of the dish, if not all of it. This week I'm making a wonderful bread that includes bread flour, white whole wheat flour, and a whole lot of seeds of various kinds. I'll divide the dough into thirds, shape each into a long rope, then braid those ropes into a loaf to bake on a baking sheet.

I did about the same for a loaf for a recently widowed friend when he returned home from visiting his grown children. With a loaf of fresh bread in the house he would have something good to eat for days!

This week's loaf will be going to a silent auction for our P.E.O. scholarship group, raising money for scholarships for women. Most of the guests know that I'm a good baker, so I expect that the bidding will be lively. I'm also auctioning the Hot Fudge Sauce that I posted yesterday. Combining calories out with fun and fundraising is a win-win-win.

Braided Bread
based on Plaited Loaf recipe in Baking , by Martha Day

1 tablespoon active dry yeast
1 teaspoon honey
1 cup lukewarm milk (not over 100 degrees F) – I used undiluted condensed milk 
4 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled
1 egg, slightly beaten
15 oz. flour: I cup bread flour, 1/2 cup white whole wheat flour, 1/2 cup King Arthur Baking Harvest grains mix which includes poppy seed, sesame seed, pumpkin seed
Note: Flour amounts vary depending on moisture of the flour and of the kitchen
1 teaspoon salt
Glaze: 1 egg yolk beaten with 1 tablespoon water
2-3 tablespoons sesame seeds or 2-3 teaspoons poppy seed (optional)

Combine the yeast, honey, and milk. Stir and let sit for 15 minutes.

Stir in the cooled butter into the milk mixture. Stir in the egg and put the wet mixture in a mixer bowl. If you have a large stand mixer use it.

Stir together the flours, seeds and the salt. Pour about half into the mixer bowl with the milk mixture and mix with the paddle attachment or stir with a spoon or dough whisk. Switch to a dough hook, if using. Add the rest of the flour, about a 1/3 cup at a time, until the dough is soft but holds together well. At the end you may need to add the flour a tablespoon at a time. If not using a stand mixer, turn out on a floured surface when it is too hard to stir the flour in. Knead the rest of the flour in. Knead with mixer or by hand until dough is smooth and elastic.

Place dough in an oiled bowl, turn over to oil both sides. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and leave to rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 1 ½ hours. (I put mine in the fridge for two day to intensify the flavor.)

Grease a baking sheet or line with parchment or a silicone mat. Set aside.

Turn risen dough out onto a floured board. Knead for a minute to release trapped gas. Divide into three even pieces of dough. Shape each piece into a long ‘snake’, about 18 inches long. Place the three strands side by side on the prepared pan. Starting at the middle, braid the three strands, then turn it and braid the other side. Tuck the ends under. Cover loosely and leave to rise in a warm place for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Brush the loaf with the egg glaze using a pastry brush. If desired sprinkle tops of coils of braid with poppy or sesame seeds while glaze is still wet. Bake until golden, for about 40-45 minutes. Loaf will sound hollow when you tap the back when baked enough. Turn out onto a rack to cool.

Hot Fudge Sauce

You would think that someone who loves chocolate as I do would have long ago put a recipe for Hot Fudge Sauce here on the blog...but you would be wrong.

It isn't that I don't enjoy hot fudge sauce, the thing is that I'm not an ice cream person. Now and then...maybe twice a year...I get a yen for some ice cream, but that's about it. Even this time, when I have made a delicious and easy Hot Fudge Sauce, with the recipe below, I didn't make it to eat with ice cream (which seems to me the best way to have it). No, I made it because I'm taking a jar of it to a silent auction to raise money for women's scholarships. I'm pretty sure that the sauce will get some good bids since many people do enjoy ice cream often...and know how good it can be with some hot fudge sauce. To give you some photos of it, I dipped a strawberry in it...and Sweetie helped by eating it. He gave it the seal of approval.

This recipe is surprisingly quick and easy. It only makes a cup and a half of sauce, but if you use a good quality chocolate you won't need a lot of it because it's rich and tempting and delicious! Of course you may decide that you want a lot of it!

You start with some bittersweet chocolate. A 3 oz. chocolate bar is thin enough that chopping it finely is pretty easy. You also need a few tablespoons butter, some unsweetened cocoa powder, less than a cup of heavy cream, small amounts of light corn syrup and granulated sugar, a pinch of salt and a full tablespoon of vanilla.

Do give this a try. It helps to have a microwave, but the whole thing can be done on a stovetop as long as you either have a double boiler, or a bowl that can sit on top of a pot of simmering water long enough for the finely chopped chocolate and butter to melt to smoothness.

So what will it be for you? Make this as a gift or eat it all at home? Choices, choices...

Hot Fudge Sauce

From Baking with Dorie Magazine 2017
Makes 1 1/2 cups

3 oz. bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped (use one you like to eat)
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
3/4 cup heavy cream
3 tablespoons light corn syrup
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
Pinch of salt
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

In the top of a double boiler (or in a heat proof bowl-over a pot of simmering water) or in a bowl in the microwave, melt the chocolate and butter together. (I recommend using 50% power if using the microwave, heat for 20 seconds, stir, heat for another 20 seconds, and keep doing that until melted and smooth, stirring after each 20 seconds in the microwave.)

When the mixture is completely melted, remove from the heat and stir in the cocoa powder; set aside.

In a medium saucepan combine the cream, corn syrup, sugar, and salt and bring to a boil, keeping a close eye on it and stirring...the mixture can bubble up quickly. Remove from the heat as soon as it bubbles.

Using a whisk, gradually stir the hot milk mixture into the chocolate mixture, then add the vanilla and stir to combine. Press a piece of plastic wrap against the surface of the sauce. Serve sauce after it has cooled for 20 minutes. Enjoy!

Keeping: The sauce can be made ahead and kept tightly covered in the refrigerator for about 3 weeks. At serving time, warm the sauce gently in the microwave or in a bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Enjoy!

Welcome Fall

 

We are officially into Fall, but the weather hasn't gotten the message. Yesterday it was warm...in the upper 80's, but today it was truly hot with temperatures around here above 100 degrees, and it is supposed to be over 100 degrees F tomorrow and only slightly cooler the following 5 or 6 days. And yet, as we go around the area doing our errands, we already are seeing the trees turn to their fall reds and golds and yellows and russets.

Hope that you are enjoying fall and not recovering from flooding or high winds, rain, tornadoes or other disasters of nature. It's still a beautiful world, but it's more challenging all the time.

Happy Fall y'all.

Tomato and Zucchini Tart

Because we had a late spring and the soil didn't warm up until weeks after I usually plant, we are also having a late harvest. Finally I'm getting ripe tomatoes! To celebrate I made a fresh tomato and zucchini tart. Although I was inspired by a recipe I found in the newspaper, I made so many changes that it really is a new recipe.

First I started with a pre-made pie crust found in the refrigerator case in many grocery stores...Pillsbury ReadyCrust. It comes two to the box, but I only used one. That single round of pie dough was placed in a 9-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. The dough came up higher than the sides, so I folded that down to make a double thickness side for the tart. I pricked the bottom with a fork, all over, and then pre-baked at 425 degrees F for 10 minutes.

While the tart crust was cooling, I sliced the tomatoes into 1/4-inch thick slices, cutting off a bit of the top and bottom, then slicing through horizontally, not stem end to bottom.  The zucchini was sliced at the same thickness on the diagonal. The slices were spread on a double layer of paper towels and sprinkled with salt. Another layer of towels went on top and I let them sit for at least an hour to get rid of the excess moisture in the veggies.

For the filling I used Boursin cheese and some egg white. The cheese comes with herbs and garlic already blended in and the egg white makes the consistency just right.

If you have large tomatoes, you may only need one slice from the middle of the tomato, and then smaller zucchini slices or half slices can go around nearer to the tart edge. Just see how your veggies are. My tomatoes were pretty small, although very flavorful, so I put multiple slices all around the outside edge, then filled in the middle with the zucchini. A sprinkle of black pepper is optional.

The final piece is the topping, which is a combination of olive oil and dry bread crumbs and pine nuts.

The finished tart doesn't get baked very long...just long enough to cook the egg white and soften the zucchini a bit. It's a thin, savory tart, but with very intense flavor and quite delicious. Do try it!

Summer Harvest Veggie Tart
Servings: 6-8 

Ingredients
2-3 small tomatoes. If using large heirloom tomatoes, you only need one

      1 small zucchini (about 6-inches)

·      Fine salt

·      about 2.5 oz. (half the package, 75 grams) Boursin cheese herbs and garlic flavor

·      1 egg white from a medium or large egg (reserve yolk for another use)

·      One circle pie dough - I used half a package of Pillsbury ReadyCrust, at room temperature

·      2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided           

3     3 tablespoons dry breadcrumbs

       3 tablespoons pine nuts

Directions

 Using  a very sharp knife, cut the tomatoes, and zucchini into thin slices, about 1/4-inch thick. (Cut the tomatoes parallel to the equator and the zucchini slightly on the diagonal.)

 Line a large sheet pans with double thickness paper towels;  Place the sliced tomato slices and zucchini slices on top, and lightly sprinkle with salt on both sides to draw out moisture. Cover with more paper towels to absorb the released juices.  Let the vegetables sit for about 30 minutes to draw out the maximum moisture.

 Prepare the cheese filling by mixing the Boursin cheese with the egg white in a small bowl. Set aside.

 While the vegetables rest, position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 425 degrees F. Line a 9-inch tart pan with a removable bottom with the circle of pie dough. Double the thickness of the sides by folding the excess pastry down on the inside and press the pastry against the sides of the tart pan. Prick the bottom with a fork, then put the pan in the freezer for 30 minutes to chill and firm up.

7.    Remove the pastry-lined tart pan from the freezer and bake in the preheated oven for 10 minutes. Cool on a rack for 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F.

       Spread the prepared cheese mixture over the bottom of the pastry. Use a small offset spatula or the back of a spoon to level the cheese mixture.
    

       Arrange the tomato and zucchini slices in a pattern on top of the cheese filling. If you have a large heirloom tomato slice, that might go in the middle, surrounded by zucchini slices. I did a circle of small tomato slices, with zucchini slices in the middle. Sprinkle with ground black pepper, optional.

       Bake the tart at 350 degrees F. for 10 minutes. While the tart is baking, stir together 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, the breadcrumbs, and the pine nuts.

       Remove the tart from the oven after 10 minutes. Use a pastry brush to brush remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil over the pastry, the vegetables and filling. Use the breadcrumb mixture to fill in any spaces not covered by vegetables, plus scatter any leftover over the vegetables. Return tart to the oven and bake another 10 minutes or until the crumbs are a bit crispy and the pine nuts are golden browned.

1     Let tart cool ten minutes on a rack, then unmold by pushing the bottom up. Slide the tart off the pan bottom onto a serving plate and serve, either still warm, or at room temperature, in wedges.

 

Bruschetta

It may be past the height of tomato season where you live, but if you can still find vine ripened tomatoes with true tomato flavor, do try these s. So what are bruschetta? You take slices of bread...baguette is good, a well made hearth bread or sourdough loaf is also great...and you toast them. If you're slicing the bread yourself, slice it fairly thinly to make it easier to bite. About an hour or two before you want to eat these, mix together the tomato mixture to allow the flavors to mingle. Right before you are ready to serve, put the toasted bread slices on a plate or platter, spoon the tomato mixture on top, garnish, if desired, with a small basil leaf and serve right away. Doing the topping part at the last minute ensures that the bread will be crunchy, a nice contrast to the softer  tomatoes.

You get the most delicious appetizer or small plate food...toasty, olive oil enhanced bread topped with a tangy, tantalizing tomato mixture that brings the tastes of summer and harvest home. You might make a few extra. It's hard to stop with just one or two.

Bruschetta for Two

4-6 1/2-inch slices baguette or other flavorful, firm bread
1 medium to large fresh, ripe tomato, preferably heirloom
1 tablespoon best quality olive oil
1 clove garlic or roasted garlic
3-4 leaves fresh basil
salt and pepper to taste

Brush the bread with olive oil. Toast the bread slices to a golden brown color. If possible, use a grill to toast them.

Chop the tomato into very small dice and place in a medium bowl, keeping as much tomato juice as possible with the tomatoes. Add the olive oil, mince the garlic and add, finely chop the basil and add it to the bowl.

Stir the tomato, oil, garlic and basil together. If possible, cover and let sit in the fridge for 2 to 24 hours. 

When you are ready to serve the bruschetta, warm the toasts, place them on the serving platter and top each with about a tablespoon of the tomato mixture, including some of the juices. If you have a few tiny basil leaves you can garnish the bruschetta with them. Add salt and pepper to taste...although you may not need any. Serve at once.

Raspberry Cream Pie with Lemon

 If you have followed this blog for any length of time you know that I like to make special baked goods for Sweetie, my husband. His favorite is pie. A number of years ago I baked a Banana Cream Pie that he really loved. The hardest part is making the pastry cream because it takes a while and you have to stir the whole time.

This week I decided to make a variation of that recipe but to use fresh raspberries, since I still have quite a few. I found a container in the freezer that had about a cup of this lemon filling, so I thawed that out and beat it with a small whisk until it was smooth, then put that in the bottom of the blind-baked pie shell. Instead of bananas, I put a layer of fresh raspberries that had been rinsed and patted dry with paper towels. (photo above)

Next the barely warm pastry cream was poured in (although there was about a cup left due to the use of the lemon cream filling on the bottom) and then I placed, one by one, raspberries around the outer part of the pie for three rows, then two rows in the very center. This left the middle strip plain, but I like that contrast.

Because this pastry cream has gelatin for thickening, the pie rested in the fridge for three hours. Firmed up enough to be cut, all that was left was to glaze the berries on top with a little raspberry jam which I had strained and then heated up. I had wanted to have whipped cream on the side, but ran out of energy since by now it was late in the evening. It was still an amazing dessert!

You can also make this pie without the lemon filling. Just put about a cup of the pastry cream on the bottom, scatter about a cup to a cup and a half berries over in one layer, then put the rest of the pastry cream over the berries and add the decorative rows to the top, plus glaze. It will be easier and still delicious.

Raspberry Cream Pie

1 envelope unflavored gelatin (7 grams)
1/4 cup cold water (60 ml)
1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons sugar (130 grams)
1/2 cup all-purpose flour (70 grams)
1/4 teaspoon salt
5 egg yolks
2 1/4 cups full fat milk or 1/2 & 1/2 (I used soy creamer)(562 ml)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon almond liquor

1 cup lemon pie filling
2 pints fresh raspberries, rinsed and patted dry with paper towels
1 9-inch blind baked tart or pie crust, cooled to room temperature (I used 9-inch pie pan and Pillsbury ReadyCrust pre-made pastry dough rounds)
Glaze: 3 tablespoons raspberry jam
whipped cream for garnish, if desired

To make the cream filling:

Soak the gelatin in the 1/4 cup cold water

Put the sugar, flour and salt into a saucepan and stir together with a whisk. Add the yolks and enough milk to make a paste. Whisk in the remainder of the milk.

Place the pan over low heat and, stirring constantly, cook until thick. Remove from the heat and stir in the  gelatin and stir until thoroughly combined and gelatin is dissolved. Pour into a mixing bowl.

Stir in the vanilla and almond liquor. Set the mixing bowl in cold water and stir until the cream mixture is cool.

To make the pie:
Place a layer of lemon pie filling over the bottom of the blind baked tart or pie crust. Scatter 3/4 pint fresh raspberries over the filling. Pour in the cream filling to cover the berries and fill the pie shell. Refrigerate any remaining filling and save for another use.

Smooth the filling with an offset spatula, then put another layer of fresh raspberries over the filling in a nice pattern, using the rest of the berries.

Chill 2 3/4 hours. Heat 3 tablespoons raspberry jam in a small pot or in the microwave in a microwave safe small bowl. Pour into a small bowl through a fine mesh strainer. Use a small pastry brush to glaze the berries with the heated and strained jam. Return to the refrigerator and let the glaze set, about another 15 minutes.

Garnish with whipped cream, if desired.

Serves 8