Lemon-Lime Tart for Sweetie

 Valentine's Day is always a bit of a challenge, coming as it does the day after my birthday. This year Sweetie requested a pie or tart for Valentine's Day and I had already decided to make the Queen Mother Cake for my birthday.

I bought a bag of good-sized limes, thinking that I would make a lime tart, but then we received a gift of a bag of beautiful lemons from a neighbor, so I decided to go for a lemon-lime tart for Valentine's Day.

My favorite lemon tart filling is Dorie Greenspan's, so I began with that recipe and added lime zest and juice to the lemon zest and juice, with a decoration, after the tart was finished, of strands of zest from both fruits. The tart case is fairly simple and comes out cookie-like so that the filling doesn't make it too gooey after a day. We had the last slice, shared, two days after I filled the tart shell and the base was still crisp.

As it turned out, we had the Queen Mother cake on Valentine's Day, right after Sweetie's fire board meeting. Then we had the Lemon-Lime Tart the next day and were able to share it with our daughter and her fiancé'. I was worth the wait and well worth your time to make. It would be perfect for St. Patrick's Day, which is coming up soon. It would also be delightful for Easter...or anytime, really.

The Most Extraordinary French Lemon - Lime Cream Tart 

Based on a recipe by Dorie Greenspan in Baking, From My Home To Yours

1 cup sugar
Grated zest of 2 lemons
Grated zest of 2 limes, (or 3 if smaller limes)
4 large eggs at room temperature

3/4 cup fresh lemon juice mixed with lime juice (from 3-4 large lemons or up to 6 smaller ones, plus2-4 limes)
2 sticks plus 5 tablespoons (10 1/2 ounces) unsalted butter, cut into tablespoon-sized pieces, at room temperature 
1 9-inch tart shell made with Sweet Tart Dough (recipe follows), fully baked and cooled

Have an instant-read thermometer, a strainer (if straining out the zest), and a blender (first choice) or food processor at hand.

Directions:
Bring a few inches of water to simmer in a saucepan or the bottom of a double boiler.

Put the sugar and zest in a large heatproof bowl that can be set over the pan of simmering water, or in the top pan of a double boiler. Off the heat, rub the sugar and zest together between your fingers until the sugar is moist, grainy and very aromatic. Whisk in the eggs, followed by the lemon-lime juice.

Set the bowl over the pan, or set the top into the bottom of the double boiler, and start stirring with the whisk as soon as the mixture feels tepid to the touch. Cook the lemon cream until it reaches 180 degrees F. As you whisk and you must whisk constantly to keep the eggs from scrambling, you'll see that the cream will start out light and foamy, then the bubbles will get bigger, and then as it gets closer to 180 degrees F, it will start to thicken and the whisk will leave tracks, which means that the cream is almost ready. Don't stop whisking! Continue to check the temperature. It might take a while. so be patient. Usually it's done in about 10 minutes.

As soon as the cream reaches 180 degrees F, remove from the heat and, if removing the zest, strain it into the container of the blender (or food processor); discard the zest. (If not removing the zest, just scrape the cream right into the blender or food processor). Let the cream stand, stirring occasionally, until it cools to 140 degrees F, about 10 minutes.

Turn the blender to high (or turn on the food processor) and, with the machine going, add the butter, about 5 pieces at a time. Scrape down the sided as needed as you incorporate the butter. Once all the butter is in, keep blending/processing for another 3 minutes.

Pour the cream into a container (I used a large Pyrex bowl), press a piece of plastic wrap against the surface to create an airtight seal and refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight.

When you are ready to assemble the tart, just whisk the cream to loosen it and spoon it into the tart shell. I like to swirl the top with the back of a spoon. If desired, decorate the top with strands of lemon and lime zest for additional lemons and limes. Serve the tart, or refrigerate until needed.

Note: The filling will keep in the fridge for 4 days, or tightly sealed, in the freezer for up to 2 months. Thaw it overnight in the refrigerator and whisk before putting into the tart shell.

Sweet Tart Dough
From Dorie Greenspan

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 stick plus 1 tablespoon (9 tablespoons) very cold (Frozen) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1 large egg yolk

Put the flour, confectioners' sugar and salt into a food processor and pulse a couple of times to combine. Scatter the pieces of butter over the dry ingredients and pulse until the butter is coarsely cut in- there will be some tiny pieces and some the size of peas.

Stir the yolk to break it up, then add it a little at a time, pulsing afer each addition. When the egg is in, process in long pulses - about 10 seconds each - until the dough forms clumps and curds. Turn the dough out onto a work surface and, knead lightly just to incorporate any dry ingredients that might have escaped mixing. In all of this, don't overwork the dough.

Butter a 9-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. Press clumps of the dough evenly over the bottom and up the sides of the pan, using all but one little piece (about a teaspoon worth), which you should save in the fridge wrapped in plastic wrap to patch any cracks after the crust is baked. Freeze the crust for at least 30 minutes, preferably longer, before baking.

Center a rack in the oven and preheat to 375 degrees F.

Butter the shiny side of a piece of aluminum foil and fit the foil, buttered side down, tightly against the crust. Put the tart pan on a baking sheet and bake the crust for 25 minutes. Carefully remove the foil. If the crust ahs puffed, press it down gently with the back of a spoon. Patch the cruse if necessary, then bake for another 8 minutes or so, until it is firm and golden brown. Keep an eye on it the last few minutes and pull it out if it gets darker than golden. Transfer the pan to a cooling rack and cool to room temperature before filling. 

Marble Loaf Magic

Sometimes things don't work out the way you have planned. While making the mid-August  layer cake, the buttercream became contaminated with grease while still in the meringue stage...which meant that it wouldn't whip up, so we started over. I saved the mixture, convinced that I could find a recipe that would work to used up that egg white and sugar mixture...with some butter added. I did find a recipe, but then it got too hot to bake and the mixture spoiled with the waiting. The thing is, I really liked the recipe that I found, so now that it is cooler, I made it anyway...starting from scratch.

As is often the case, I changed a few things, even though I'd never baked this recipe before. That's the magic part...proportions are the key in baking and if you keep the proportions, you can change the flavors to make what you like. The original cake had a white chocolate and orange or peppermint white part and a dark chocolate dark part.  I'm a big fan of coffee and chocolate flavor combined, so that's the two flavors in this marble pound cake loaf. I used some espresso powder and a tablespoon boiling water to dissolve it and mixed those into the 'vanilla' batter, along with 2 tablespoons of flour since I'd increased the moisture with that boiling water. I kept the chocolate part, but used melted chocolate chips since I was too lazy to chop up a darker chocolate. That part wasn't the best choice since it would have been a better cake with bittersweet chocolate, but it is still a tasty cake and very nice with a cup of coffee...or tea. The color contrast isn't strong with this combo, either, but it's a delicious one.

The key thing here is to allow enough time to really beat air into the butter, into the butter and sugar mixture and into the butter, sugar and egg mixture...then only beat enough to combine once you start adding flour mixture and milk. A few folds with a spatula will combine the coffee mixture with the 'vanilla' batter and the chocolate with it's batter. Light mixing once the flour goes in keeps the cake from getting tough.

The fun part is marbling. Restrain yourself when it's time to zigzag a knife through the mounded batters...less is more because then you will see...and taste...the two flavors.

You can, of course, go with a vanilla batter, a vanilla batter flavored with citrus oil, or mint or maple extract, etc. You can color a vanilla batter - chocolate and a mint green would be pretty and tasty, too.

This makes one big loaf. Top a slice with a scoop of ice cream and some syrup or topping or fruit and you have a decadent dessert.

Marble Mocha Cake

base on Double Chocolate Marble Cake in Dorie Greenspan's  Baking Chez Moi

Makes one loaf cake

2 cups (272 grams) all-purpose flour

1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon espresso powder

1 tablespoon boiling water

1 1/2 sticks (12 tablespoons, 6 oz. 170 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature (I used non-dairy margarine)

1 cup (200 grams) sugar

4 large eggs, at room temperature

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

1/2 cup (120 ml) milk, at room temperature (I used soy creamer)

4 oz (113 grams) semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, melted and cooled

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Stack two baking sheets or use an insulated baking sheet and on it place a 9x5-inch loaf pan that has been buttered and floured, with excess flour tapped out of it.

Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside.

Mix together the espresso powder and the boiling water in a small bowl and stir until the powder dissolves. Set aside.

In a stand mixer bowl beat the butter on medium speed for 3 minutes, using the paddle attachment, or use a large bowl and a hand mixer to do the same thing. Add the sugar and beat for another 2-3 minutes. Scrape bowl and beater(s), then add the eggs, one at a time, and beat for 1 minute after each addition. Don't worry if the batter curdles.

Reduce mixer speed to low and mix in the vanilla. Scrape bowl and beater(s). Again on low speed, add the flour mixture in three additions and the milk in two additions, starting and ending with the flour mixture. Mix only until each addition is incorporated. Avoid over-mixing.

Put half the batter in another bowl. Add the reserved espresso mixture and, using a flexible spatula, combine the batter and espresso until mixture is one color.

In the remaining batter, using a flexible spatula, combine the batter and the cooled chocolate until mixture is one color.

Using a large spoon or a scoop, dollop the batters into the prepared loaf pan in a random pattern. Plunge a table knife deep into the batter at one end of the loaf pan and zig-zag the knife to the other end in 6-8 zags, no more. Don't go backwards. The fewer strokes with the knife will allow for a nice marble effect but not too much mixing.

Bake the cake for 80-90 minutes, or until a tester inserted in the center comes out clean. At about half way, check the cake and tent with foil if the top seems to be browning too quickly.

Cool the cake on a cooling rack for 10 minutes, then unmold it, then turn it right side up on the rack and cool to room temperature. Store at room temperature, wrapped well, for up to 4 days. Freeze for longer storage.

French Toll House Cookies

Apparently the French like our Toll House chocolate chip cookies but in creating their own version, Parisian bistro owner Edouard Bobin played around a little with the classic recipe and created a cookie that has much the same flavors, but is a bit chewier (due to some almond flour) and utterly delicious. I found the recipe in Baking Chez Moi by Dorie Greenspan. The cookies went well with a wonderful fresh fruit compote we were served recently at a winery picnic. Because they were scooped with a disher the shape was pretty round and much the same size for each cookie. Because the recipe asks the baker to flatten the top half way through the baking, they were sort of puck shaped. They made a slightly more elegant presentation than my usual ragged edged, bumpy chocolate chip cookies. I think next time I'll include some white chocolate chips and maybe a few dried cranberries. They might be bumpier, but still delicious that way.

French Chocolate Chip Cookies

3 1/2 cups (476 grams) all-purpose flour
1 1/4 teaspoons fine sea salt
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
2 sticks (8 oz; 226 grams) butter at room temperature
1 cup (200 grams) sugar
1 cup (200 grams) packed brown sugar
1  1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs, at room temperature
12 oz. (340 grams) semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped or 2 cups chocolate chips
1 1/2 cups (150 grams) hazelnut or almond flour

Whisk the flour, salt, baking soda and baking powder together in a medium bowl.

In a large bowl of a stand mixer, beat the butter on medium speed for about 1 minutes, until smooth. Add both sugars and beat for another 2 minutes or so, until well blended. Beat in the vanilla. Scrape bowl and beaters.

Beat in the eggs, one at a time, beating for a minute after each egg goes in. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the dry ingredients in 4 or 5 additions, mixing only until each addition is just incorporated.

Still on low speed, mix in the chocolate and the nut flour.

Chill the dough at least 2 hours (up to 3 days).

After dough chills, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.

Scoop the dough into mounds the size of golf balls, about 1 1/2 tablespoons to a mound. Space about 2 inches apart.

Bake one sheet at a time for 8 minutes, then use a metal spatula to gently flatten just a little. Rotate the baking sheet and bake for an additional 7 minutes. The cookies will be a fairly pale brown and will still be slightly soft in the middle...which is good. Remove from the oven and cool for 1 minute, then use a spatula to transfer the cookies to a cooling rack. Cool to room temperature.

Bake the next sheet and continue to shape and bake the cookies the same way, making sure that the baking sheet is cool before putting the dough onto it.

Makes about 50 cookies.

Apple Cake Chez Moi

When Dorie Greenspan's wonderful cookbook Baking; from my home to yours came on the scene it soon generated rave reviews and its own blog event, Tuesdays with Dorie. I've baked quite a few of the recipes and bookmarked a bunch more. Every one I made was well received and the recipes are beautifully written, often with ideas for changing things to make interesting variations.

Yesterday Sweetie and I were at a Petaluma bookstore and I saw a new Dorie Greenspan baking book called Baking Chez Moi. I was going to ask for it for Christmas, but I started browsing and was less than 50 pages into the recipes and had found four I wanted to bake as soon as possible. It's that kind of book for people who love to bake. Knowing that I needed a dessert for dinner that evening, I bought myself and early present and in the late afternoon baked the Custardy Apple Squares. They were a hit served at room temperature with a dollop of freshly whipped cream and the leftovers were excellent this morning served cold with a hot cup of coffee.

As usual I did make a few alterations, adding Meyer lemon zest and freshly grated nutmeg to the flour mixture. I know that Dorie recommends adding zest to the sugar and rubbing it in, but it was late afternoon and I had just finished making a big pot of beef stew and then talking to my Mom since the stew is her recipe and my kitchen smelled like home, so I wanted to share that with her, along with the fond laughter we always share.

In truth, I messed up a little with a number of pieces of the recipe. I forgot to melt the butter until it was needed, I didn't take the eggs out early enough to warm up, so had to place them in tepid water to warm faster to room temperature, I forgot to bring the milk out of the fridge, too, so warmed that up in the microwave to room temperature. Then I forgot to add the flour mixture to the egg mixture until after I had dumped in all the apple slices. Using my clean hands I removed the soaked apples, letting the batter run off, put them into another bowl, then whisked in the flour in the batter bowl. Back in went the apples, then I turned them enough to fully coat with the better batter. Now we were back on track! Usually I'm much more focused when baking. Guess I need to bake more!

The new Dorie Greenspan book will help there. The recipe below is very close to the one in the book, but I give my changes and the directions are my own. I'll leave out my mistakes, OK? Do consider buying Baking Chez Moi. I think it is another classic that I'll use for a long, long time. Not only are the recipes great, but there are plenty of tips and tricks. Want to learn how to form a dough log that is tight so there are no little holes in the middle of your slice and bake cookies. Dorie has photos showing just what to do by using a piece of parchment or waxed paper. Ever wonder what the difference is between Patisserie, Confiserie, Boulangerie and Viennoiserie or what those words mean? Check out page 209. Want the skinny on toasting, roasting and browning nuts? See page 320. If you read carefully you'll also find out what she means by 'French baked' and so much more.

This lovely bake with custard and thinly sliced apples goes together quickly (if you have your ingredients at room temperature of course) with the peeling and slicing the the apples the most time consuming part except for the baking. I used my food processor with the 4mm disc and that worked beautifully. The dessert is not too sweet and the lavish use of vanilla brings both fragrance and flavor to this simple dessert. The lemon zest and nutmeg are just hints of flavor and they enhance the apple flavor so nicely. Use apples that hold their shape while baking. I used Galas and they worked well. For a less mellow apple flavor consider Granny Smiths or Pippins. It's apple season here in the Northern Hemisphere, so use your favorites and make the Custardy Apple Squares your own. You can cut rectangles, too, as I did. Such a rebel.

Custardy Apple Squares
adapted from Dorie Greenspan's Baking Chez Moi

3 medium, juicy sweet apples like Gala, peeled
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 large eggs at room temperature
1/3 cup sugar
grated zest from 1/2 a Myer lemon or regular lemon
pinch sea salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
6 tablespoons whole milk, at room temperature
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled, plus more butter for the baking pan

confectioners sugar or whipped cream for topping (optional)

If you have forgotten like I did, bring the eggs, and mild to room temperature, melt the butter and let it cool.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Butter an 8-inch square baking pan. Set aside.

Slice the peeled apples in uniform thin slices. I halved the apples, used a melon ball tool to remove the core, then used a paring knife to remove the stem and blossom ends. Once all the apples were prepared, I used a food processor with a 4 mm disc to slice them, filling the large feed tube tightly with the apples (two halves plus a about a third of another half). Set aside.

Whisk the flour, baking powder, sea salt and nutmeg together in a small bowl or on a sheet of waxed paper.

Rub the lemon zest into the sugar with your fingers. I use a cup measure to hold the sugar, which gives enough room to rub in the zest.

Using the stand mixer and beater attachment, beat together the eggs and sugar for two minutes. The sugar will dissolve and the eggs will be pale and fluffy. Beat in the vanilla, then the milk and then the melted butter. Finally, beat in the flour mixture. Add the apple slices. With a flexible spatula or your clean hand, turn the apple slices gently so each is coated with the batter. Turn the mixture into the prepared pan and use the spatula to even the top as much as possible. The top will still be bumpy, but that is O.K.

Bake for 40-50 minutes (although I suggest checking sooner...this is one batter you don't want to overcook), or until golden brown and puffed. To check for doneness, you can insert a knife in the center...it will come out clean. Cool for at least 15 minutes on a cooling rack, then run a sharp knife around the sides. Cut squares or rectangles and serve with a cake server or pancake turner. Dust with confectioners sugar or give served slices a dollop of whipped cream. Serve and enjoy.

Playing Around With Apricots And Pecan

One of the many things I love about Dorie Greenspan's recipes is that she often includes a sidebar with suggestions for changes one can make to the recipe. My favorites are the ones she calls 'Playing Around' because it resembles what I often do with recipes, which is to substitute out ingredients to give a whole new flavor blend to the recipe.

I recently baked up one of her quick breads, the Date-Nut Loaf found in Baking: from my home to yours. In the Playing Around section she suggests that the dates can be exchanged for other dried fruits, including apricots. Sweetie loves apricots, plus the dates I thought I could use turned out to be too old, so I used a cup of diced dried apricots (which are actually moist and sticky, so they were also dusted with some flour before being added to the batter) instead of the dates. Because I like apricots and pecans, the nuts used were pecans instead of walnuts. I also left out the almond extract so that the apricot and pecan flavors would shine. They did! The crumb on this is moist and fairly light. Some quick breads have a dense texture, but not this one. This was one of four recipes I made for a meeting of our regional scholarship group. The others might show up here later: Bran Muffins with Walnuts and Raisins baked in mini-muffin pans, Cranberry Orange Yeast Braid, and Rosemary Focaccia Bread, which I've made before, but this time I baked it in a 9 x 13-inch pan instead of two cake pans. Still very yummy!

Did I mention that I also baked the Apricot Pecan batter in four mini-loaves? So cute and perfect for the meeting where I was serving them! The only difficult thing about these is remembering to set out the butter and cream cheese to allow them to come to room temperature and then to let the loaves cool before slicing. They smell so good that it is cruel to have to wait, but they need the time to be firm enough to slice. Give this a try with apricots and pecans, or go with the original combo of dates and walnuts. Both are sure to put a smile on your face.

Apricot Pecan Loaf
a variation of a recipe in Dorie Greenspan's marvelous Baking: From my home to yours

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 sticks (8 oz.) unsalted butter, at room temperature
3 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
3/4 cup (packed) light brown sugar
4 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup dried apricots, diced and dusted with a bit of flour
1 cup coarsely chopped pecans

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Butter a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan, dust the inside with flour and tap out the excess. Put the pan on an insulated baking sheet or two regular sheets stacked on on top of the other.

Whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.

Working with a stand mixer and paddle attachment, beat the butter and cream cheese on medium speed until very smooth, about 2 minutes.You can do the same thing using a hand mixer and a large bowl.

Add the sugar and beat until the mixture is light and fluffy, another 3 minutes or so. Add the eggs one at a time, beating for 1 minute after each addition, then beat in the vanilla. The batter may look curdled (mine did), but don't worry, it will come together after you add the flour mixture.

Reduce the mixer speed to low and mix in the flour mixture, mixing only until they are incorporated. Using a rubber spatula, fold in the apricots and pecans. (This step is important. Folding in the fruit and nuts makes for a lighter loaf than adding them with the mixer would.) Turn the batter into the pan.

Bake for 40 minutes. Cover the top of the loaf loosely with a foil tent and bake for another 40 minutes or so (total baking time about 1 hour, 20 minutes), until the top is honey brown, bumpy and cracked and a thin knife inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean. (Since I used the four small pans, it took about 40 minutes total.) Transfer the pan to a rack and cool about 10 minutes before turning the loaf out of the pan, then cool to room temperature right side up on the rack.

Last of the Strawberries in a Tart

I am ridiculously spoiled, and I admit it. Because we have a local farmer who plants different varieties of strawberries, including late season ones, and because we have had a looooong warm autumn, last Friday we were able to purchase fresh local strawberries. It was also the week when I cleaned out the freezer and found a disk of tart dough. However, with Thanksgiving weekend taking up my time, no tart was made until this week.

If you have tart dough ready and a packet of ground blanched almonds, too, this tart is absurdly easy. If not, make some tart dough and chill it, then get out the food processor, blanched almonds and a bit of sugar and make the almond meal. I used the stand mixer version of the almond cream since I already had ground almonds handy, but if you have made the almond meal in the food processor it would be sensible to also make the almond cream in the processor.

You can use any kind of fruit in this tart. The original recipe in Dorie Greenspan's book was for poached pears, a lovely fruit at this time of year. I can almost taste this made with fresh apricots in the summer, and blueberries would be good, too.

Since I used a smaller tart pan, I had about 1/4 cup left over almond cream, but Sweetie took care of that for me. He does loved his nuts.

Not only does this tart look good, but the combination of sweet fruit, rich almond cream, and buttery, flaky crust is divine. This would be a pretty dessert to serve with coffee during the holidays, so take a break from the bustle and shopping, invite a few close friends over for tart and coffee or tea, relax with friendship and good conversation. You'll be glad you did.

French Strawberry Tart

based on a pear tart in Dorie Greenspan, Baking: From my home to yours

3/4 stick (6 tablespoons) unsalted butter, at room temperature

2/3 cup sugar

3/4 cup ground blanched almonds

2 teaspoons all purpose flour

1 teaspoon cornstarch

1 large egg

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

1 9-inch tart shell made with Sweet Tart Dough, partially baked and cooled

(I used a 6-inch tart shell, unbaked, which worked fine)

1 pint fresh strawberries, washed, dried, hulled and cut in half

Confectioners sugar for dusting

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment or a silicone mat.

Put the butter and sugar in a food processor and process until the mixture is smooth and satiny. Add the ground almonds and process until well blended. Add the flour and the cornstarch and process to blend, then add the egg. Process for about 15 seconds more, or until the almond cream is homogeneous. Add the vanilla and almond extracts and process just to blend.

OR Put the butter and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer and beat with a whisk attachment until mixture is smooth and satiny. Add the ground almonds and whisk on medium speed until well blended. Add the flour and cornstarch and whisk briefly to blend, then add the egg. Whisk on medium until the almond cream is homogeneous. Add the vanilla and almond extracts and whisk just to blend.

Fill the tart shell with the almond cream, spreading it evenly with an offset spatula. Place the halved strawberries in a nice pattern on top of the cream, starting at the outer edge of the tart shell.

Bake the tart on the prepared baking sheet for 50 - 60 minutes, or until the almond cream puffs up around the fruit and browns. Transfer the tart to a rack to cool to just warm or to room temperature before removing the sides of the pan.

Right before serving, dust the tart with confectioners sugar.  Makes one tart.

Apple Cake with a French Flair

Apples are one of the joys of the fall. Sweet or tart, crisp and juicy, red, green, yellow and pink, apples might just be the perfect food. They can be eaten out of hand without any preparation except being washed or you can make any number of dishes with them.

As my contribution to the Thanksgiving feast at a family dinner I chose to make Marie Helene’s Apple Cake. To serve the large group I doubled the recipe and baked it in a well-buttered 9-inch springform pan instead of in the 8-inch one called for in the recipe.

This a very French cake…simple but elegant for a dinner party. This apple cake is moist and mellow and not too sweet. It’s rich with butter and hauntingly fragrant with rum, vanilla and apple scents as well as that of butter. When you cut a wedge to serve, you can see the tender filling and the layers of apple chunks or slices. It really doesn’t need anything added but some cinnamon ice cream was suggested by Dorie Greenspan. The recipe came from her book, Around My French Table, which I borrowed from the library. I may have to ask Santa to buy it for a Christmas present…it is another winner, just like Baking: from my home to yours, a true masterpiece by Dorie Greenspan.

Hope you and all those you love had a great Thanksgiving if you celebrate that feast…or a fine fall day if you don’t. Either way, you might want to try this lovely, barely sweet cake the next time you feel in the mood for an apple dessert. Sweetie usually isn’t thrilled with apple dishes but he loved this cake! I used Fuji, Pink Lady, Honey crisp, and Braeburn apples.

The original recipe is given first. It serves 8. To make the larger cake, use the amounts listed at the end of the recipe, the larger spring form pan, and bake longer….for 80-90 minutes. After 50 minutes of baking in the center of the oven, I put the larger cake on the next lower rack, laid a sheet of foil on top, very loosely, and continued to bake it, checking at 65 minutes, 75 minutes, 85 minutes and finally seeing that it was done at 90 minutes. Your oven may vary, so checking it often (inserting thin knife to see if it comes out clean)is a good idea. You don't want to over cook the cake. Bon Appétit!

Marie Helene’s Apple Cake
From Around My French Table, by Dorie Greenspan

¾ cup all-purpose flour
¾ teaspoon baking powder
Pinch of salt
4 large apples (different kinds if possible)
2 large eggs
¾ cup sugar
3 tablespoons dark rum
½ teaspoon vanilla
8 tablespoons (1 stick)melted & cooled

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place oven rack in center. Generously butter an 8-inch round spring form pan. Place a Silpat mat or piece of parchment paper on a baking sheet and put the spring form pan on it. Set aside.

Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt together in a bowl. Set aside.

Peel the apples. Cut them in half. Use a melon baller to remove the seed area and a sharp knife to remove the rest of the cores. Cut the apples into 1 -2 inch chunks, or use a food processor or knife to slice thinly. Set aside.

In a medium bowl whisk the eggs until foamy. Pour in the sugar 3-4 tablespoons at a time and whisk a minute or so to blend. Whisk in the rum and vanilla. Whisk in half the flour mixture and, when it is incorporated, half the melted butter. When that is incorporated, whisk in the rest of the flour mixture, followed by the rest of the butter, mixing gently after each addition so that you have a smooth, rather thick batter. Switch to a rubber or silicon spatula and fold in the apples, turning the fruit so that it’s coated with batter. Scrape the mixture into the prepared pan and move it around a bit with the spatula so that it’s evenish.

Bake for 50 – 60 minutes, or until the top of the cake is golden brown and a knife inserted deep into the center comes out clean. The cake may pull away from the sides of the pan. Transfer to a cooling rack and let rest for 5 minutes.

Carefully run a blunt knife around the edges of the cake and slowly and carefully remove the sides of the pan. Allow the cake to cool until it is just slightly warm or at room temperature. If you want to remove the cake from the bottom of the spring form pan, wait until the cake is almost cooled., then run a long spatula between the cake and the pan, cover the top of the cake with a piece of parchment or wax paper, and invert it onto a rack. Carefully remove the bottom of the pan and turn the cake over onto a serving dish.

Makes 8 servings. The cake can be served warm or at room temperature. Served with a spoonful of cinnamon ice cream is one suggestion, but it is lovely by itself.

The cake will keep for about 2 days at room temperature. Leave the cake on its plate and just press a piece of plastic wrap or wax paper against the cut surfaces.

Ingredients for the larger cake:
1.5 cups all-purpose flour
1.5 teaspoons baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
8 large apples
4 large eggs
1.5 cups sugar
¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons rum
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 sticks butter, melted & cooled

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place oven rack in center. Generously butter a 9-inch spring form pan. I lined the whole inside of the pan with heavy duty foil, snipping off any foil that came over the top of the pan, then I used the back of a spoon to smooth the foil as much as possible before generously buttering all of the foil. Place a Silpat mat or piece of parchment paper on a baking sheet and put the spring form pan on it. Set aside.

Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt together in a bowl. Set aside.

Peel the apples. Cut them in half. Use a melon baller to remove the seed area and a sharp knife to remove the rest of the cores. Cut the apples into 1 -2 inch chunks, or use a food processor or knife to slice thinly. Set aside.

In a large bowl whisk the eggs until foamy. Pour in the sugar 3-4 tablespoons at a time and whisk a minute or so to blend. Whisk in the rum and vanilla. Whisk in half the flour mixture and, when it is incorporated, half the melted butter. When that is incorporated, whisk in the rest of the flour mixture, followed by the rest of the butter, mixing gently after each addition so that you have a smooth, rather thick batter. Switch to a rubber or silicon spatula and fold in the apples, turning the fruit so that it’s coated with batter. Scrape the mixture into the prepared pan and move it around a bit with the spatula so that it’s evenish.

Bake for 80 - 90 minutes, or until the top of the cake is golden brown and a knife inserted deep into the center comes out clean (Check starting at about 70 - 75 minutes and keep checking for doneness). The cake may pull away from the sides of the pan. Transfer to a cooling rack and let rest for 5 minutes.

Carefully run a blunt knife around the edges of the cake and slowly and carefully remove the sides of the pan. Allow the cake to cool until it is just slightly warm or at room temperature. If you want to remove the cake from the bottom of the spring form pan, wait until the cake is almost cooled., then run a long spatula between the cake and the pan, cover the top of the cake with a piece of parchment or wax paper, and invert it onto a rack. Carefully remove the bottom of the pan and turn the cake over onto a serving dish.

Double recipe serves about 14. The cake can be served warm or at room temperature. Served with a spoonful of cinnamon ice cream is one suggestion, but it is lovely by itself.

The cake will keep for about 2 days at room temperature. Leave the cake on its plate and just press a piece of plastic wrap or wax paper against the cut surfaces.

Warm Raspberries

Being in the midst of berry season is a great place to be. Prices at the stores are reasonable, the blackberries in the lower field and by the apple tree are prolific this year due to all the spring rains, and Costco recently had 6 half pints of beautiful ripe red raspberries for a very low amount of dough so I have had more than enough raspberries to have fun with than ever!

I enjoy most berries both fresh and cooked but I have preferences, too. Strawberries taste best to me when they are fresh and untouched, although I enjoy them chilled, too. Blackberries are great either cooked or uncooked, especially combined with other fruits. Blueberries seem to expand their flavor when warmed…think blueberry muffin and you’ll know what I mean. And then there are warm raspberries, Mmmmmm!

Raspberries are most enjoyable (to my way of thinking) cooked. The heat releases that wonderful fragrance and intensifies their sweet, unforgettable flavor.

To celebrate my windfall of raspberries I got my warm raspberry fix. Just after July 4th weekend I baked some in a delightful fresh coffee cake with a crunchy streusel topping. The unbeatable Dorie Greenspan’s Baking: from my home to yours has a great recipe for Blueberry Crumb Cake and the same recipe can be played with using…tada!...raspberries…and fresh peach chunks for that Melba flavor combo.

I used orange zest to rub with the sugar and put some of the crumb topping inside the cake as well as on top, but otherwise it is as written in the book. If you haven't bought this wonderful book, or gotten it out of the library, this might be the time.

What you get is a rich buttermilk cake, lightly touched with orange. The raspberries and ripe and juicy peeled peach chunks are folded into the cake batter so every bite has some fruit and some of the nutty, crunchy sweet topping.

Served warm from the oven, this cake fulfils every warm raspberry desire…for now.

Sweets for the Sweet - French Yogurt Cake with Lemon

If I lived in Paris I would undoubtedly purchase my fine sweets and pastries at a patisserie, but I would apparently feel that it is OK to bake a simple yogurt cake for my family...like this one, a variation of the French Yogurt Cake in Dorie Greenspan's Baking, from my home to yours cookbook.

I chose this sweet to send as a surprise to Natasha and her heart's love, both fans of a slice of something sweet with their afternoon coffee. I made it in a mini loaf pan (see Peabody, I'm a convert...yay mini pans!) and knew that it was firm and moist enough to withstand a few days journey via snail mail to Natasha. She and her hubby are both sweet people, so this was a true sweet for the sweet.

I also made some fairy cakes using a Nordic ware tart pan and they sure looked cute once they were baked. I had a fairy cake with my Earl Gray tea and it was wonderful!

This cake goes together quickly if you have yogurt, a lemon and some almonds and the usual baker's supplies of flour and sugar. I had almond meal on hand but you can make your own with blanched almonds, ground in the food processor. Use a tablespoon of the sugar from the recipe and add it as you grind the nuts to keep them from becoming a paste.

These cakes are mildly sweet, fragrant with lemon, slightly chewy from the almonds, and perfect with a cup of tea or coffee. You can take the juice from the lemon and mix it with confectioners sugar to make a glaze for the top of the cake if you like, but I liked it like this:

French Yogurt Cake with Lemon
from Dorie Greenspan's Baking: from my home to yours

1 cup all-purpose flour
½ cup ground almonds
2 teaspoons baking powder
pinch of salt
1 cup sugar
Grated zest of 1 lemon
½ cup plain yogurt
3 large eggs
¼ cup pure vanilla extract
½ cup flavorless oil, such as canola or safflower

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and put the oven rack in the center of the oven.

Butter 4 mini loaf pans and place on a baking sheet. (I used a tart pan and 1 mini loaf pan.)
Whisk together the flour, ground almonds, baking powder and salt.

Put the sugar and zest in a medium bowl. With your fingertips rub the zest into the sugar until the sugar is moist and aromatic. Add the yogurt, eggs and vanilla and whisk vigorously until the mixture is very well blended. Still whisking, add the dry ingredients, then switch to a large rubber spatula and fold in the oil. You’ll have a thick, smooth batter with a slight sheen. Scrape the batter into the prepared pans and smooth the top of loaf pans. The mini tart pans will self-level.

Bake the tart pans for about 20 minutes and the mini loaf pans for 30-40 minutes, or until the cake begins to come away from the sides of the pans. The cakes should be golden brown and a thin knife, inserted into the center of the mini loaf will come out clean. Transfer the pan to a rack and cool for 5 minutes, then run a blunt knife between the cakes and the sides of the pans.

Unmold all cakes, cool to room temperature right side up on the rack.

You can also bake one 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 inch loaf pan cake.

Mocha Cookies with Nibs

A while back I made the Espresso-Chocolate Shortbread cookies found in Dorie Greenspan's wonderful baking book called Baking: from my home to yours. They were delicious but I wanted to make them with some Scharferberger chocolate (called Nibby on the package) that has little cocoa nibs in it to see if that added some extra texture and flavor.

Finally got around to baking the recipe that way and it was good, although not as nibby as I had expected. I added some cocoa to the dough and that part was great...made it more mocha than espresso.

The great thing about this recipe is that you put the dough into a gallon zip close bag and flatten it out, then chill it. Once you cut the bag away from the chilled dough, it is a snap to cut the dough into squares (well if you can actually cut squares it is a snap...mine varied from squares to strangely shaped rectangles) and bake 'em up for a great cookie to enjoy with tea or coffee or ice cream...or by themselves. I shipped some off to friends and my daughter to share the treats. Sweetie is trying to "be good" so we didn't want too much temptation around, plus I enjoy sharing goodies.

Make sure you allow time to chill the dough when you make these. Beyond that they are easy and very tasty, although not very sweet (which is sometimes just right). These are also great if you want to make the dough a day or two in advance of the day you bake them. I bet the dough would freeze unbaked, too, but haven't tried that.

Nibby Espresso-Chocolate Shortbread (Mocha) Cookies
a variation on a recipe in Dorie Greenspan's Baking: from my home to yours

1 tablespoon instant espresso powder
1 tablespoon boiling water
2 sticks (8 oz.) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2/3 cup confectioners’ sugar
¼ cup high quality unsweetened cocoa powder
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
4 oz. bittersweet chocolate with nibs, finely chopped, or ¾ cup store-bought mini chocolate chips

Dissolve the espresso in the boiling water, and set aside to cool to tepid.

Sift the confectioners’ sugar and cocoa together in a small bowl.

Working with a stand mixer, preferably fitted with a paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the butter and confectioners’ sugar-cocoa mixture together on medium speed for about 3 minutes, until the mixture is very smooth. Beat in the vanilla and espresso, then reduce the mixer speed to low and add the flour, mixing only until it disappears into the dough.

Don’t work the dough much once the flour is incorporated. Fold in the chopped nibby chocolate with a sturdy rubber or silicone spatula.

Using the spatula, transfer the dough to a gallon-size zipper-lock plastic bag. The dough will be soft and sticky. Put the bag on a flat surface, leaving the top open, and roll the dough into a roughly 9 x 10 1/2 inch rectangle that is about ¼ inch thick. Turn the bag occasionally as you roll and lift the plastic from the dough. When the dough has been rolled to the correct size (about the size of the bag! ) and thickness, seal the bag, pressing out extra air. Refrigerate the dough for at least 2 hours, or for up to 2 days.

Position the racks to divide the oven into thirds. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment or with silicone mats.

Put the plastic bag with the chilled dough inside on a cutting board. Slit the bag open. Turn the firm dough out onto the board & discard the bag. Using a ruler as a guide and a sharp knife, cut the dough into 1 ½ inch squares. Transfer the squares to the baking sheets and bake for 18 to 20 minutes, rotating the sheets from top to bottom and front to back at the midway point. When baked, transfer the cookies to a rack.

Cool to room temperature before serving. Makes 32 cookies

ButterIrish Pudding?

It's come to this. The only things that are comfortable to eat have to be the consistency of pudding. As the happy owner of Dorie Greenspan's fabulous cookbook, Baking: from my home to yours, I have the means to make that an OK thing. Really, who would have thunk that dental work would give me the excuse needed to make the rich and ravishing Butterscotch Pudding?

The two keys to this recipe are diligent stirring and having a food processor. Check and check. It also helps to have the ingredients. A quick check of the pantry showed that I did have everything, but I forgot to check liquor cabinet (which is actually just a shelf in the corner of the living room amongst the many, many military books that Sweetie has collected). Turns out that the Scotch to make this butterscotch had been used up on the last grilled salmon he made.

It also turns out that Irish whiskey makes a great flavoring for this pudding. Somehow ButterIrish Pudding doesn't have the same ring. It does have a wonderful smoky flavor which reminded me pleasantly of the peat smoke in Cousin M's stove.

Allow enough time to make this gentle dessert and for it to cool for at least 4 hours in the fridge to reach a lovely, silken, mouth filling perfection. If you must gild the lily, a dollop of whipped cream and/or some candied nuts work well. Since I'm still at the soft food stage, I stuck with unadorned pudding. My camera skills also seem to be impaired...darn those drugs...but it was yummy pudding even if pics don't quite reflect that. A little thinner than I had hoped, but I added an extra egg yolk by mistake (can I blame that on the drugs, too?), so not too surprising.

Real Butterscotch Pudding Recipe

Taken from Dorie Greenspan's book Baking: From My Home To Yours (page 386)
Dorie says, "Here's the real deal--butterscotch pudding made with real butter and real Scotch whisky. It is, as all good puddings must be, smooth, creamy and comforting, but it's also got a little kick, making it anything but a nursery sweet."

• 1/2 cup (packed) light brown sugar
• 3 Tablespoons water
• 1 3/4 cups whole milk
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3 Tablespoons sugar
• 3 large egg yolks
• 3 Tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces, at room temperature
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 2 Tablespoons Scotch whiskey (preferably a strong single malt)

Have six ramekins or pudding cups, each holding 4 to 6 ounces 1/2 to 3/4 cup), at hand.

Put the brown sugar and water in a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan, put the pan over medium heat and bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Stirring and lowering the heat if necessary, boil for 2 minutes. Add 1 and a 1/2 cups of the milk and the cream and bring to a boil--don't worry if, as it's heating, the mixture curdles.

While the milk is heating, put the cornstarch and the salt in a food processor and whir to blend. Turn them out onto a piece of wax paper, put the sugar and egg yolks in the processor and blend for 1 minute. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, add the remaining 1/4 cup of milk and pulse just to mix, then add the dry ingredients and pulse a few times to blend.

With the machine running, very slowly pour in the hot liquid, process for a few seconds, then pour everything back into the saucepan. Whisk without stopping over medium heat--making sure to get into the edges of the pan--until the pudding thickens and a couple of bubbles burble up to the surface and pop (about 2 minutes). You don't want the pudding to boil, but you do want it to thicken, so lower the heat, if necessary.

Scrape the pudding back into the processor (if there's a scorched spot, avoid it as you scrape) and pulse a couple of times. Add the butter, vanilla and scotch and pulse until everything is evenly blended.

Pour the pudding into the ramekins. If you don't want a skin to form, place a piece of plastic wrap against the surface of each pudding to create an airtight seal. Refrigerate the pudding for at least 4 hours.

Makes 6 servings.

Some Kinda Wonderful

When Diana Salier contacted me to ask if I’d like to try some POM Wonderful pomegranate juice and blog about the results, it was easy to say ‘Yes’.

In general I avoid commercialization on my blog, mostly because I like to be free to do what I want to do. The reason it was easy to say ‘Yes’ was because I’ve already used the product and found it to be a delicious juice, 100% pomegranate juice according to the label.

Having some samples to play with encouraged me to think a bit outside of the box. It has many health benefits, but the recipe that came to mind first was not a bit healthy.

In her fabulous book Baking, from My Home to Yours, Dorie Greenspan has a recipe for a lemon cream that sounds dreamy. She makes an orange and a lime variation. I wondered if I could make a pomegranate and lemon version and how that would work.

Since I rarely make tarts, the first hurdle was making the tart dough and baking it as a crust in a tart pan. I know there are some for whom this is as easy as falling out of bed.

For me it was somewhat nerve wracking. I wasn’t sure that I processed the dough mixture enough (or too much) in the food processor and then I didn’t have a 9 inch tart pan, so I used a smaller one and a very small one, but was unsure if the volume was correct for that much dough.

When I was baking the frozen crusts, I thought the filling would cook faster, so when they needed to come out of the oven and have the foil removed, I was madly stirring filling with a whisk. Fortunately Sweetie was happy to take the crusts from the oven and then I used one had to stir and the other to remove foil!

As it turned out, the crusts are fine. Next time I might use a little less dough in the pans for a thinner crust, but these are OK. Next time I would increase the gelatin because the filling was a bit too goopey, even after chilling. The filling also seemed to be a dull color, so I added some food color. Not sure if that was a good thing, either, but I do like the combination of the spiced pears poached in more POM Wonderful pomegranate juice with the sweet tart creamy, buttery filling. You can taste the delicious flavor of pomegranate juice and the zing tartness of lemon juice.

Pomegranate Lemon Tart with or without Spiced Poached Pears
a variation of Creamy Orange Tart in Baking from My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan

Tart Crust
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup confectioners sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
1 stick plus 1 tablespoon (9 tablespoons) very cold or frozen butter
cut into small pieces
1 large egg yolk

Put the flour, confectioners sugar, and salt into the work bowl of a food processor with the steel blade. Pulse a couple of times to combine. Scatter the pieces of butter over the dry ingredients and pulse until the butter is cut in. Stir the yolk briefly, then add to the ingredients in the food processor a little at a time, pulsing after each addition. Once the egg is processed, pulse the mixture with longer pluses, about 10 seconds each, until the mixture forms clumps. Turn the clumped dough out onto a work surface and very lightly knead the dough to incorporate any dry ingredients missed by the pulsing.

Butter a 9 inch tart pan. Add the dough and press the dough evenly over the bottom and up the sides. Save one little piece for patching once baked. Work gently to keep the crumbly texture.

Freeze the crust a minimum of 30 minutes or longer. While crust is freezing, you can make the filling.

Pomegranate Lemon Filling
1 cup sugar
Grated zest of one lemon
4 large eggs
¼ cup lemon juice
½ cup POM Wonderful 100% pomegranate juice
2 sticks plus five tablespoons (10 ½ oz) butter at room temperature, cut into tablespoon size pieces
1 tablespoon cold water
1 ¼ teaspoons unflavored gelatin

Bring a few inches of water to a simmer in a saucepan.

In a large heatproof bowl, rub together the sugar and the lemon zest. Whisk in the eggs, then whisk in the lemon juice and pomegranate juice.

Place the bowl over the pan of simmering water and stir with the whisk as soon as the mixture feels tepid to the touch. Continue whisking until the mixture reaches 180 degrees F (an instant read thermometer is best way to check). Whisk constantly. The mixture will start out foamy and eventually, just before reaching 180 degrees F, will start to thicken and the whisk will leave tracks.

As soon as the mixture reaches 180 degrees F., remove from the heat and pour mixture through a strainer into a blender (best) or food processor. Discard the zest that collects in the strainer.

Let the cream stand, stirring occasionally, until it cools to 140 degrees F, about 10 minutes.

Turn the blender on high or start the processor. Add the butter about 5 pieces at a time. Scrape down the sides as needed. Once the butter is incorporated, keep the machine going for about another 3 minutes.

While the machine is processing for the last 3 minutes, mix the cold water and gelatin in a small heatproof cup. Microwave for 15 seconds to dissolve the gelatin. Set aside.

Pour the mixed creamy mixture from the blender or food processor into a bowl. Whisk in the gelatin. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap, pressing the wrap directly onto the pomegranate lemon filling.

Chill for at least 4 hours or overnight.

While the filling is chilling, bake the crust, as long as it has chilled for at least 30 minutes in the freezer. (This would work far better than the way I did it, trying to bake the crust and cook the filling at the same time!).

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Center a rack in the oven.

Butter the shiny side of a piece of aluminum foil and fit the foil, buttered side down, tightly against the crust. Put the tart pan on a baking sheet and bake the crust for 25 minutes. Carefully remove the foil. If the crust has puffed, press it down gently with the back of a spoon. Return to the oven and bake for another 8 minutes or so or until it is firm and golden brown. If there are any cracks in the baked crust, use the save piece of dough to patch them, then bake another two minutes.

Let the crust cool completely before filling.

Take the chilled filling from the fridge and whisk vigorously to loosen.

Spoon the filling into the cooled crust and spread evenly. Serve now or refrigerate until serving time. Serve within four hours for best crust results.

Optional addition - pear topping :

While cream is chilling, poach a pear or two that has been peeled, cored and sliced

in the following poaching liquid:

1 cup POM Wonderful pomegranate juice
1 tablespoon lemon zest
¼ teaspoon freshly grated or ground nutmeg
¼ teaspoon ground cardamom

Poach the pear slices for 5 – 10 minutes until pink and softened. Remove from poaching liquid with slotted spoon or skimmer and let cool completely.

Place a layer of pear slices on the crust and cover with the pomegranate lemon filling or spread on the filling, then arrange pear slices attractively.

If pears are on top of tart, you can glaze them with:

1/3 cup apple or quince jelly mixed with ½ teaspoon water

Bring to a boil, then use a pastry brush to glaze the pear slices and pomegranate lemon filling.

Chill to set the jelly before serving.

Stars and Strawberries

Last time I was at the local store that carries a gazillion variations of Bundt cake pans, I saw one with a pattern that has lots of stars. Couldn't resist. See the stars?

This morning the scholarship group met about a grant application, so I had the perfect reason to bake a bundt cake in my new pan. After lots of fun looking in this cookbook and that, I came back to one of the first that caught my eye...the Brown Sugar Bundt Cake in Dorie Greenspan's perfect book called Baking: from my home to yours. It has lots of brown sugar which makes the crust shiny and delicious with a little crunch. The cake is moist and dense but delicate at the same time. Buttermilk gives it tang and the buttah...ah the buttah..there is plenty of buttah.

A local farmer has been selling the most wonderful ripe, sweet and juicy strawberries. Sweetie bought three pint baskets on Wednesday, ate one for lunch with cheese, served us both the best part of another for Thursday breakfast, but left me one to bake with. Strawberries sounded like the perfect thing to put with this cake...and it was delicious, but the brown sugar overpowered the strawberries (perhaps I should have used light brown sugar??) so next time I'll use plums or a really assertive apple. I added the flour mixture to help keep them from sinking to the bottom of the pan and that's why I saved some for near the top of the pan, too. It mostly worked. There were berries throughout, although there was a band from the top that sank a lot, so maybe that wasn't the way to go. The lemon was a great counterpoint to the sweetness of the berries and the brown sugar. Next time I'll go with zest of a full lemon...especially with plums.

This cake barely had time to cool, much less sit overnight as Dorie suggests. It was a big hit with the P.E.O. women, and Sweetie was taken with it, too.

Brown Sugar Cake with Strawberries
A variation of Dorie Greenspan’s Brown Sugar Bundt Cake in Baking: from my home to yours

2 ¾ cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
2 sticks (8 0z.) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 cups (packed) dark brown sugar
3 large eggs, at room temperature
1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 ½ cups fresh, ripe strawberries, dice in ¼ inch dice
Zest of one half a lemon
1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature

Glaze;
Juice of one lemon
Confectioners sugar (about 1 cup)

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a 9 – 10 inch (12 cup) Bundt or tube pan and dust the inside with flour & tap out the excess. Baker’s Joy nonstick spray works the best with Nordicware Bundt pans and lets you not do the flour part. If you have a silicone Bundt pan, don’t butter or flour it. Be sure to put the pan right on the oven rack…no baking pan underneath.

Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

In a large mixing bowl (preferably with a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment), beat the butter and sugar together at medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating for 1 minute after each addition. Beat in the vanilla. Scrape the beater and bowl well.

Put the strawberries and lemon zest and 1/3 cup of the flour mixture in a small bowl and stir gently to combine. Set aside.

Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the flour mixture to the butter/sugar/egg mixture alternately with the buttermilk, starting and ending with the flour mixture. Add the flour in three additions and the buttermilk in two. Mix only until the ingredients are incorporated, scraping the bowl and beater as needed. With a rubber spatula gently stir in half the berry mixture. Scrape about 2/3 of the batter into the pan, then spread the rest of the berry mixture over the batter in the pan and top with the remaining batter. Smooth the top with the spatula.

Bake in the preheated oven for 60 – 65 minutes, covering the top loosely with a foil tent if it looks like its browning too fast. Test for doneness by inserting a thin knife deep into the center of the cake..if it comes out clean it is done.

Transfer the cake to a rack and cool for 10 minutes before unmolding, then cool to room temperature on the rack

When cool, transfer to a serving plate. Stir together the lemon juice and enough confectioners sugar to make a nice glaze…not too thick. Drizzle the glaze over the cake, allowing it to pool in the Bundt indentations. Makes 12 servings.

Cookies Revealed

Sorry to be so secretive, but I did want to surprise Natasha and XHP yesterday and Natasha reads this blog all the time.

The cookies that were a thank you for the birthday gift from Natasha and XHP were not covered with caramel, nor with ganache, nor with buttercream, but they have plenty of butter in them, some kick from espresso and (hand chopped!) bittersweet Scharfenberger chocolate. And since they are a Dorie Greenspan recipe, they came out perfectly, of course. People who don't bake a lot really can't appreciate how liberating it is to know that ANY recipe that has Dorie Greenspan's name on it will be a joy to bake and will be perfect (well, as perfect as the skills of the baker allow :) So, a big THANK YOU to the two lovely people who gave me the book!

Espresso-Chocolate Shortbread Cookies are crisp and still delicate, buttery, sophisticated and perfect with a cup of coffee. They were a hit on Wednesday and would be a hit any time of day or night...imagine them with fruit and coffee at breakfast, with milk in the afternoon, with cocoa at night. I may have to make more.

Espresso-Chocolate Shortbread Cookies

by Dorie Greenspan from Baking: from my home to yours

1 tablespoon instant espresso powder

1 tablespoon boiling water

2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature (I used one stick salted and on stick unsalted because that's what I had on hand)

2/3 cup confectioners' sugar

1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped, or 3/4 cup mini chocolate chips

Mix the boiling water and the espresso to dissolve the espresso, then set aside to cool to tepid.

Beat the butter and confectioners' sugar together on medium speed using a stand mixer, for about 3 minutes, until mixture is very smooth. Don't use the whisk attachment, use the paddle or beaters.

Beat in the vanilla and espresso, then reduce the mixer speed to low and add the flour and chocolate all at once mixing only until the flour is incorporated. Use a rubber spatula to gently mix in any flour on the sides, but mix as little as possible to keep dough tender.

Using a spatula, transfer the soft, sticky dough to a gallon-size zipper-lock plastic bag. (Elle's note: This is the part that was new to me and a bit scary, but it worked like a charm)

Put the bag on a flat surface, leaving the top open, and roll the dough into a 9 x 10 1/2 inch rectangle that's 1/4 inch thick. As you roll, turn the bag occasionally and lift the plastic from the dough (if you can) so it doesn't cause creases. When you get the right size and thickness (I was more concerned about the thickness), seal the bag, pressing out as much air as possible, and refrigerate the dough for at least 2 hours, or for up to 2 days.

Position the racks to divide the oven into thirds and preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment or silicone mats.

Put the plastic bag on a cutting board and slit it open. Turn the firm dough out onto the board (discard the bag) and, using a ruler as a guide and a sharp knife, cut the dough into 1 1/2 inch squares. Transfer the squares to the baking sheets and carefully prick each one twice with a fork. (Elle's note: Dorie calls for pushing the tines through the cookies until they hit the sheet...I tried that on the first one and the cookie broke in half. The rest of the sheet got perfunctory pricks, the following sheets none, but they all seemed to come out fine.) Bake for 18 - 20 minutes, rotating the sheets at the halfway point. The shortbreads will not get golden - they stay pretty pale. Transfer the cookies to a rack to cool.

Makes 32