My Best Lemon Tart

Since baking is my hobby, I've gotten pretty good at making tarts, but the tart I baked for Sweetie's birthday last week is probably the best one ever. Although the tart shell was good and baked long enough that there was plenty of flavor (make sure to bake tart casings until fully golden brown), the outstanding thing about this tart was the filling.

For many years I've found excellent recipes in Dorie Greenspan's cookbook Baking, From My Home To Yours. I've baked the Perfect Party Cake and the  Swedish Visiting Cake,  French Yogurt Cake,  All -in-one Holiday Bundt Cake, and many more recipes.

One recipe from the book has been calling to me for a while, but I never got around to making it...until now. The Most Extraordinary French Lemon Cream Tart really is extraordinary. She learned the technique for making this intensely lemon flavored silky cream filling from Pierre Herme' and I hope you try it, too. If you want it to be most like mine, combine Meyer lemons and the regular lemons from the market so that you get the almost floral notes of the Meyers and the zing of the regular lemons.

It starts out almost like lemon curd, with the sugar, eggs, lemon zest and lemon juice cooked over simmering water, but then you put the cooked mixture into a blender, let it cool a bit, then blend in chunks of butter (or margarine in my case) to make the most wonderful, tangy, smooth and seductive lemon filling. Adding the butter and blending it in emulsifies the butter, rather like making fresh mayonnaise. I baked the tart case the day before and made the lemon filling even earlier the day before (because the filling has to sit in the fridge a minimum of four hours), then put it all together before we went out to dinner on the 17th. Even though it is supposed to be best the day it is made, I found that the flavors became even more intense the next day. Sweetie ate the last piece on the third day and he liked it even better, so if you can resist eating it all in one sitting, know that it will make a fine tea time treat (or decadent breakfast!) if kept tightly covered in the fridge.

Use the best quality ingredients that you can for this tart. If you like you can use your favorite pie dough to make a blind-baked pie case to hold the filling, but it might not fill it. Of course you can add fruit (raspberries or strawberries would be delightful) to decorate the top or hide under the filling, or as a fruit sauce. You can finish it off with a dollop of whipped cream, too.

I followed the recipe as written except for two things. I used non-dairy plant based 'butter' and some margarine instead of butter, and I kept the zest in the filling instead of straining it out. Be sure to rub the sugar and zest together...it helps the oils stay in the filling when cooked and enhances the flavor.

The Most Extraordinary French Lemon Cream Tart 

By Dorie Greenspan in Baking, From My Home To Yours

1 cup sugar
Grated zest of 3 lemons
4 large eggs at room temperature
3/4 cup fresh lemon juice (from 4-5 large lemons or up to 9 smaller ones)
2 sticks plus 5 tablespoons (10 1/2 ounces) unsalted butter, cut into tablespoon-sized pieces, at room temperature (I used Miyokos plant-based 'butter' plus a few tablespoons margarine)
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.
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 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. 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. 

Keto Honey Garlic Salmon and Shrimp with Garlic and Cream

If you didn't like garlic, you would be in trouble this week at our house. Kate was here for Sweetie's birthday and she treated us two nights in a row to delicious dinners that she made herself. I helped prep the ingredients, including peeling and mincing four cloves of garlic for each dish. Good thing we all love garlic!

The first night we had salmon prepared with garlic and honey and browned butter. It should have been keto honey and butter, but it actually was real honey and plant-based 'butter' because of my allergy, but I'm going to give you the keto version. With it we had green beans and a green salad. The recipe is from Karina of Café Delights. She has some great tips on her post, so it's worth following this link to see them.

The second night she cooked a decadent shrimp dish with more garlic, bacon and 'butter', plus Parmesan (which Sweetie and Kate added to their servings) and the sauce was finished with Silk brand plant-based whipping cream, a new product to me, instead of real whipping cream. I'm sure that with the real deal that the sauce would be thicker and even more delicious, but I was quite happy with our meal, served on a bed of warm zoodles. Finished dish is shown at top of this post.  I'm also giving you the actual keto recipe below. This recipe is by Katerina at Diethood.

We also put together puzzles since the weather went from nice to cold and/or rainy and working on puzzles on the dining room table was fun and a nice contemplative activity too.

We were determined to get out and about for Sweetie's actual birthday (even though the weather wasn't warm or sunny), so we breakfasted at Redwood Cafe', our first inside dining in over a year, took a drive to Pt. Reyes area, stopping in Marshall for a beverage, and ended the drive by heading to Petaluma, passing the McEvoy Ranch where they make an amazing olive oil. For dessert we had a spectacular lemon creme tart, perhaps the best tart ever...recipe to come on this blog soon.

Hope you had a lovely St. Patrick's Day, too.

Browned Butter Honey Garlic Salmon
By Karina or Café Delights

3 main ingredients and only 15 minutes cooking time!

1/4 cup (4 tablespoons) butter
1.4 cup (4 tablespoons) honey (If doing keto, use keto approved honey)
2-4 cloves fresh garlic, minced
1-2 tablespoons fresh squeezed lemon juice, about juice of 1/2 lemon
4 wild-caught salmon fillets (about 1/2 lb or 250 g each), skin on
Lemon wedges to serve
Salt to taste

Arrange oven shelf about 8-inches away from heat element/broiler in your oven. Preheat your oven to broil.

Place butter in a cast iron or oven-proof skillet or pan. Cook over medium heat, stirring while foaming for about 3 minutes or until the foam settles. The butter begins to change color to golden brown and the fragrance will be nutty. Remove from heat to add the honey.

Add honey and let it dissolve into the butter. Return to heat and add the garlic and sauté for about 1 minute until fragrant. Do not let it burn. Add in the lemon juice. Stir well to combine all the elements together.

Add the salmon steaks to the butter mixture. Cook each fillet, skin side down, for 3-4 minutes or until golden, while basting the tops with the pan juices. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Add the lemon wedges around the salmon. Transfer the pan to your oven to broil for a further 5-6 minutes, or until the tops of the salmon are nicely charred.

To serve, drizzle with the reserved brown butter sauce from the pan.

Easy Garlic Shrimp with Bacon in a Creamy Parmesan Sauce
By Katerina of Diethood

4 slices thick cut bacon, diced (easier to dice if at least partially frozen)
3 tablespoons butter
1.5 pounds shrimp, peeled and deveined
4 cloves garlic, minced
salt and pepper, to taste
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup whipping cream
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
squeeze fresh lemon juice
chopped fresh parsley, for garnish (optional)
lemon wedges, for garnish (optional)

Set a large skillet over medium-high heat.

Sprinkle the chopped bacon into the hot skillet and cook for 2-3 minutes, or to a desired crispiness. Remove to paper towel to drain and set aside.

Add butter to the skillet and melt.

Stir in shrimp and garlic.

Season with salt and pepper and cook for 1-2 minutes per side, or until just cooked through and pink. Remove from skillet and set aside. Cover with foil to keep hot.

Add chicken broth to the skillet and cook for 30 seconds, stirring to scrape up browned bits.

Stir in heavy cream and bring to a simmer.

Whisk in Parmesan cheese and Italian seasoning; lower heat to a steady simmer and cook for 1-2 minutes or until creamy and thickened.

Return bacon and shrimp to the skillet and let simmer for a minute, or just until heated through.

Taste for seasonings and adjust accordingly.

Squeeze lemon juice over the shrimp. Stir and garnish with chopped parsley and lemon wedges.

If not doing keto, use fat free half and half or soy creamer and turkey bacon to lower fat levels.

Green Bread For March

Although green bread struck me at first as being as appetizing as green eggs and ham, since the green isn't from food coloring, but from matcha, or green tea powder, it turns out that it is delicious. The tea imparts a slightly earthy note but it isn't overpowering, plus it adds the color of spring, green. Our Kitchen of the Month, Cathy of Bread Experience gave us a delightful bread that you'll want to make yourself. I found a nice powdered green tea packet on Amazon, but you can probably also find it in Oriental markets.

These days as I move around my neck of the woods, green is everywhere. Near the Laguna the trees are just leafing out and the bright, almost acid green is easy to see against the dark water. The meadows are covered with bright green grass. We have the luck of having eight new lambs in the pasture, with six of them being born within days of each other. The lambs mostly nurse the first day or so, then they start to eat the grass just like mama. The flowers of spring are also here and staying longer than usual since the days have been rainy and the nights cool. Their green leaves are a more subdued green, but they add to the overall green glow.

I made a half recipe of the bread since both Sweetie and I are watching our calories and warm bread is a weakness. I did let the bread cool, then reheated it, but I should have sliced it cold. I also made some changes as I often do. I decided on almond extract instead of orange water, and golden raisins instead of candied orange peel, since we are right near St. Patrick's day and the Irish love golden raisins in their bread. Because there was almond extract and because I had a piece of almond paste in the fridge, I also changed the shape, putting a band of almond paste in the center, rolling it up jelly roll style, then cutting the roll with a bench scraper and twisting the two resulting roll halves around each other, then curling the whole into a half curve. It made a fairly strange looking loaf, but Sweetie didn't care. 

I think he ate three pieces! We both liked the flavors and plan on toasting the rest in the morning to see how it is toasted.

Please go to the sites of the other Babes to see how the bread was supposed to be made. Also, if you wish to make this Green Tea and Orange Loaf and to be a Bread Baking Buddy, send and email to Cathy with your baking experience, a URL, and a photo by March 29th and she will send you a Buddy badge and include you in the round-up. The properly made bread is made into four round boules so you can even share if you want to. The following recipe is the proper one.

Green Tea and Orange Loaf

Adapted from The Larousse Book of Bread by Eric Kayser

Below are the levain method and the hand made instructions. If you want other directions, including with a stand mixer, go to Cathy's site, Bread Experience. You'll also need a scale for this recipe.

Levain

50 grams all-purpose flour

50 grams water

25 grams sourdough starter (I used 100% hydration starter)

In the evening of the day before making the bread: Place the starter, flour and water in a small bowl. Mix with a wooden spoon until the flour is stirred in well.

Cover the bowl with a plate, or bees wrap, and let it rest overnight in a warm place.

Final Dough

500 grams all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting

250-300 grams water, divided 125 g, 125 g, 50 g (see directions)

10 grams salt + 15-20 grams water

25 grams orange flower water

30 grams olive oil

10 grams (about 2 tsp) matcha tea powder (1 teaspoon gave me 9 grams) 

150 grams candied orange peel, chopped or finely diced 

Pour 125 grams water, orange blossom water, and olive oil over the levain. Mix completely to break up the levain.

In a large bowl, add the flour and matcha tea powder. Whisk to thoroughly combine. Pour the levain/water mixture over the flour and mix to incorporate. Add the rest of the water, gradually, and as needed to fully hydrate the dough. Add the next 125 or less, work in, add more as needed. (I found that I needed less than the recipe called for.) 

Cover, and let the dough rest for 20-30 minutes, then sprinkle the salt over the top and dissolve it with 15-20 grams of warm water. Work into a dough.

Cover, let rest for 30 minutes, then fold in candied orange peel and knead the dough until peel becomes evenly distributed, and dough is smooth and elastic. Add more water if the dough starts to tear. Note: Cathy's dough was sticky after adding the candied orange peel. It was almost too dry up until that point. After the stretch and folds, it was fine. 

Shape into a ball, cover, proof for 2 hours. Stretch and fold the dough after 1st hour. Let rest for final hour. It should increase in volume by the end of the final proof.

Remove the dough to a lightly dusted work surface. Divide the dough into 4 equal pieces, about 260 grams each. Shape into balls. Cover with a dish towel and let rest for 15 minutes.

Roll the dough pieces between our hands to create tension, and form smooth and well-rounded boules.

Place the loaves, seam-side down, on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Cover with a damp cloth and let proof for 1 hour 15 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. with a baking stone on the bottom shelf, and place an overturned roasting pan on top.

Score the loaves in a crosshatch pattern (or the pattern of your choice).

Transfer the loaves on the parchment to the preheated oven. Remove the baking sheet. Place the roasting pan on top. Bake for 18 minutes. Don't burn them.

Remove from the oven and leave to cool on a wire rack.

Leftovers Can Be Better Than The Original

Spring weather always amuses me. Once day it's chilly, blustery, perhaps raining, and the next day the breeze is mild, the sun is shining and the sky is a dreamy blue...until late in the afternoon when the clouds roll in! It's like a toddler who can't make up it's mind if it should be sweet or throw a tantrum. Today we had sleet, sun, hail and rain. Kinda fun actually.

So what do we eat when the weather is like that? One night it's chicken grilled simply on the Weber and the next night when it's rainy and cold, it's leftover chicken baked into a comfort food pot pie.

It helps that I had ready made pie crust in the fridge, plenty of veggies in the crisper, freezer and pantry, and a can of chicken broth close at hand, plus lots of dried herbs. A quick boil of the red potatoes in broth, sauté of chopped onion, celery, carrot and garlic in some olive oil and you're half way done. 

The leftover chicken was cut into bite sized pieces, the herbs and seasonings added to the sautéed veggies, then some flour cooked with them and it was time to preheat the oven. Potatoes were tender, so they were caught by the colander while the broth was caught in a bowl beneath.  The broth added to the flour/veggie mixture and stirred vigorously became a delightful gravy. In went the cooked potatoes, the cut up chicken, and some peas that had been microwaved briefly by Sweetie. Mix it all together, top with a vented thin pie crust, tuck in the edges of the crust and into the oven (425 degrees F) it went for about 20 minutes until the crust was brown and the filling bubbly. 

I used my cast iron skillet for the sautéing, the gravy making and the container for the filling mixture, so it was the easiest thing to top the skillet with the crust and put it in the oven. You can also transfer the filling mixture to a pie plate or casserole and top it with the unbaked crust.

This made dinner for two nights and was soooo good! If you'd like to make it yourself, the recipe is HERE, although I did leave out the bell pepper and the milk and I used pie dough instead of puff pastry. You could make either one with leftover chicken and I know you will be delighted with the resulting meal.

2016 Still Blogging

Although 2016 was a watershed year politically, and even though there were dozens and dozens of great recipes, the main takeaway for me this year is the sort of journal I did on the blog of our trip to Europe in the fall. I have wanted to visit France for many, many years and it didn't disappoint. In addition, I had the pleasure of seeing our Irish relatives again and of sharing a bit of Ireland with our daughter. Turns out that she shares a slew of facial features with our cousin. I'd often thought her good looks were inherited from her father's side but clearly the Mangan genes are strong.

We hope to return to Ireland again to see more of that beautiful country and have more fun with Shayne and Barbara and our other relatives. Returning to France is another goal and we have Naomi to visit there and more goodies to eat.

In 2016 I'm still baking with the Cake Slice Bakers. There were a number of Cake Slice Baker challenges this year that I enjoyed. Even though I couldn't eat the finished product because of too much dairy, the top recipe was probably the Brownie Cheesecake, a rich decadent cheesecake filled with delicious, dark chocolate brownie bites. It was like making two desserts since the brownies are made from scratch, too, but well worth the effort. Even if you just make the brownies you'll be in dessert heaven. 

Another one you really want to make is the classic Queen Mother Cake, a dense, super-chocolate flourless European style cake, made even more decadent with Ganache (chocolate melted and mixed with cream) on top. 

If you have a yen for a cake with apples, try the Danish Apple Cake. Since it's made with self-rising flour, your prep time is devoted to preparing the apples. Beyond that it's a very quick to make cake with a delightful moist, not too sweet cake and the tang of apples. 

Perhaps my favorite for looking at was the Tie Dye Cake we baked in August. The swirls of color when you cut a slice are fun for a party and the cake is delicious.

Still baking with the Bread Baking Babes, too. There were a lot of bread recipes that I enjoyed making. Hard to choose! The most colorful was probably the Beet Bread, which I made into rolls. The fresh beets give the exterior a magenta color and the inside is a salmon color. There isn't a huge beet flavor, but these are eye catching!

If you love onions, you can't miss with caramelized onions and those are the star in Caramelized Onion Bread. Part of the making of this bread includes baking it to a dark brown color. Both contribute to the intense and delightful flavor. 

In August, for fun, we made Beignets, those powdered-sugar coated puff balls of New Orleans delight. Since I can't eat the ones made by others due to the dairy, I really enjoyed making these...and eating them. Cinnamon and sugar make a nice coating, too.

Some years the Babes do almost all breads from other countries, but not so much in 2016. My favorite two from this year are the Georgian Bread Boats from Russia, also known as Acharuli Khachapuri, a cheesed filled bread often topped with an egg and eaten hot, 

and the Auberge Walnut Bread from Italy, an artisan loaf which boasts walnuts in every bite. 

Probably the bread that looked the most like it should be on a magazine cover was the Spring Focaccia. You can really have fun decorating this bread with edible garnishes to welcome spring.

Losing my Mom in 2014 has also turned my attention even more to family recipes. One of those is the Classic Oatmeal Meat Loaf she used to make (dolled up a bit by me with mustard and sautéed mushrooms). It might seem strange to put oatmeal in a meat loaf, but it adds bulk and moisture and helps the loaf hold together when you slice it. 

Mom's recipe for Clear Lemon Sauce is also one I used to go with the Gingerbread the Cake Slice Bakers made in December. I love gingerbread but I love this lemon sauce even more and it can be used with other desserts, too. 

Of course Toll House Cookie are the chocolate chip cookie of my childhood, and still my favorite. These French ones have some almond flour and are pretty good cookies, too. 

Probably right behind chocolate chip cookies comes Lemon Bars with their shortbread crust and zingy lemon flavor. I recently made some using this recipe and they were as delicious as I remember!

NoHandle continues to guest blog some really delicious recipes, including Traditional Curry with all the garnishes. 

There are also some memorable recipes that don't really fit a category. Christmas Crack isn't what you might think. It's actually a snack mix that my daughter likes to bring to parties that uses popcorn, pretzels, M&Ms, and white candy coating to create a seasonal treat that is highly addictive (hence the Crack title). 

Another fun recipe is the Raspberry Baby, a breakfast treat that puffs up in the oven, made even better with fresh raspberries. 

In the same vein, the Crisped Fingerlings are another addictive recipe, this time savory. The cooked potatoes are partially mashed in clumps on a baking sheet, doused with olive oil, then roasted until crisped and delicious.

Pickled Beans are another recipe you should try. I used home grown beans, but you can purchase them to pickle. It's fun.

Last, but not least, is a recipe that I created that is dairy free, gluten free and vegan, but still a totally delicious Pumpkin Cookie.

There are dozens and dozens of other great recipes, so feel free to wander around the blog and find your favorites.

Casserole With A Nod To Provence

Although it has been a few years (almost five!) since Sweetie and I along with our wonderful daughter K visited my daughter of the heart Naomi in Provence, I still have such fond memories of our time with her exploring the hill villages, the market at Lourmarin, and the beauty of Aix with all of it's fountains. Recently she helped me celebrate my birthday by sending me a box of goodies from Provence, including wild oregano (marjolaine sauvage) that she picked herself in Bonnieux. There were delightful soaps and snacks like almonds and dairy-free cookies, but one of the little jars contained a pepper puree with a bit of oil that I tried and found out that it was quite spicy hot. I wanted to make a meal that included that pepper condiment and the oregano, so I turned to a favorite soup of mine as a starting place and created a casserole based on it. It was delicious! I just wish that Naomi was here to have some with me. Thank you Naomi for all the goodies!!

The base of this dish is a sauté of carrots, celery and onion, plus, of course, garlic, cooked in olive oil. Then there are white beans. You can cook your own Navy beans or similar white beans, or you can use canned ones as I did. I rinsed mine so that all the flavors of the next additions would soak into the beans. Next I added some of the wild oregano, a tiny bit of the pepper condiment, three whole cloves, two bay leaves, salt and pepper and some dried thyme. To that mixture I added some diced tomatoes in their juice and two mildly spicy Italian sausages  that had been sliced. Last of all I stirred in a quarter of a green cabbage that had been sliced then chopped. All of this was cooked together in my favorite cast iron skilled until it bubbled, then I transferred it into a casserole dish and refrigerated it, covered, for a couple of days. In my experience, that allows the onion and garlic to meld with the other ingredients in a wonderful way. On the evening it was served, I let the casserole come to room temperature, topped it with a mixture of olive oil and dry bread crumbs, then baked it for 20 minutes until the topping was browned and the casserole contents were bubbly.

It was a great success. All of the flavors and textures went well together and the pepper puree was just spicy enough to overcome the blandness of the beans. Sweetie had two good sized servings he liked it so much. I recommend this dish, even if you use regular oregano and a hot sauce...perhaps Naomi's favorite Siracha sauce. If you leave out the sausages it is vegan, too. Bon Appetit.

White Bean, Cabbage and Sausage Casserole
Serves 4-6

Casserole Mixture
2-3 mild sausages (about 1/2 lb.) - I used turkey mild Italian
Sausage cooking oil or 2 tablespoons olive oil
1-2 stalks celery, sliced thinly
2 carrots, cleaned, quartered and thinly sliced
1 yellow or white onion, peeled and sliced
4 cloves garlic, mashed
1 - 14 oz. can diced tomatoes in tomato juice
1 can or package (13 - 15 oz.) cooked white beans, rinsed and drained
2 bay leaves
3 whole cloves
1/2 teaspoon thyme
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon oregano, crushed if wild dried
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon (less if you are sensitive to heat/spiciness, more if you like it hot) hot pepper sauce
1 - 14 oz. can diced tomatoes in tomato juice
1 can or package (13 - 15 oz.) cooked white beans, rinsed and drained
1/4 to 1/2 head green cabbage, thinly sliced

Crumb Topping
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup dry bread crumbs
Mix together with a fork until all bread crumbs are saturated. Will look like wet sand. Set aside.

Cook the sausages (ours were grilled), cool, then slice and set aside.

Sauté the celery, carrot, onion and garlic in the olive oil until onion is translucent, about 4-5 minutes.

 Add the tomatoes and white beans.

Add the bay leaves, whole cloves, pepper, oregano, and salt and stir to combine all the ingredients.
Simmer over low heat, covered, until mixture starts to bubble. Add reserved sausage slices and cabbage and stir to combine. 

Cook over low heat, covered, another 5 minutes. 

If you are cooking in an oven-safe pan, sprinkle the top with the crumb mixture. If not, transfer mixture to a greased casserole that is oven safe and sprinkle top with the crumb mixture. Bake in preheated 350 degree F. oven until crumb mixture is lightly browned and bean mixture is bubbling, about 20 minutes. Serve at once. A green salad goes nicely with this.

Optional: Transfer the mixture to a greased casserole, cover with foil and refrigerate overnight or for a day or two. Remove from fridge, bring to room temperature, remove foil, add crumb topping and bake as directed above. The time in the fridge allows the flavors to meld and improves the final dish if you have time.

Early Spring Lemon Bars

 Last summer and fall the Meyer lemon shrub kept producing blossoms and those set fruit most of the time, so this winter there were dozens of lemons ripening. Now that it is early spring her in N. CA, the lemons are ripe and ready to enjoy. I made lemon curd, using fresh eggs from a neighbor's chickens, but I really love lemon bars, so I baked those, too. In both the rich orange yolk of farm eggs made the yellow pop!

Aside from zesting and juicing lots of lemons, both recipes are pretty easy. The curd does require a long bout of stirring and you need to sterilize the glass jars and lids that you'll use to hold the finished curd, but it is well worth it. I gave a jar to the same neighbor... only fair since their chickens had provided the eggs... and here is what they said: That lemon curd is the best I've ever tasted. It's heavenly. An incredible balance of lemony richness and light whipped wonderfulness." You can make it with regular lemons and with limes, too.

The Lemon Bars have a shortbread type crust on the bottom and a lemon pie filling type filling over that. Do allow it to cool fully before cutting. Some people sprinkle on a bit of confectioners' sugar, but I like them just as they are. Perfect with a cup of tea or coffee. Yay for spring!

Elle's Lemon Bars
Make 16 cookies

Crust:
1/4 teaspoon grated lemon zest
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons confectioners' sugar
1/4 teaspoons salt
1 stick (1/2 cup) non-dairy margarine or unsalted butter, cold

Filling:
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 - 2 tablespoons grated lemon zest (I used about 1 1/2 tablespoons)
1/4 cup flour
3 eggs
1/2 cup lemon juice, seeds removed

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a greased 8-inch square baking pan with foil, leaving some foil hanging over the edges. Grease the foil. (I used original Pam spray oil.) Set aside.

For the crust, place the lemon zest and the brown sugar in a medium bowl. With clean hands, use your fingers to rub the zest and sugar together until zest if fully combined with the sugar. Add the flour and confectioners' sugar  and salt and whisk the mixture until combined. Use a pastry blender or two table knives to cut the cold butter into the flour mixture until butter is in very small pieces. Turn the mixture into the prepared pan and, with very clean hands, pat the mixture down firmly to form an even crust, with a small amount (about 1/2 inch) of crust up the sides of the pan.

Bake in preheated oven for 15 minutes. Crust should be barely light brown.

While crust is baking, prepare the filling:
Place the granulated sugar into the same bowl you used for the crust. Add the lemon zest and, using clean fingers, rub the zest into the sugar. Sugar may look like damp sand since you are using a lot of zest. Whisk in the flour and then the eggs. Once well combined, whisk in the lemon juice. Taste a bit of the mixture and add more zest if you like it zestier.

When the crust is barely light brown, remove the pan from the oven and pour the filling over the hot crust. Return the pan to the oven and reduce the heat to 325 degrees. Bake for about 14-20 minutes more. When done there will be a bit of browning around the edges of the cookies and the center will only jiggle slightly, if at all.

Remove the pan from the oven and cool on a rack until pan is barely warm to the touch. Transfer to the refrigerator and cool for two hours.

Remove the pan from the fridge, loosen the foil and use the foil to lift the cookie from the pan to a cutting board. Carefully cut the bars into sixteen cookies. If desired, sift some confectioner's sugar (about 1 teaspoon) over the cooled and cut cookies before serving.

What A Week!

I'll bet you have experienced the packed week yourself now and again. Last Friday Kate and I baked King Cake. You can find all about it in the previous post on this blog.

On Saturday there was a multi-birthday celebration on Zoom with the family. Bourbon was enjoyed by yours truly.

Sweetie's back went out the previous Tuesday, so I was also doing a lot of the things he usually does and that only stopped Thursday. 

On Sunday it was Valentine's Day, plus I baked some mini-Bundt cakes that stuck to the pans...see I make mistakes too...so I had to bake cupcakes... 

Sunday evening and Monday morning, plus decorate them Monday afternoon in order to deliver twenty-one...21!...iced and decorated from scratch chocolate cupcakes for our scholarship group 109th birthday celebration...which was Wednesday on Zoom. Birthday bags (see top photo) were filled (including a birthday candle and smiley face balloon!) and delivered by others all over the Santa Rosa/Sebastopol/Bodega Bay area for the party.  Monday included taking the garbage cans down the hill.

Tuesday included hauling emptied garbage cans up the hill, plus doing the Bingo set-up for the birthday celebration. 

Wednesday morning I weeded while the soil was still damp from the rains, 

then had the birthday party on Zoom...a BLAST!...then cooked a large turkey breast in the evening to eat Thursday, plus made dinner. Look at the goodies in the birthday bag!

 Thursday was the gym, followed by walking the dog, followed by a Zoom Board of Directors meeting for the regional group I belong to. I'm the Zoom guru on most of these Zoom gatherings, which I enjoy since learning new things is fun for me. 

So, does that sound like a busy enough week? Left out gym on Tuesday, multiple dog walks without Sweetie, which is a challenge since Sweetie is the Alpha for Pi. Today we walked Pi together and I wrote some thank you notes for birthday gifts, plus worked on cleaning up my email folder.

After all my exhausting recitation, how does the recipe for the chocolate cupcakes with chocolate ganache icing sound? They were sooo good and still moist on Wednesday even though I baked most of them on Sunday evening. Must be the yogurt. Do try these for yourself. You can divide the recipe  if you want to make one dozen instead of two. The recipe is from Southern Living’s The Southern Cake Book.

Chocolate Velvet Cupcakes

Makes 24 cupcakes

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. & prepare enough cupcake pans to hold 24 cupcake papers.

Melt 1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate morsels in the microwave at HIGH in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave for about a minute at a time, stirring well after each, until chocolate is melted and smooth. Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat 1/2 cup soft butter (I used non-dairy margarine) and 16 oz. of brown sugar until well blended (about 5 minutes). Take three room temperature eggs and add them, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the melted chocolate. Beat until well blended, scraping beater(s) and bowl as needed.

Sift together 2 cups of all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon baking soda and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Add this mixture to the batter alternately with 8 oz. sour cream (I used plain full fat yogurt), adding a third of  the flour first, then half the sour cream, a third of the flour, the rest of the sour cream and the final third of the flour mixture. Scrape beater(s) and bowl as needed. Blend thoroughly , then gradually add 1 cup hot water in a slow, steady stream at low speed, mixing just until blended. Stir in vanilla.

Fill prepared baking cups 3/4 full. Bake in preheated oven for 18 - 20 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in the center of a cupcake comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire racks for 10 minutes. Remove cupcakes from pans to wire racks and cool completely (about 45 minutes) before frosting.

Icing

1/2 cup soy creamer (or whipping cream)
1 teaspoon powdered espresso powder
8 oz. semisweet chocolate, cut into small pieces (I used half ScharffenBerger bittersweet and half chocolate chips)

Scald the soy creamer  or whipping cream in a 5-6 cup saucepan over moderate heat until it begins to form small bubbles around the edges. Add the dry espresso powder and whisk to dissolve. Add the chocolate and stir occasionally over heat for 1 minutes. Then remove the pan from the heat and whisk or stir until the chocolate is all melted and the mixture is smooth.

Let the icing stand at room temperature, stirring occasionally, for about 15 minutes or until the icing barely begins to thicken.

Use offset spatula to ice each cupcake, then sprinkle with decorations. Let dry completely before serving.