TWD – Blueberry Pie

This week Amy of South in Your Mouth selected Double Crusted Blueberry Pie.  You can find the recipe on pages 361- 363.  I’ve been getting some great berries this summer and couldn’t wait to try my least favorite in a pie.  The dough used for this pie is the Good for Almost Everything Pie Dough.  Even though I had all my ingredients chilled, the butter and shortening were actually frozen I had a VERY hard time rolling out the dough. It was extremely sticky and hard to work with even after chilling.  I finally managed to get the crust in the pie plate and on top of the pie with some patch work having to be done.

As you can see the dough sort of sunk onto the pie since it was so sticky.  I actually like the look of it and thought that the dough was very tender once baked, especially with the blueberry filling it absorbed.

My husband and I both very much enjoyed this pie.  He mashed his up into a bowl of vanilla ice cream and I had mine plain.  My least favorite berry turned into on of my favorite berry pies!

TWD – Chocolate Pudding

This week Melissa from Its Melissas Kitchen has picked Chocolate pudding!  I’ve only made pudding once before from scratch.  When I was reading through the recipe I was surprised to see that it was made in a food processor and not entirely on the stove.  I gathered up all my ingredients and started following the recipe.  It was so fun to make even if it was a bit messy.

The finished pudding was unbelievably velvety and smooth.  Almost like a mousse.  I had one left over and even used it as a cake filling it was so delicious!

TWD: Apple Cheddar Scones – 7/1

This week’s TWD recipe was chosen by Karina of The Floured Apron. I had never made scones before so was excited to try something new again. The dough came together very easily and just as Dorie said it would. I used extra-sharp cheddar which added a great bite to the scones. The dried apple added just the right amount of sweetness and chewiness.

I ate the scones at room temperature as Dorie suggested. They were nice and light with a nice texture. These would be great with apple butter or jam.

TWD: Mixed Berry Cobbler – 6/24

My apologies for my tardiness on posting this. I actually baked this during the correct week and then my husband’s grandmother passed away keeping us a little more preoccupied then usual.

This recipe was chosen by Beth of Our Sweet Life. My favorite desserts have fruit in them and I especially love anything with berries. While reading the comments of the other Tuesday with Dorie bakers about the crust being very bland I thought of different variations to make it more interesting but ultimately decided to stick to the recipe as is and then change anything after making it a second time. I was pleasantly surprised with the crust and thought it did a great job of soaking up all the berry juice while staying moist on the bottom and crisp on the top.

My husband and I both enjoyed the Mixed Berry filling as well. I chose a frozen mix of Raspberries, Blackberries and Blueberries. It was a wonderful combination of tart and sweet. The fruit held up well and created a lovely sauce that was a perfect consistency. Not too thick and not too thin. A little lemon zest brought all the flavors together beautifully.

I’ll definitely make this cobbler again with different fruits and flavors added into the crust.

Barefoot Bloggers – Pasta, Pesto & Peas

One of the reasons I was so excited to join Barefoot Bloggers was to try out new dishes that I wouldn’t have tried otherwise. Our fist dish was chosen by Elizabeth of Ugg Smell Food and it was definitely not something I would have picked myself. Neither my husband or I are huge fans of Pesto but with the addition of the Spinach and the Peas it sounded great and I was happy to try out a new recipe.

I cut the recipe in 1/2 since the original made a ton and we still had a lot left over. I had leftover grilled chicken from our dinner last night so I cut that up and added it to my husbands to give him the extra protein.

Pasta, Pesto, and Peas
(Source: Ina Garten “Barefoot Contessa Parties!” p.98 and the show Barefoot Contessa)

Yield: 12 servings

3/4 pound fusilli pasta
3/4 pound bow tie pasta
1/4 cup good olive oil
1 1/2 cups pesto, packaged or see recipe below
1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and squeezed dry
3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 1/4 cups good mayonnaise (I used low-fat)
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
1 1/2 cups frozen peas, defrosted
1/3 cup pignolis (pine nuts)
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Cook the fusilli and bow ties separately in a large pot of boiling salted water for 10 to 12 minutes until each pasta is al dente. Drain and toss into a bowl with the olive oil. Cool to room temperature.

In the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade, puree the pesto, spinach, and lemon juice. Add the mayonnaise and puree. Add the pesto mixture to the cooled pasta and then add the Parmesan, peas, pignolis, salt, and pepper. Mix well, season to taste, and serve at room temperature.

Pesto:
1/4 cup walnuts
1/4 cup pignolis (pine nuts)
3 tablespoons chopped garlic (9 cloves)
5 cups fresh basil leaves, packed
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups good olive oil
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Place the walnuts, pignolis, and garlic in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Process for 15 seconds. Add the basil leaves, salt, and pepper. With the processor running, slowly pour the olive oil into the bowl through the feed tube and process until the pesto is thoroughly pureed. Add the Parmesan and puree for a minute. Use right away or store the pesto in the refrigerator or freezer with a thin film of olive oil on top.

Notes: Air is the enemy of pesto. For freezing, pack it in containers with a film of oil or plastic wrap directly on top with the air pressed out.

To clean basil, remove the leaves, swirl them in a bowl of water, and then spin them very dry in a salad spinner. Store them in a closed plastic bag with a slightly damp paper towel. As long as the leaves are dry they will stay green for several days.

Yield: 4 cups

TWD – La Palette’s Strawberry Tart

This week’s recipe was chosen by Marie at A Year in Oak Cottage. I was thrilled this was a Strawberry recipe as my husband and I had plans to go Strawberry picking. I couldn’t wait to turn our amazingly sweet and juicy strawberries into this rustic tart.

Fruit tarts are among my favorite desserts and this one was perfect with it’s cookie-like crust. The dough is a sweet tart dough with a great crumbly texture. The recipe calls for you to fill the tart with Strawberry jam and then pile in as many berries as will fit. I used Strawberry-Rhubarb Preserves that I got at the farm stand where we did our picking. The Rhubarb added a wonderful tart dimension to compliment the super sweet freshly picking strawberries.

I cut the tart first and then layered on the preserves and topped with as many strawberries as I could fit! The traditional La Palette tart is served with Crème fraîche and topped with cracked black pepper.

I’ll definitely be keeping this sweet tart dough handy so that I can make these wonderful tarts with a variety of fruits and flavors throughout the summer.

TWD – French Chocolate Brownies

This weeks Tuesday’s with Dorie recipe is French Chocolate Brownies chosen by Di of Di’s Kitchen Notebook. My first thought was, “a French Brownie?” What exactly makes a brownie French and what nationality are all the other brownies?? All joking aside I was excited to try out a new Brownie Recipe and this one was quite different from any other I’ve tried before. They were intensely rich and fudgy.

French Chocolate Brownies
(Source: Dorie Greenspan “Baking: From My Home to Yours pages 92-93)

-Makes 16 brownies-

Ingredients
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon (optional)
1/3 cup raisins, dark or golden
1 1/2 tablespoons water
1 1/2 tablespoons dark rum
6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
1 1/2 sticks (12 tablespoons; 6 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature and cut into 12 pieces
3 large eggs, at room temperature
1 cup sugar

Getting ready: Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 300°F. Line an 8-inch square baking pan with foil, butter the foil, place the pan on a baking sheet, and set aside.

Whisk together the flour, salt and cinnamon, if you’re using it.

Put the raisins in a small saucepan with the water, bring to a boil over medium heat and cook until the water almost evaporates. Add the rum, let it warm for about 30 seconds, turn off the heat, stand back and ignite the rum. Allow the flames to die down, and set the raisins aside until needed.

Put the chocolate in a heatproof bowl and set the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. Slowly and gently melt the chocolate, stirring occasionally. Remove the bowl from the saucepan and add the butter, stirring so that it melts. It’s important that the chocolate and butter not get very hot. However, if the butter is not melting, you can put the bowl back over the still-hot water for a minute. If you’ve got a couple of little bits of unmelted butter, leave them—it’s better to have a few bits than to overheat the whole. Set the chocolate aside for the moment.

Working with a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the eggs and sugar until they are thick and pale, about 2 minutes. Lower the mixer speed and pour in the chocolate-butter, mixing only until it is incorporated—you’ll have a thick, creamy batter. Add the dry ingredients and mix at low speed for about 30 seconds—the dry ingredients won’t be completely incorporated and that’s fine. Finish folding in the dry ingredients by hand with a rubber spatula, then fold in the raisins along with any liquid remaining in the pan.

Scrape the batter into the pan and bake 50 to 60 minutes, or until the top is dry and crackled and a knife inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Transfer the pan to a rack and allow the brownies to cool to warm or room temperature.

Carefully lift the brownies out of the pan, using the foil edges as handles, and transfer to a cutting board. With a long-bladed knife, cut the brownies into 16 squares, each roughly 2 inches on a side, taking care not to cut through the foil.

Serving: The brownies are good just warm or at room temperature; they’re even fine cold. I like these with a little something on top or alongside—good go-alongs are whipped crème fraiche or whipped cream, ice cream or chocolate sauce or even all three!

Storing: Wrapped well, these can be kept at room temperature for up to 3 days or frozen for up to 2 months.

The French Verdict: Very little flour and a delightful crackling crust on the top!

Barefoot Bloggers – Herb Baked Eggs

I’m fortunate to have joined another online cooking group. This one, Barefoot Bloggers, was started by Tara of Smells Like Home, and is devoted to cooking/baking Ina Garten recipes twice a month.

I’ve been a fan of Ina’s for a while now and have been saving more and more of her recipes to try. When I saw this group I knew it would be perfect to put all those stored recipes to use and make a few things I might not have done otherwise.

Our first recipe was Herb Baked Eggs. Eggs, easy right? Not for me!! I’ll be the first person to admit that I stink at making eggs. Give me some complicated 257 step recipe and I’ll have no problem. Ask me to make you scrambled eggs and you’re in trouble. I have repeatedly over the years attempted to be a good wife and make breakfast for my husband. It’s a good thing he likes ketchup so that he can cover up the awfulness that are my eggs.

Herbed-Baked Eggs
(Source: Ina Garten “Barefood in Paris” and the show Barefoot Contessa)

1/4 teaspoon minced fresh garlic
1/4 teaspoon minced fresh thyme leaves
1/4 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary leaves
1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley
1 tablespoon freshly grated Parmesan
6 extra-large eggs
2 tablespoons heavy cream
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Toasted French bread or brioche, for serving

Preheat the broiler for 5 minutes and place the oven rack 6 inches below the heat.

Combine the garlic, thyme, rosemary, parsley, and Parmesan and set aside. Carefully crack 3 eggs into each of 2 small bowls or teacups (you won’t be baking them in these) without breaking the yolks. (It’s very important to have all the eggs ready to go before you start cooking.)

Place 2 individual gratin dishes on a baking sheet. Place 1 tablespoon of cream and 1/2 tablespoon of butter in each dish and place under the broiler for about 3 minutes, until hot and bubbly. Quickly, but carefully, pour 3 eggs into each gratin dish and sprinkle evenly with the herb mixture, then sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper. Place back under the broiler for 5 to 6 minutes, until the whites of the eggs are almost cooked. (Rotate the baking sheet once if they aren’t cooking evenly.) The eggs will continue to cook after you take them out of the oven. Allow to set for 60 seconds and serve hot with toasted bread.

I had high hopes for the Herb-Baked Eggs as they are cooked in the oven and not on the stove but I somehow managed to mess these up too. I don’t know if it’s because I have a convection oven and had to choose a temperature to set my broiler or if I’m just really, really bad at making anything egg realted? The yolks cooked through and the whites were still raw in the middle.

Sigh, I will one day make an edible egg.

Our next Barefoot Blogger recipe will be Pasta, Pesto, and Peas.

TWD – Pecan Honey Sticky Buns – 5/27

This week’s TWD recipe is Pecan Honey Sticky Buns, chosen by Madam Chow at Madam Chow’s Kitchen. These Sticky Buns are made with a Brioche base making them even more luxurious! The dough gave my KitchenAid Mixer quite the workout. I was a little nervous making the dough as I’ve not had a lot of experience working with yeast doughs but I was pleasantly surprised at how well the dough came together. I could not wait to bake these, I love cinnamon buns in all their sticky goodness!

Just out of the oven and still happily bubbling away.

Pecan Honey Sticky Buns

(Source: Dorie Greenspan “Baking: From My Home to Yours pages 51-53)

Makes 15 buns

For the Glaze:

1 cup (packed) light brown sugar
1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces
1/4 cup honey
1-1/2 cups pecans (whole or pieces)

For the Filling:

1/4 cup sugar
3 tablespoons (packed) light brown sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

For the Buns:

1/2 recipe dough for Golden Brioche loaves (see below), chilled and ready to shape (make the full recipe and cut the dough in half after refrigerating it overnight)

Generously butter a 9-x-13-inch baking pan (a Pyrex pan is perfect for this).

TO MAKE THE GLAZE: In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, bring the brown sugar, butter, and honey to a boil over medium-low heat, stirring frequently to dissovle the sugar. Pour the glaze into the buttered pan, evening it out asbest you can by tilting the pan or spreading the glaze with a heatproof spatula. Sprinle over the pecans.

TO MAKE THE FILLING: Mix the sugars and cinnamon together in a bowl. If necessary, in another bowl, work the butter with a spatula until it is soft, smooth and spreadable.

TO SHAPE THE BUNS: On a flour-dusted work surface, roll the chilled dough into a 16-inch square. Using your fingers or a pastry brush, spread the softened butter over the dough. Sprinkle the dough with the cinnamon sugar, leaving a 1-inch strip bare on the side farthest from you. Starting with the side nearest you, roll the dough into a cylinder, keeping the roll as tight as you can. (At this point, you can wrap the dough airtight and freeze it for up to 2 months . . . . Or, if you want to make just part of the recipe now, you can use as much of the dough as you’d like and freeze the remainder. Reduce the glae recipe accordingly).

With a chef’s knife, using a gentle sawing motion, trim just a tiny bit from the ends of the roll if they’re very ragged or not well filled, then cut the log into 1-inch thick buns. (Because you trim the ragged ends of the dough, and you may have lost a little length in the rolling, you will get 15 buns, not 16.) Fit the buns into the pan cut side down, leaving some space between them.

Lightly cover the pan with a piece of wax paper and set the pan in a warm place until the buns have doubled in volume, about 1 hour and 45 minutes. The buns are properly risen when they are puffy, soft, doubled and, in all likelihood, touching one another.

GETTING READY TO BAKE: When the buns have almost fully risen , center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Remove the sheet of wax paper and put the pan on a baking sheet lined with parchment or a silicone mat. Bake the sticky buns for about 30 minutes, or until they are puffed and gorgeously golden; the glaze will be bubbling away merrily. Pull the pan from the oven.

The sticky buns must be unmolded minutes after they come out of the oven. If you do not have a rimmed platter large enough to hold them, use a baking sheet lined with a silicone mate or buttered foil. Be careful – the glaze is super-hot and super-sticky.

What You’ll Need for the Golden Brioche Dough

(This recipe makes enough for two brioche loaves. If you divide the dough in half, you would use half for the sticky buns, and you can freeze the other half for a later date, or make a brioche loaf out of it!)

2 packets active dry yeast (each packet of yeast contains approx. 2 1/4 teaspoons)
1/3 cup just-warm-to-the-touch water
1/3 cup just-warm-to-the-touch whole milk
3 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons salt
3 large eggs, at room temperature
1/4 cup sugar
3 sticks (12 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature but still slightly firm

What You’ll Need for the Glaze

(You would brush this on brioche loaves, but not on the sticky buns)

1 large egg
1 tablespoon water

TO MAKE THE BRIOCHE: Put the yeast, water and milk in the bowl of a stand mixer and, using a wooden spoon, stir until the yeast is dissolved. Add the flour and salt, and fit into the mixer with the dough hook, if you have one. Toss a kitchen towel over the mixer, covering the bowl as completely as you can– this will help keep you, the counter and your kitchen floor from being showered in flour. Turn the mixer on and off a few short pulses, just to dampen the flour (yes, you can peek to see how you’re doing), then remove the towel, increase the mixer speed to medium-low and mix for a minute or two, just until the flour is moistened. At this point, you’ll have a fairly dry, shaggy mess.

Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula, set the mixer to low and add the eggs, followed by the sugar. Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat for about 3 minutes, until the dough forms a ball. Reduce the speed to low and add the butter in 2-tablespoon-size chunks, beating until each piece is almost incorporated before adding the next. You’ll have a dough that is very soft, almost like batter. Increase the speed to medium-high and continue to beat until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl, about 10 minutes.

Transfer the dough to a clean bowl (or wash out the mixer bowl and use it), cover with plastic wrap and leave at room temperature until nearly doubled in size, 40 to 60 minutes, depending upon the warmth of your room.

Deflate the dough by lifting it up around the edges and letting it fall with a slap to the bowl. Cover the bowl with the plastic wrap and put it in the refrigerator. Slap the dough down in the bowl every 30 minutes until it stops rising, about 2 hours, then leave the uncovered dough in the refrigerator to chill overnight. (After this, you can proceed with the recipe to make the brioche loaves, or make the sticky buns instead, or freeze all or part of the dough for later use.)

The next day, butter and flour two 8 1/2-x-4 1/2-inch pans.

Pull the dough from the fridge and divide it into 2 equal pieces. Cut each piece of the dough into 4 equal pieces and roll each piece into a log about 3 1/2 inches long. Arrange 4 logs crosswise in the bottom of each pan. Put the pans on a baking sheet lined with parchment or a silicone mat, cover the pans lightly with wax paper and leave the loaves at room temperature until the dough almost fills the pans, 1 to 2 hours. (Again, rising time with depend on how warm the room is.)

GETTING READY TO BAKE: Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

TO MAKE THE GLAZE: Beat the egg with the water. Using a pastry brush, gently brush the tops of the loaves with the glaze.

Bake the loaves until they are well risen and deeply golden, 30 to 35 minutes. Transfer the pans to racks to cool for 15 minutes, then run a knife around the sides of the pans and turn the loaves out onto the racks. Invert again and cool for at least 1 hour.

TWD – Orange Berry Muffins – 1/29

My husband loves blueberry muffins and I knew that these would become a fast favorite. I had just bought some delicious blueberry’s that I knew were going to work perfect. The combination of the orange and blueberry flavors and the moisture from the buttermilk made them the perfect morning breakfast.

I used an ice cream scoop and had the perfect amount of batter for a perfect sized muffin.

Orange Berry Muffins

(Source: Dorie Greenspan “Baking: From My Home to Yours” p. 3)

Ingredients:
Grated zest and juice of 1 orange
About 3/4 cup buttermilk
2 large eggs
3 Tablespoons honey
1 stick (8 Tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1/3 cup sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
2-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup blueberries – fresh, preferably, or frozen (not thawed)

Decorating sugar, for topping (optional)

Getting Ready:
Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Butter or spray the 12 molds in a regular-size muffin pan or fit the molds with paper muffin cups. Alternatively, use a silicone muffin pan, which needs neither greasing nor paper cups. Place the muffin pan on a baking sheet.

Pour the orange juice into a large glass measuring cup or a bowl and pour in enough buttermilk to make 1 cup. Whisk in the eggs, honey and melted butter.

In a large bowl, rub the sugar and orange zest together with your fingertips until the sugar is moist and the fragrance of orange strong. Whisk in the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Pour the liquid ingredients over the dry ingredients and, with the whisk or a rubber spatula, gently but quickly stir to blend. Don’t worry about being thorough – the batter will be lumpy and bubbly, and that’s just the way it should be. Stir in the blueberries. Divide the batter evenly among the muffin cups.

Bake for 22 to 25 minutes. If you want to top the muffins with decorating sugar, sprinkle on the sugar after the muffins have baked for 10 minutes. When fully baked, the tops of the muffins will be golden and springy to the touch and a thin knife inserted into the center of the muffins will come out clean. Transfer the pan to a rack and cool for 5 minutes before carefully removing each muffin from its mold.