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Everyday Dorie Shrimp-Mousse Squash Blossoms

August 12, 2022 at 10:05 pm | Posted in cook the book fridays, everyday dorie, groups, other savory, savory things, snacks, veggies | 2 Comments
Tags: everyday dorie

This time of year, zucchini abounds at my farmers’ market, and thankfully, a couple of farm stalls sell the blossoms, too. I buy them frequently in the summer; usually for Mexican recipes, like soups or quesadillas with flor de calabaza. I also do love me an Italian-style cheese-stuffed squash blossom, although I usually only order them out because I don’t love me a pot filled with fryer oil. That said, I have, a few times, made those cheesy ones myself so I was game to try these Shrimp-Mousse Squash Blossoms.

These zucchini flowers are stuffed with a chunky “mousse” of chopped shrimp and herbs and spices bound with egg white. The stuffed blossoms get dunked in a tempura batter and fried up. I only made six and didn’t use nearly the amount of oil Dorie calls for, but instead did a true shallow fry…one side and then the other. They did wind up super crisp and the filling reminded me of what’s probably my favorite fried shrimpy treat– shrimp toast. I’ll have to give that a try next!

For the recipe, see Everyday Dorie by Dorie Greenspan, and head over to Cook the Book Fridays to see what we all thought.

Tuesdays with Dorie BWD: Tomato Tart

August 9, 2022 at 9:51 pm | Posted in BWD, groups, other savory, savory things, tuesdays with dorie | 3 Comments
Tags: baking, savory, tart

Tomatoes are spectacular at the farmers’ market right now. I could happily just eat them raw, in salads or on toast, but this Tomato Tart really does showcase them beautifully. They are the stars of this show for sure, but they get some support from a schmear of honey-mustard, a few herbs and a bit of cheese (I went with a combo of Gruyère and a French spreadable cream cheese). Oh, and a tasty pastry crust. Even though this tart is baked in a tart pan and not free-form, I used Dorie’s savory galette dough, which held its shape really nicely. (Speaking of galettes and tomatoes, this Cheese and Tomato Galette was one of my favorite recipes from BWJ). The tomatoes become a bit more concentrated in flavor in the oven, and combined with the sweet-salty filling and the crisp crust, well, this tart makes a lovely Summer lunch or dinner. I have a leftover slice and, in the morning, I’m going to put a fried egg on top of it because I think it will be a good brekkie, too.

If you don’t have the book Baking with Dorie: Sweet, Salty & Simple by Dorie Greenspan, get it and join us as we bake through it twice a month. Don’t forget to check out the rest of the TWD Blogroll!

Tuesdays with Dorie BWD: S’mores Ice Cream Cake

August 7, 2022 at 3:17 pm | Posted in breakfast things, BWD, groups, muffins & quick breads, sweet things, tuesdays with dorie | 2 Comments
Tags: baking, brekkie, cake

I live in a house with no central air, so I’m always looking for a way to keep cool in the summer. S’mores Ice Cream Cake is possibly the best way I’ve found yet to get my core temp down. Think: peanut-graham crust, layers of ice cream, fluffernutter goo, fudge sauce and a mountain of toastie marshies. I scaled it down to fit in my six-inch springform, and also only used two layers of ice cream (coffee was my flavor choice) separated by the peanut fluff instead of the original three. It still weighted a ton…this is a substantial treat. The cake takes a bit of time to put together, as it needs freezing after every step, but it is so good! Seriously, my childhood dreams all came true in one fabulous sugar high.

If you don’t have the book Baking with Dorie: Sweet, Salty & Simple by Dorie Greenspan yet, get it and join us as we bake through it every second and fourth Tuesdays! Don’t forget to check out the rest of the TWD Blogroll and all the other participation deets over on Tuesdays with Dorie!

Tuesdays with Dorie DC: Fortune Cookies

August 1, 2022 at 11:11 pm | Posted in cookies & bars, DC, sweet things, tuesdays with dorie | 4 Comments
Tags: baking, cookies

We (TWD) started baking through Dorie’s Cookies back in 2016 with Peanut Butter Change-Ups, and now, almost six years later, here we are finishing off the book off with these Fortune Cookies! It feels weird to put a book that’s lived on my kitchen table for so long up on the shelf, but I’m excited for my baking schedule free up a bit for other stuff I haven’t had the chance to make. While it’s a bit bittersweet to finish cooking though this book, I’ll bake on with my group of friends from Baking with Dorie, so I’m very happy for that!

Back to the fortune cookies…they’re made from a standard tuile batter, flavored with vanilla and almond extracts. The trick to shaping these cookies is to work quickly, and while they are hot from the oven and pliable. Dorie recommends baking just a few cookie circles at a time, so you can fill and fold them without cracking. I have asbestos fingers and kept the cookies on the hot sheet tray to do the first fold over the fortune (rather than transferring them to the countertop, where I think they basically cool immediately, and then it becomes difficult to do the next bend). I managed to bake five at a time that way, and since I just made a half recipe, it only took me two rounds in the oven. These are thin and crisp and tasty, and reveal your fortune with just a delicate snap.

For the recipe, see Dorie’s Cookies by Dorie Greenspan. Don’t forget to check out the rest of the final DC TWD Blogroll!

Everyday Dorie: Basta Pasta Potato Salad

July 23, 2022 at 9:49 pm | Posted in cook the book fridays, everyday dorie, groups, other savory, pickles, salads, savory things, veggies | 2 Comments
Tags: everyday dorie, salad, savory

This Basta Pasta Potato Salad really threw me for a loop. I judged a recipe by its name and not its actual ingredient list and was thoroughly convinced it was a pasta and potato salad. Sounds unusual, but mash-ups are all the rage, and I’m down for some carb-on-carb action. I saved aside a small portion of a twisty little dried pasta shape that I thought would look cute in photos just for this. Imagine my surprise when I finally set out to make the salad and there was no pasta to be found in the recipe.

What this recipe (based on a potato salad Dorie had at a restaurant called Basta Pasta– mystery of the missing pasta solved!) does have are typical pot sally mix-ins like mayo, scallions, capers and pickles, as well as some not-so-typical ones like saffron, wasabi, OJ and cukes. Dorie wouldn’t lead us too far down a crazy path, though, and it all works together nicely. It’s kind of what you’re used to, but with a twist, and sometimes it feels good to keep things interesting.

For the recipe, see Everyday Dorie by Dorie Greenspan, and head over to Cook the Book Fridays to see what we all thought.

Tuesdays with Dorie DC: Gozinaki

July 19, 2022 at 7:22 pm | Posted in cookies & bars, DC, groups, sweet things, tuesdays with dorie | 4 Comments
Tags: baking, cookies

I have sort of a Christmas in July thing going on here with these Gozinaki. Made simply of chopped, toasted walnuts bound together in a honey syrup, these are traditional holiday cookies from the country of Georgia. I didn’t have enough walnuts on hand for the recipe, so I added what pecans I had in the fridge, but I didn’t have enough pecans either, so I added flax and sunflower seeds, too. I guess I made a mash-up of both the mixed-nut and multi-seed Playing Around variations. Since I was playing around already, I added a pinch each of fine sea salt and cinnamon. The sticky nut mix is rolled out and typically cut into diamond shapes, but I just did squares for summertime ease (I guess you can rotate them a turn and they are diamond-ish??). I liked these a lot. Even though these cookies were sticky to the touch (as in, I had to pick bits of stuck-on parchment off their backsides), my birdseed blend stayed really crunchy for several days.

For the recipe, see Dorie’s Cookies by Dorie Greenspan. Don’t forget to check out the rest of the TWD Blogroll!

Tuesdays with Dorie BWD: Crumb-Topped Ricotta Coffee Cake

July 12, 2022 at 4:45 pm | Posted in breakfast things, BWD, groups, muffins & quick breads, sweet things, tuesdays with dorie | 4 Comments
Tags: baking, brekkie, cake

This Crumb-Topped Ricotta Coffee Cake is one of my recent baking standouts. With a heap of super-crispy (thanks to a secret ingredient…shhhh, it’s cornmeal) crumbs on top and a dense but tender cake (thanks to a not-so-secret ingredient…ricotta), it doesn’t get much better. Oh wait– what about adding a layer of fruit? Well, that would make it better, but not to worry, as this cake has that, too. I used sweet dark cherries in mine, but you could use any berry. Hiding just under the layer of crumbs, the fruit turns soft and jammy. It’s good for a breakfast, snack or dessert treat. Really, this cake hits all the notes.

Everyday Dorie: Cornmeal-Buttermilk Skillet Cake

July 8, 2022 at 3:29 pm | Posted in breakfast things, cakes & tortes, everyday dorie, groups, muffins & quick breads, simple cakes, sweet things | 3 Comments
Tags: cake, everyday dorie

This Cornmeal-Buttermilk Skillet Cake with Strawberries is one I actually whipped up a couple of years ago. With the pandemic in full swing, summer 2020 was all around good times. I, like most you, was cooking with whatever I could get my hands on or had already. Saturdays were my shopping days, masked up at the farmers’ market and wondering what would be left after waiting in block-long socially distanced lines, and then going to the grocery store for the other stuff and finding the shelves half empty. But if you know how to cook, you can make some pretty good stuff in all kinds of different circumstances…you can even have cake.

This was an easy, dump-and-stir type of cake that can be baked off as a loaf or a round (I went with the cast iron skillet option). It’s made similar to cornbread, but a little sweeter. I stirred in some strawberries, but you can use whatever berries you have, or none at all. Maybe I should make it again this summer, while the blackberries are around and more readily available.

For the recipe, see Everyday Dorie by Dorie Greenspan, and head over to Cook the Book Fridays to see all of our cakes this week.

Tuesdays with Dorie DC: Chocolate-Pecan Cookies

July 5, 2022 at 2:45 pm | Posted in cookies & bars, DC, groups, sweet things, tuesdays with dorie | 4 Comments
Tags: baking, cookies

We’ve made Dorie’s “Do-Almost-Anything” Chocolate Dough a few times now, and here it is again, making its final (!!) TWD appearance in these Chocolate-Pecan Cookies. This time we’re working chopped toasted pecans into the dough, and then before baking, we’re topping our cookies with a little mound of chopped nuts tossed in a sugar-egg white coating. Not only does this act like a glue, but it candies the top pecans nicely, too. These are good, simple cookies, and they’ve stayed crisp in the tin for a few days now, despite my sauna-like summer kitchen. I cut my dough into squares as to avoid fiddling with re-roll, and got 12 of them out of a 1/4 batch.

For the recipe, see Dorie’s Cookies by Dorie Greenspan. Don’t forget to check out the rest of the TWD Blogroll!

Everyday Dorie: Mostly Rhubarb Tart

June 24, 2022 at 2:05 pm | Posted in everyday dorie, general pastry, groups, pies & tarts, sweet things | 7 Comments
Tags: everyday dorie

Mostly Rhubarb Tart is just what the name says…a tart that’s mostly rhubarb, but with a little extra stuff, too. Macerated rhubarb covers the bottom of a par-baked Sweet Tart Dough crust. An easy custard, quickly whisked together but delicately rose-scented, fills in all the gaps. Then some halved strawberries are arranged here-and-there on top. I was pleased to find hot pink stalks of rhubarb at my greenmarket, and by placing the strawberries on top of everything else, they get direct heat and concentrate into deep red jammy pops. Anyway, the whole thing was very pretty and tasted like a spring day.

For the recipe, see Everyday Dorie by Dorie Greenspan, and head over to Cook the Book Fridays to see all of our tarts this week.