Tuesdays with Dorie: Cornmeal Shortbread Cookies
April 26, 2011 at 12:01 am | Posted in cookies & bars, groups, sweet things, tuesdays with dorie | 15 CommentsTags: baking, cookies
If you are looking for a crunchy, buttery, sweet little cookie to serve with tea, Cornmeal Shortbread may your thing. A pop of citrus zest adds extra flavor (I used orange), and that little bit of grittiness from the cornmeal boosts the crumbly texture typical of shortbread. I’m glad to have a stash of extras in the freezer!
For the recipe, see Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan or read Une Gamine dans la Cuisine, as it was Valerie’s pick this week. Don’t forget to check out the TWD Blogroll!
French Fridays with Dorie: Mustard Bâtons
April 22, 2011 at 8:13 pm | Posted in french fridays w dorie, groups, other savory, savory things | 12 CommentsTags: baking, snacks
If you are looking for one of the easiest hors d’oeuvres ever, then look no further than Mustard Bâtons. Not only are they dead easy, they’re dead tasty, too. Take some ready-made puff-pastry, smear it with strong Dijon mustard and fold it over to encase the mustard. Then cut it into strips, eggwash and sprinkle with seeds or salt or pepper or whatever and bake until golden, crispy and flaky. Voilà! Enjoy with a glass of wine.
For the recipe, see Around my French Table by Dorie Greenspan (it’s also here on Dorie’s site). Don’t forget to check out my fellow francophiles’ posts!
Tuesdays with Dorie: A Tourtely Apple Tart
April 19, 2011 at 12:01 am | Posted in groups, pies & tarts, sweet things, tuesdays with dorie | 12 CommentsTags: baking, dessert, tarts
Thinner than your typical apple pie, this double-crusted Tourtely Apple Tart has a gently spiced, chunky applesauce sandwiched between layers of sweet tart dough. Since sweet tart dough is a cookie-like crust, the damp filling makes it soften up over time– in a very appealing way. Something about it reminded me of the Cranberry Shortbread Cake we made a while back. I think the way bumpy top crust drapes over the apple chunks is just beautiful. I look forward to making this again in the peak of apple season.
For the recipe, see Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan or read The Whimsical Cupcake, as it was Jeannette’s pick this week. Don’t forget to check out the TWD Blogroll!
Tuesdays with Dorie: Strawberry-Rhubarb Double Crisp
April 12, 2011 at 12:01 am | Posted in cobbler/crisp/shorties, groups, sweet things, tuesdays with dorie | 53 CommentsTags: baking, dessert, fruit
We’re in that weird in-between time of year when there really isn’t any good fruit here. The rhubarb has still not made its long-awaited (for me anyway) appearance at my Greenmarket, and the leftover apples just look like they’ve been banging around in storage for the last few months. This Strawberry-Rhubarb Double Crisp is so tasty that I wanted to make it again this past week before TWD posting, filled with whatever, but I couldn’t find any fruit that really spoke to me. Luckily, I do have a crisp to show you…one that I made at the end of last May, when the rhubarb was still around and the strawberries were red through and through. The combination made for an intensely colored and flavored fruit filling.
If you’d like to know what the heck a “double crisp” is, it’s a crisp with a topping AND a crust…so that makes it double good. In addition to the usual suspects like oats and nuts, this crisp mix has a gingery zip to it, which I king of dug, but if it’s not your thing, simply leave it out.
For the recipe, see Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan (it’s also here on NPR’s site) or read Teapots and Cake Stands, as it was Sarah’s pick this week. Don’t forget to check out the TWD Blogroll!
Tuesdays with Dorie: Pecan Powder Puffs
March 29, 2011 at 12:01 am | Posted in cookies & bars, groups, sweet things, tuesdays with dorie | 12 CommentsTags: baking, cookies
Even if you’ve never heard of a Pecan Powder Puff, you probably already know what’s up with these cookies. You’ve likely seen (and tasted) them under one of their other aliases: Russian tea cakes, Mexican wedding cookies, etc. Something that goes by that many names sounds a little sneaky, but if you like nuts, they are really one of the nicest little cookies you’ll come across.
These little puffs are full of ground pecans (although you could certainly use walnuts or almonds in their place). They get their sweetness mostly from a liberal coating of powdered sugar….preferably enough powdered sugar to make you cough a little bit…know what I mean? They are crumbly, but melt in your mouth. If it’s still chilly enough where you live for hot cocoa, the two are a perfect match. I wish I’d made them a little bigger. I wish I’d made more of them. *sigh*
For the recipe, see Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan or read Buttercream Barbie, as it was Tia’s pick this week. Don’t forget to check out the TWD Blogroll!
Tuesdays with Dorie: Honey-Nut Brownies
March 22, 2011 at 12:01 am | Posted in cookies & bars, groups, sweet things, tuesdays with dorie | 15 CommentsTags: baking, dessert
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve flipped through the book and wondered what this Honey-Nut Brownie would be like. Well, now I don’t have to wonder anymore. If, for you, the word “brownie” immediately calls to mind a rich, fudgey square of chocolatey goodness, then you may want to adjust your mindset a bit if you go off to make these. There is still goodness, but it is more cakey than fudgey, and tastes more of honey than chocolate. There is a little chocolate in the base, but “blondie” may be a better description here. A few extra chocolate chips in the batter and a quick ganache icing on top will boost the cacao factor, though, if that’s what your after.
Even though the texture is on the cakey side, it’s still chewy, I guess thanks to the honey. It occurred to me that slicing these brownies in half and sandwiching them with vanilla ice cream might be tasty. That’s what I did with half of my tray (I iced the other half with ganache). They weren’t firmed up by photo-time, but I assure you, they were pretty good!
I used Tremblay Apiaries’ Summerflower Honey and almonds in my brownies. For the recipe, see Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan or read Suzy Homemaker, as it was Suzy’s pick this week. Don’t forget to check out the TWD Blogroll!
Tuesdays with Dorie: Citrus-Currant Sunshine Muffins
March 15, 2011 at 12:01 am | Posted in breakfast things, groups, muffins/quick breads, tuesdays with dorie | 21 CommentsTags: baking, breakfast, muffins
Muffins– two weeks in a row! I actually made and ate last week’s muffins two+ years ago, so I was glad to have another batch pop up this week. These may look as sunny and yellow as last Tuesday’s, but that’s because of orange and lemon instead of corn. A good citrus kick keeps these muffins from being too sweet, so you don’t feel so guilty having them for brekkie. I swapped out spelt flour for about a third of the AP, just to health them up a bit more. And if my currants look a little purple, it’s because they’re actually dried wild blueberries. I would have used currants if I had them, but blueberries go well with the citrus anyway.
For the recipe, see Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan or read Bella Baker, as it was Lauryn’s pick this week. Don’t forget to check out the TWD Blogroll!
And, in case you missed it, Olive Oil Citrus Cake is another good way to brighten your day with Vitamin C.
Tuesdays with Dorie: Corniest Corn Muffins
March 8, 2011 at 12:01 am | Posted in breakfast things, groups, muffins/quick breads, tuesdays with dorie | 8 Comments
Boy howdy, did I ever jump the gun on this recipe. I made these Corniest Corn Muffins all the way back in 2008. We were still living in Sydeny…sheesh. But I do remember them. Even remember that we ate them with turkey chili instead of for breakfast (I reduced the sugar to 4 tablespoons for that reason).
Corn muffins are really little cornbreads. I’m well aware of the North vs South cornbread rivalry that divides a large chunk of our nation. I, however, did not grow up in a home with fierce opinions about “proper” cornbread. My parents were raised in the Midwest, and I don’t think this debate ever even crossed their minds, so, as a result, I, too, am a bit of an agnostic when it comes to cornbread. I’ll tell you what I liked about these muffins, though. I liked the kernels of fresh corn that gave them extra texture and craggy, golden tops. I liked their crumbly, grainy crumb and their little bit of sweetness. I’ve inherited my Grandpa W’s old cornstick molds (like these only vintage!)…perhaps I should see if these muffins make good sticks, too?
For the recipe, see Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan (it’s also here on Diner’s Journal) or read My Next Life, as it was Jill’s pick this week. Don’t forget to check out the TWD Blogroll!
French Fridays with Dorie: Savory Cheese and Scallion Bread
March 4, 2011 at 6:54 pm | Posted in french fridays w dorie, groups, quick breads, savory things | 19 CommentsTags: baking, bread
Cheese bread! cheesy bread! I went nuts when I saw this recipe was coming up for FFWD. Who the heck wouldn’t want to eat cheesy, onioney (is that a word?) homemade bread? I wanted to eat it so much that I made a whole big loaf, instead of a mini or half-loaf. We had some the day it was baked with homemade tomato soup– so good!– and some went into the freezer, because it will be awesome alongside scrambled eggs for a weekend breakfast.
If you shy away from making bread at home, or fear yeast, or whatever, don’t worry here. This is a quick bread, much like a muffin. In fact, you can even turn the loaf into cheese muffins, if you are so inclined. The original recipe uses chives, but I didn’t have any and used scallions instead. A combo of cheddar and Gruyère was just right, and made this a great, easy, cheesy bread that I’ll bake again and again.
For the recipe, see Around my French Table by Dorie Greenspan (it’s also on The Washington Post’s site). Don’t forget to check out my fellow francophiles’ posts!
Tuesdays with Dorie: Chocolate Pots de Crème
March 1, 2011 at 12:02 am | Posted in groups, pudding/mousse, sweet things, tuesdays with dorie | 13 Comments
Pots de Crème are baked custards…like pudding, but with the richness dialed up. Lots of cream and yolks means a little portion can go a long way (although I’m confident I could consume a couple of these babies if I really wanted to). First you make a tempered egg custard… Dorie didn’t mention straining it, but I did because the thought of those little white egg squigglies gives me shivers…and then you stir in ganache. After you portion the mix into your little “pots” you bake them in a covered water bath (Dorie says you can bake it covered with plastic wrap, but I used foil instead because I’m suspicious of hot plastics). Let them chill, and you have quite a luxurious treat. I don’t see why you couldn’t mess around by adding some flavors that play well with chocolate, like a dash vanilla extract, a sprinkle of espresso powder or a wee bit of booze.
For the recipe, see Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan or read Black Cat Cooking, as Christine picked it this week. Don’t forget to check out the TWD Blogroll!
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