Category: Food
Chewy Black Sesame Rice Cake #CakeforTimmy

Chewy Black Sesame Rice Cake #CakeforTimmy

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I first made Eric Kim’s Chewy Black Sesame Mochi Cake after a “Bake-a-long” with him, a perk for purchasing his book, Korean American. I was on a “mochi-bender”, if a recipe called for sweet or glutinous rice, I made it.  His cake is not only made with mochi, it has black sesame seeds.  I LOVE sesame seeds in any form, game on.

Bake-A-long

For those of you who #1 Have read this far down, #2  Pretty darn observant…yes, the Bake-A-Long was quite a while ago.  While I loved the sesame flavor and texture of the cake, not gonna lie, the cake was pretty sweet.  Eric seems to have a pretty high sugar barometer.  I made a mental note to file it away in my brain to try again with a smidge less sugar.

52 Reasons To Try It Again

For all the evils of social media (I say this with a half chuckle) the best thing about it has been finding my peeps.  Finding folks with similar interests that I would never in a million years have connected with if not for Facebook or Instagram. A virtual community that shares a common interest.  Groups like Food52’s Cookbook Club on Facebook (yep, you need to use FB) where folks like you and I can share recipes, reviews, and kitchen adventures.

Each month features a new (or old) cookbook, which, if you are like me, a cookbook addict, probably have or are in the process of getting.  It gives me that little shove to open up that cookbook and try it.  It’s also a great resource for tips and reviews for many of the recipes.

This month the selected cookbook is Korean American by Eric Kim.  Which reminded me that I haven’t made anything from it in a while.  Time to tweak that Chewy Black Sesame Rice Cake again.

Oops, I Did It Again.  But as Muffins

I decreased the amount of sugar in the recipe and made muffins instead of a cake.  Kinda like having my own personal dessert.

Sweet or glutinous rice flour is not to be confused with rice flour.  Sweet rice is much stickier than rice flour.  They are not interchangeable.  Koda Farms sweet rice is known as Mochiko and is pretty easy to find especially at Asian grocery stores.

Black sesame seeds can be found at most grocery stores in the spice section.  Asian grocery stores will also carry sesame seeds in larger quantities and not quite as expensive.  You

To reduce the sweetness cut sugar by 1/4 to 1/2 cup.  I cut it by 1/2 and it was still sweet enough for my taste. You may have to play with a little.  The time between making the original recipe (full sugar load) and when I made the muffins with half sugar taxes my memory as to whether the texture was different

The batter is fairly runny and pourable.  Very doable as a cake or muffins.  Shorten baking time to 20-25 minutes if making muffins.

Looking for something just a little different, gluten-free, and delicious, look no more, it’s right here.

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Chewy Black Sesame Rice Cake

A delicious, dense, chewy, sesame flavored cake from Eric Kim
Course Dessert
Cuisine Asian-American
Keyword Black Sesame Seed, cake, chewy, ERic KIm, Mochi
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour

Equipment

  • 1 9 inch cake pan or
  • 1 12-cup std muffin pan

Ingredients

  • Cooking spray or butter and flour with plain rice flour

Eggs and Tings'

  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 cup sugar (it's pretty sweet, I use 1/2 cup)
  • ¼ cup honey mild
  • ¾ teaspoon kosher salt

The Wet Stuff

  • 1 cup whole milk
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter melted
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract yes, 1 TABLESPOON
  • ½ teaspoon toasted sesame oil

The Crunch

  • 4 tablespoons toasted black sesame seeds divided equally in half

The Dry Stuff

  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 8 ounces (227g) glutinous rice flour aka mochiko or sweet rice flour NOT plain rice flour

The Finish

  • Powdered sugar for serving

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350°F. Mist an 8-inch round cake pan with cooking spray or buttered and dusted with rice flour.
  • In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, sugar, honey, and salt until fluffy and pale yellow, about 2 minutes. Whisk in the milk, vanilla, melted butter, and sesame oil until combined. Ain't gonna lie, I use my mixer on medium speed.
  • Using a mortar and pestle (or a coffee/spice grinder), pulverize 2 tablespoons of the black sesame seeds into a rough powder. It should smell very fragrant. Add this sesame powder, along with the remaining 2 tablespoons of whole black sesame seeds, to the bowl with the egg mixture, followed by the baking powder and rice flour. Whisk to combine, then carefully pour the batter into the greased cake pan. This part you can do by hand or machine.
  • Bake until the top is nicely browned and cracked slightly (this is a good sign), 50 to 60 minutes. You can also insert a chopstick or toothpick into the center of the cake, and if it comes out clean, then it’s done.
    For muffins, fill a 12-cup muffin tin that has been buttered to 7/8 full. Bake for approximately 25 minutes.
  • Cool completely before dusting with the powdered sugar and slicing into wedges to serve. The cake will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
Gochujang Caramel Cookies Sweet & Spicy-Winner, Winner from Eric Kim-mer

Gochujang Caramel Cookies Sweet & Spicy-Winner, Winner from Eric Kim-mer

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My favorite cookie this past holiday season was Eric Kim’s Gochujang Caramel Cookie.   I worked my way to writing about it by posting my two other favorite new cookies for the season first, Sue Li’s Orange, Pistachio, and Chocolate Shortbread and Rose’s Almond Crescents. Yep, just like the ones your Grandma, Abuela, Oma, or Nonna probably made.

Back to Eric’s holiday cookie for the New York Times.  His first holiday cookie, a couple of years ago was a homemade version of the Lofthouse Grocery Store Cookie.  A cakey, vanilla-forward cookie topped with real buttercream flavored with freeze-dried berries and finished with a generous amount of sprinkles.  So damn good.  Last year’s M&M Cookie, a kid favorite, is a buttery, chewy cookie, dotted with M&M’s, a precursor to this year’s cookie.

Sweet & Spicy

His Gochujang Caramel Cookie is a bold stroke of genius and gumption.  Gochujang is a fermented spicy chili paste with a touch of sweetness, a mainstay of Korean cooking.  But in a cookie?  It works! Ribbons of Gochujang enveloped in a buttery, chewy, vanilla-forward cookie. Butter and brown sugar are mixed into the Gochujang paste to mellow the chili which helps caramelize it while baking.   The trickiest part when making these is to not overmix the Gochujang butter into the cookie dough so you see the orange-colored swirls of Gochujang in the cookie. Not only do they taste fabulous, but they are visually stunning.

Easy Peasy

The key to making these is having soft butter.  Leave the butter at room temperature for at least an hour before. The butter should be soft but not melty.  Although he recommends making these by hand you can use a mixer.  Remember the golden rule-don’t overmix!  If you use a mixer,  stick to the stir and the low-speed setting.

Watch Eric make these cookies for NYTcooking HERE.

Spicy Pearls of Wisdom- Gochujang Paste is made of chili flakes for heat, glutinous rice for sweetness, and fermented soybeans for flavor.  It is a cornerstone of Korean cooking.  I use the mild paste for the cookies as it does come in various heat levels.  You can find it in most Asian grocery stores or TJ has small tubs of Gochujang made in Korea (full transparency, I haven’t tried it).

Here’s the Hard Part

The tricky part is combining the gochujang butter with the cookie dough.  Eric calls for chilling the cookie dough for a couple of minutes so it is denser than the paste.  The goal is to have streaks of the orange-red paste running through the lighter vanilla dough.  Bites vary in spiciness and sweetness if you don’t blend too much (upping the interest factor).  Spread plops of the paste on the dough and run a small spatula through it to drag the paste into the dough.  NOT TOO MUCH since when you scoop out the dough this will further blend it.  Use a cookie scoop to form balls of dough.  A #40 scoop will give you approximately 18 cookies about 3 inches in diameter with crisp edges and a chewy center.  Reduce baking time to 9-11 minutes.  These are a bit smaller than Eric’s cookie cause I don’t need to eat a 5+ inch cookie and trust me I would, lol.

Cookie Hack

The cookies spread quite a bit so allow lots of space on your cookie sheet for each cute dough ball.  This also allows room around the cookie to use my jar hack/cookie cutter to shape the cookies as soon as they come out of the oven.  The chili paste will spread more than the cookie itself creating a funny-shaped cookie.  Take a cup or a bowl just a little bit bigger than the cookie, place it over the cookie and swirl the cup and cookie.  This “rounds” the cookie out.

Spicy Tip Number 2? Or is it 3?

Have friends and fam that are spice adverse?  Tell them to pick the cookie that is the least amount of orange!

I adore this cookie for its flavor, texture, and uniqueness!

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Gochujang Caramel Cookies

From Eric Kim and NYTcooking, my favorite cookie this past year! Gochujang Caramel Cookies
Course cookies, Dessert
Cuisine Asian-American, Korean-American
Keyword gochujang, Gochujang Caramel Cookie, holiday cookies
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 11 minutes

Ingredients

Gochujang Butter

  • 1 tablespoon unsalted butter very soft
  • 2 tablespoons packed dark brown sugar
  • 1 tablespoon gochujang paste heaping

Creamed Mixture

  • 7 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
  • 1 cup granulated sugar (200 grams)
  • 1 large egg at room temperature
  • ½ teaspoon coarse kosher salt (Morton's) or ¾ teaspoon if using Diamond Crystal
  • ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Dry Stuff

  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • 1½ cups all-purpose flour 185 grams

Instructions

  • In a small bowl, stir together 1 tablespoon butter, the brown sugar and gochujang until smooth. Set aside for later, at room temperature.
  • In a large bowl, by hand, whisk together the remaining 7 tablespoons butter, the granulated sugar, egg, salt, cinnamon and vanilla until smooth, about 1 minute. Switch to a flexible spatula and stir in the baking soda. Add the flour and gently stir to combine. Place this large bowl in the refrigerator until the dough is less sticky but still soft and pliable, 15 to 20 minutes.
  • While the dough is chilling, heat the oven to 350 degrees and line 2 large sheet pans with parchment.
  • Remove the dough from the refrigerator. In 3 to 4 separately spaced out blobs, spoon the gochujang mixture over the cookie dough. Moving in long circular strokes, swirl the gochujang mixture into the cookie dough so you have streaks of orange-red rippled throughout the beige. Be sure not to overmix at this stage, as you want wide, distinct strips of gochujang.
  • Use an ice cream scoop to plop out ¼-cup rounds spaced at least 3 inches apart on the sheet pans. (You should get 4 to 5 cookies per pan.) Bake until lightly golden at the edges and dry and set in the center, 11 to 13 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through. Let cool completely on the sheet pan; the cookies will flatten slightly and continue cooking as they cool. *See post for making smaller cookies. I used a #40 scoop which is just shy of an ounce. 1/4 cup is 2 ounces for comparison.
  • The cookies will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days.

Notes

Mixing this dough by hand is highly recommended for the most defined crinkles and the chewiest texture.
NCOTB #3 Almond Crescents Old School New

NCOTB #3 Almond Crescents Old School New

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A couple of months ago I reviewed Rose Levy Beranbaum’s new book, The Cookie Bible for Net Gallery.  Long a fan of hers I was excited to take a peek at her latest work, it did not disappoint.  My favorite book is Rose’s Christmas Cookie Book, the bible of Christmas Cookies.  Her attention to detail and explanation of ingredients and techniques guarantee success for even the most novice baker.

The Cookie Leap

Rose’s Christmas Cookies expanded my cookie-verse.  I went from baking chocolate chip cookies (a damn good one though) to making spritz, cut-outs, and crescent cookies-fancy-schmancy festive cookies.  Every Christmas, Rose’s Christmas Cookies is front and center on my kitchen counter.

One of my favorites from this book is Rose’s Crescents.  The fact that there are so many variants is indicative of their deliciousness and universal appeal.  Austrian Viennese Crescents, Mexican Wedding Cookies, Greek Kourabiedes, and Snowballs-all start with ground nuts, flour, sugar, and butter mixed together and baked into a buttery, blissful bite. Rose tweaked hers, instead of rolling the cookies in powdered sugar, they are rolled in a mixture of superfine sugar and cinnamon.  Sublime.

Here’s the Good Part

She includes directions on how to make certain recipes in a food processor.  Not all cookies can be made in a processor but the ones you can, simplify the process and shorten the time.  No more waiting for the butter to come to room temp.  It is essentially a one-bowl recipe, how great is that?

The Food Process

Place almonds and sugar in a food processor bowl and process until almonds are very finely ground.  Cut butter into pieces and with the motor running, add butter and process until smooth and creamy.  Scrape down the sides and add flour and salt and pulse to incorporate the flour.  Remove the dough from the processor and gather it into a disc.  Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour until firm.

I use a #50 or #60 ice cream scoop (1 tablespoon plus of dough). Roll dough into a cylinder about 2.5-3 inches long.  The dough softens quickly so work fast, use your fingers to roll as your palm has more heat.  As you roll the dough into cylinders, put a bit more pressure on the ends to taper them.  Pinch the ends to fine-tune the shape into points.

I have also made these smaller using a #70 scoop when I want dainty little tea cookies.

I love these cookies.  Don’t wait until the holidays to make them!

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Rose's Crescents

Buttery, tender, melt-in-your-mouth cookies, Almond Crescents from Rose's Christmas Cookies.
Course cookies, desserts, holiday dish
Cuisine American
Keyword almond, cinnamon sugar, holiday cookies, Rose's Crescents
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 16 minutes

Ingredients

The Creamed Mixture

  • 1 c. Unsalted Butter 8 ounces or 227 grams
  • ⅓ c. Sugar 2.25 ounces or 66 grams
  • ⅔ c. Sliced Blanched Almonds 2 ounces or 56 grams

The Dry Ingredients

  • 1⅔ c. All Purpose Flour (prefer Gold Medal or Pillsbury AP flour) 8.25 ounces or 235 grams See notes regarding flour
  • ¼ tsp. Salt

Topping:

  • ½ c. Sugar 100 grams
  • ½ tsp. Cinnamon

Instructions

  • Pre-heat oven to 325º.
  • Place almonds and sugar in food processor or blender and process until nuts are finely ground; set aside. See notes in post for making in food processor.
  • Cream butter in large mixing bowl. Add almond mixture; beat until light and fluffy. Gradually mix in flour and salt until well blended.
  • Shape dough into a large flat disk; wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate 1 hour or until firm.
  • For topping, combine sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl; set aside.
  • Work with one-fourth of the dough at a time; refrigerate remaining dough. Shape dough into ¾ inch balls; roll each into a 3-inch log. Place on unbuttered cookie sheet 1 inch apart. Shape into crescents.
  • Bake 14 to 16 minutes or until set but not brown. Cool on cookie sheet for 10 minutes. While still warm, remove cookies from cookie sheets. Dip into cinnamon sugar turning gently to coat. Finish cooling on wire racks.

Notes

So, why did I specify Gold Medal Flour.  Rose's Christmas Cookies was first published in 1990.  At the time, King Arthur Flour and other Small Company Mills were not widely known.  The standard, easy to get flour was Gold Medal or Pillsbury Flour, bleached all-purpose flour.  The protein content of which is slightly lower than King Arthur or Central Milling.  This can impact your cookies in terms of tenderness and spread.
For cookie recipes I have that date back quite a few years, I use Gold Medal Flour.  If you have Rose's newest book, she will specify the flour to use.  Recipes these days, I check to see what the author has specified first.  More than likely I'll use King Arthur (that's what I normally have in my kitchen) but during the holidays I always have a stash of Gold Medal too!
NCOTB #2 Orange, Pistachio and Chocolate Shortbread (New Cookies on the Block)

NCOTB #2 Orange, Pistachio and Chocolate Shortbread (New Cookies on the Block)

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Yay, the Twelve Seven Eight Days of Christmas Cookies!

The best-laid plans of mice and me…sometimes need a tweak.  Actually, not to pat myself on the back or anything, I think I did pretty “good”.  In between holiday baking we took a quick trip to Seattle. Four days of eating, walking, visiting the Space Needle and the Chihuly Garden and Glass, and watching the Forty-Niners beat the Seahawks!  I still managed to bake 8 days of Christmas cookies!

Our holiday cookie box is a mix of old and new cookies.  The tried and true include Scottish Shortbread, Jan Hagel’s (my mom’s favorite), Pecan Tartlets, and the mandatory jam-filled cookie, Dorie’s Jammers (the perfect choice).

The NCOTB (new cookies on the block, a nod to all you boy band fans) include a couple from this year’s New York Times Holiday Cookies.  My favorite of the bunch is Eric Kim’s Gochujang Caramel Cookies (I’ve made three batches already).  Crispy edges, chewy center, buttery with a sweet kick from the Gochujang paste, it’s different and delightful. My other favorite (can you have two favorites?) is Sue Li’s Orange, Pistachio, and Chocolate Shortbread.  Buttery shortbread studded with candied orange peel, green pistachios, and dark chocolate for a visually fun and tasty cookie.

Cookie Caveat

But, the first time I read through the recipe and NOTES (ALWAYS read the notes, foodies are not shy about sharing their opinion of a dish) it became clear that there were a couple of hitches in the recipe.  My OCD-Sherlockian-Watson persona took over.  I poured over the comments and scrutinized the measurements and directions (occupatinal hazard, I’m a pediatric pharmacist).

My dear NYTCooking – Something is afoot, there are discrepancies in the volumes and weights for this recipe, where are your editors? LOL. 3 cups of flour is not 419 grams.  3/4 cup of granulated sugar is not 175 grams.  So, I set about to modify the recipe as best I could:

  • I used 375 grams of King Arthur AP Flour aligning with std measurements for a cup since there were quite a few comments that the dough was too dry & crumbly.
  • Sue Li commented once to use 175 grams of sugar, so that’s what I used.  If there is wiggle room it would be with the sugar, use 150 grams for a not-as-sweet cookie.
  • The butter is also off, I opted to go by weight not volume.
  • I added 1 tsp vanilla, which couldn’t hurt plus added a bit more moisture.

The dough came together nicely.  Do not overmix, once it starts to clump, stop and gather together.

The 8-hour chilling time in the original recipe allows the flour to absorb moisture and hold together.  The modifications result in a nice, moist dough.  You may not need an 8-hour chill time.  The dough needs to be solid enough to slice and still hold its shape.

See how “purdy” the orange, green, and brown specks are?!

The finished cookie was buttery, with a fine crumb texture, with the candied orange, pistachios, and chocolate taking it over the holiday top.  Luckily I squirreled away some dough in the freezer (the beauty of slice-and-bake cookies) that will be lovely on New Year’s Eve with a glass of bubbly!

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5 from 1 vote

Orange, Pistachio and Chocolate Shortbread

From NYTcooking, a buttery shortbread studded with candied orange, pistachios, and chocolate perfect for the holidays!
Course cookies, Dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword Dark chocolate, orange, pistachios, Shortbread
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Chilling Time 8 hours

Ingredients

Flour Mixture

  • 3 cups all-purpose flour (375 grams)
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt such as Diamond Crystal or 1/2 t table salt

Butter Mixture

  • 1-1/4 cups unsalted butter (284 grams) at room temperature
  • 3/4 cup granulated sugar (175gms) 175gms =
  • 1 large egg yolk

Add-Ins

  • 1/2 cup candied orange peel (76 grams) roughly chopped
  • 1/2 cup shelled unsalted pistachios (76 grams) roughly chopped
  • 4 ounces bittersweet chocolate coarsely chopped

Instructions

  • Whisk together flour and salt in a medium bowl. Combine butter and sugar in a large bowl, or in the bowl of a stand mixer. Using an electric mixer (fitted with the paddle attachment if using a stand mixer), beat at medium-high speed until the mixture is pale in color, about 2 minutes, periodically scraping down the sides with a rubber spatula (don't skip this, it makes a difference). Add egg yolk and blend until combined.
  • Add flour mixture and mix on low until combined. If there are dried bits of flour left around the bowl, use a rubber spatula to smoosh them in with the dough. Add orange peel, pistachios and chopped chocolate, fold in with a rubber spatula. (The dough will be crumbly (although with the modifications, less so). If necessary, use the electric mixer to add the mix-ins, or work them in with your hands until fully incorporated.)
  • To form the cookies, line an 8 by 8-inch baking pan with plastic wrap and leave a generous amount of overhang on all sides. Transfer the dough to the prepared pan and press firmly to flatten in an even layer. Cover with plastic wrap and chill dough for 8 hours or overnight before baking.
  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
  • Using the plastic wrap overhang, remove the dough from the pan and cut the square into three equal rectangles. It's going to be tough to get out of the pan but just be patient and pull gently on the plastic to gradually remove from pan.
  • Cut each rectangle crosswise into roughly 1⁄3-inch-thick slices and lay them flat on the prepared baking sheets, about 3⁄4-inch apart. (If the dough crumbles when slicing, simply push the mixture together to reform the cookie.) Bake until lightly golden on the bottom but still blonde on the edges, 15 to 17 minutes.
  • Remove from the oven, allow cookies to cool on the sheets. The cookies will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week.
Apple Almond Galette (You’re the Apple of My Pie)

Apple Almond Galette (You’re the Apple of My Pie)

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When the fall season rolls around, apples begin to crop up at our farmer’s market.  Gone are the days when the only available apples were Red or Golden Delicious (thank goodness)!  The variety of apples is mindblowing.  My intention is to just get a few, but I invariably end up with what feels like a bushel of apples.

Here, There, and Everywhere…Apples

This is why I am constantly bookmarking recipes that sound wonderful and highlight apples knowing full well I won’t be able to resist the fall bounty of apples.  Luckily, I found an Apple Almond Galette from Zoe Bakes.  It’s the perfect recipe “to show off them apples”.  Get a combination of apples, Fujis, Mutsus, Braeburns, Jonagolds, or Honeycrisps.  Yes, you can get them ALL these days.

Better yet, you don’t have to peel the apples as the PEEL is part of the apPEAL of this galette, it’s a win-win and why you want a variety of apples.  Use a mandolin (carefully) to thinly slice the apples.  A knife is very doable, it will just take a bit longer than a mandolin.  The filling is an almond cream easily made in a food processor and consists of almond paste, eggs, butter, and a touch of almond extract.  A lovely combination-apples and almonds.

For the galette crust, I used Dorie’s pie dough (1/2 recipe), but feel free to use your favorite pie crust.  You will need enough dough to create a 13 to 14-inch circle.  Roll your dough on parchment paper so you can then slide it all onto a baking sheet, easy peasy.  Spread the almond filling in the center of the dough leaving a 2-inch border.  Next, take stacks of your sliced apples and arrange them ARTFULLY on the almond filling.  Then fold the edge of the dough over the apples.

The finished galette is not only gorgeous, it’s delicious.  Serve it with softly whipped cream or ice cream.

This galette is now part of our holiday dessert menu every year. It’s a keeper!

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Apple Almond Galette

A rustic, delicious riff on apple pie. The apples sit on a layer of almond cream encased in a buttery, flakey pie crust.
Course Dessert, Snack
Cuisine American
Keyword almond cream, Apple galette, apples, zoe bakes
Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes

Equipment

  • 1 mandolin optional
  • 1 food processor

Ingredients

Pie Crust

  • 1 recipe of Dorie's pie dough will make 2 galettes

Almond Cream Filling

  • 4 oz almond paste
  • 2 tbsp unsalted butter room temperature
  • 1 tbsp all-purpose flour
  • 2 tbsp sugar
  • 1 egg yolk
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1/2 tsp almond extract

Da Apples

  • 5 large Apples thinly sliced on a mandoline or use a sharp knife and slice
  • Egg wash 1 egg mixed with 1 tablespoon water
  • 2 tbsp granulated sugar for sprinkling over top Can substitute raw or Demerara sugar

Instructions

Galette shell: Use Dorie's Pie crust recipe link below

  • Roll the chilled pie dough to an 1/8-inch-thick circle = 13-14" circle on a piece of parchment paper on a baking sheet or slide the parchment onto a baking sheet.

Almond Cream

  • In a food processor blend the almond paste, flour, sugar, butter, almond and vanilla extracts and yolk until smooth. Spread over the center of the dough, leaving about a 2-inch ring on the outside.

Assemble

  • Arrange apples over the almond cream. Fold the uncovered dough over the apples and pleat to keep it in place. Freeze the galette while you preheat the oven to 425°F.
  • Brush the crust with the egg wash and sprinkle the sugar over the crust and apples.
  • Bake at 425°F for 20 minutes, then reduce the heat to 350°F and bake for an additional 25 minutes or until the apples are tender. Allow the galette to cool to room temperature before sliding it onto a serving plate.
  • Garnish with toasted almonds if you like and serve with a bit of Greek yogurt or whipped cream or ice cream (I like vanilla!).

Notes

Dorie's pie crust recipe
Back to My Lotus ROOTS (Renkon No Kinpira)


Back to My Lotus ROOTS (Renkon No Kinpira)


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We are always looking for ways to increase our veggie intake.  Part of the problem is our everyday veggies are BORING.  Let me clarify, Veggies aren’t boring, it’s our method of prep.  We should be arrested for vegetable prep neglect and indifference.  We often find ourselves nuking frozen corn or mixed veggies as we sit down to eat. Veggies are a sad afterthought.

No More

Expanding our veggie-verse has become a priority.  What we have discovered are the veggie-centric dishes such as Chinese Cucumbers, Indian Dal, Aloo Gobi, Korean Banchan,  or Japanese Tsukemono.  Make batches ahead of time so dinner on a busy night means pulling out the Tupperware from the fridge.  Win-win!

One of my favorites is Kinpira Renkon or Stir-fry lotus root.  Make a batch and store it in the fridge.  Super simple to make and a delicious accompaniment to rice.  I tweaked the recipe to include carrots and cloud ears (black cloud mushrooms).  Look for fresh lotus root in Asian supermarkets, it is mild in flavor, crunchy, and delish.   It also comes vacuum-packed, sliced, and ready to use.  If you can’t find it, Jicama might work.

Slice the lotus root and place it in water with a touch of vinegar.  Julienne the carrots, and soften the cloud ear mushrooms in warm water.  That’s it. The veggies are then sauteed’ in soy sauce, Mirin (cooking wine), and sesame oil.  Easy peasy.

Enjoy!

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Simmered Lotus Root (Renkon no kinpira)


An easy Japanese stir fry veggie dish
Course Appetizer, Side Dish
Cuisine Asian, Asian-American, Japanese
Keyword black fungus, Carrots, Kimpira, lotus root
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 5 minutes

Ingredients

The Star

  • 2-2.5 cups lotus root peeled and thinly sliced
  • 2 Cups water or enough water to cover lotus root
  • 2 Tsp vinegar

The Supporting Cast

  • 1/2 cup carrots julienned
  • 1 T dried cloud ear mushrooms Once soaked will yield about 1/3 cup
  • 1 tbsp toasted sesame oil
  • 1 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 2 tbsp mirin
  • 2 tbsp soy sauce or tamari

To Finish:

  • 1 tsp toasted sesame seeds
  • dash of chili flakes or 1 small fresh chili pepper, thinly sliced, for milder version de-seed and de-vein pepper optional (shichimi togarashi is recommended)
  • 1 stalk green onion, diced optional

Instructions

  • Soak the lotus slices in cold water and vinegar for 10 minutes and drain and rinse a couple of times.
  • In a large saucepan over high heat, warm both oils. Once hot, add the lotus root slices and cook until they become soft, 4-5 minutes. Add carrots halfway through cooking time. Stir in the mirin, soy sauce/tamari and reduce heat to low. Add cloud ears when you add the sauce ingredients to pan.
  • Simmer until the marinade has almost disappeared.
  • Remove from heat, sprinkle with sesame seeds and shichimi togarashi prior to serving.

Notes

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Simmered Lotus Root (Renkon no kimpira)

Alternate recipe

Instructions

  • Peel and rinse the lotus root. Cut it in half and then thinly slice about 4-6mm thickness. Add the vinegar to the water and soak the lotus root in the vinegary water for about 3 minutes.
  • Julienned carrots and black fungus. Set aside.
  • De-seed and finely chop the chili pepper or slice into thin rings.
  • Heat sesame oil over medium heat and stir fry the lotus root. Once almost finished cooking (about 75% and starting to look more translucent), add the sake, mirin and sugar. Cook for about 2 minutes or until liquid is mostly evaporated. Add the soy sauce and fry for 1 minute, or until most of the sauce is soaked up. Lastly toss in the chili pepper and sesame seeds. Remove from burner, serve and enjoy!
Yet Another Peanut Butter Cookie, Soft and Chewy

Yet Another Peanut Butter Cookie, Soft and Chewy

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Peanuttttt, peanut butter….cookie!  If asked what my favorite cookies are, Shortbread, Snickerdoodles, and Thumbprints immediately come to mind.  Peanut Butter Cookies would not make the cut and yet a quick search of 3Jamigos will reveal more than a few recipes for peanut butter cookies.  This leads to my 🤦🏻‍♀️ forehead slap moment  “I LOVE peanut butter cookies, they should be on my fav list.” Life’s little epiphanies.

The other night our postcard posse reconvened to write cards for Reverend Warnock in Georgia.  How he is in a run-off with Hershel Walker is beyond me and beyond the scope of this blog.  I made a half-hearted promise to keep this site apolitical.  Just food, friends, and fluff.  So in the immortal words of Forest Gump… “that’s all I have to say about that.”

For our postcard session against He who shall not be named, my friend’s daughter, Avery, of Kentucky Butter Cake fame, dropped off some just baked Peanut Butter Cookies for our crew.  I’m sure in solidarity and because she loves to bake (and she is darn good at it).

One Bite…

and I knew there was going to be yet another peanut butter cookie recipe on 3Jamigos.  Yep, Avery’s PB Cookies were tender, chewy in the center, super peanut buttery, sweet, and salty, and just darn delicious.  I got on the horn (ok, I texted) faster than you can say Mr. Planter’s Peanuts and asked “can I PLEASEEE have the recipe”.

Lucky Her Mom Likes Me

Voila’ the recipe showed up in my text message, lickity-split.  Adapted from a very cute blog Dessert Now Dinner Later, the recipe for Thick and Chewy Peanut Butter Cookies is easy and does not require chilling before baking.  You can have a batch of these bad boys done in less than an hour.

I use King Arthur flour which has a higher protein than GM or Pillsbury.  Feel free to bake off a test cookie, if it spreads too much, add a bit of flour.

Cream the butter and sugar for 1-2 minutes until it is well blended and smooth looking, not fluffy.

Add the peanut butter, egg, and vanilla.  If you like more texture, feel free to use chunky peanut butter.  Beat until well combined.

Add the flour mixture and mix on low speed just until combined with no remaining traces of flour.  Do not overbeat as this will toughen the cookie.

Use a #40 scoop (approximately 1.6 tablespoons) and place the dough on a parchment-lined cookie sheet.  Bake one sheet at a time.  Cause that’s how I roll or row actually, lol.  The final cookies will be just shy of 3 inches in diameter.

The cookies on top were baked for 12 minutes.  The cookies on the bottom with sprinkles, about 11 minutes.

This would be a lovely holiday cookie to gift or for Santa along with an ice-cold glass of milk or a hot toddy (don’t tell the kids).

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Peanut Butter Cookies

A thick but tender Peanut Butter Cookie that is delicious and easy to make!
Course cookies, Dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword Dessert Now, Dinner Later, easy recipe, peanut butter, Peanut Butter Cookies
Prep Time 15 minutes

Ingredients

Dry Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp salt

Ingredients to Cream together

  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter softened
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/2 cup light brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter or chunky if you like I use Skippy Natural Style peanut butter
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 tsp vanilla

Options

  • chocolate chips or sprinkles, raw sugar, Maldon Salt

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lined cookie sheets with parchment or silpat. (note silpats retain heat, check cookies a minute or two earlier.
  • In a small bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, and salt, using a whisk.
  • Cream the butter and sugars together in the bowl of a stand mixer for 1-2 minutes until well combined. Batter should be smooth and creamy not fluffy which would give you cakey cookies. Use the paddle attachment.
  • Add the peanut butter, egg, and vanilla. Mix well and scrape the bowl.
  • Add flour mixture to the butter mixture all at once and mix on low speed just until incorporated.
  • Scoop dough onto parchment-lined baking sheets about 2 inches apart. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes or until just set*.
  • Allow cookies to cool slightly on the sheet for approximately 2 minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack. Store cookies in an airtight container.

Notes

For softer, chewier cookies, bake approximately 10 minutes, +/- 30 seconds.  The cookies will not color much and the top may still have some sheen.  The cookies will continue to bake outside the oven.  
For a denser, cookie that's a bit crumbly (in a good way), bake for 12 minutes.  The cookies will have some color on top and the edge.  The bottoms will be a bit darker.
Feel free to embellish. Add mini-chocolate chips to dough or add sprinkles.  I use a blend of dark chocolate sprinkles, Demerara Sugar or raw sugar, and a sprinkle of Maldon Salt.
Ritz Cookies (Crackers in Your Cookies?)

Ritz Cookies (Crackers in Your Cookies?)

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Cracker for crackers like me?  I love crackers, the perfect vehicle for dips, spreads, and cheese…it is the ultimate edible utensil.  Taking its place as the number one cracker in my book is Ritz Crackers.  Buttery, golden, flaky rounds that go with everything.

When I find a recipe that uses crackers…I’m all there, Babee.  I know it’s gonna be good, especially if it calls for Ritz Crackers.  One of my favorite desserts is the Atlantic Beach Pie, a delicious, easy, Lemon Pie with a whipped cream top instead of meringue and a Ritz Cracker crust, a play on salty and sweet.

On the main dish front, I love Eric Kim’s Ritzy Cheddar Chicken Breasts, chicken breasts coated in a sour cream-mustard mixture, and rolled in crushed Ritz Crackers and cheddar cheese, think Shake and Bake but WAY better.

DUH

So, when I came across a recipe from Christina Tosi of Milk Bar fame, for a Ritz Cookie, little alarms went off in my head.  GOTTA MAKE THESE ASAP.  Tosi is known for her delicious, quirky desserts like Crack Pie, Compost Cookies, and my personal favorite, Corn Cookies.  I immediately headed to the kitchen to make a batch.

These cookies are pretty darn easy to make.  It calls for butter, granulated sugar, flour, egg, milk powder, and Ritz Crackers. The recipe is on Christina Tosi’s website and as such is pretty casually written, I’ve added some details to hopefully clarify some of the steps.  Let’s get started.

Puttin In the Ritz

Combine dry ingredients in a bowl and set aside.  Break up Ritz Crackers into pieces, not too small.

Though the type of butter is not specified, I used unsalted butter which worked fine.  If you want a pronounced sweet-salty vibe, start with salted butter instead, or sprinkle Fleur de Sel or your choice of finishing salt on the cookies as soon as they come out of the oven.  Beat butter and sugar until combined and smooth not fluffy.

Add the egg (I might add a touch of vanilla next time too-1 tsp), and beat well.  Add dry mix and blend on low speed just until combined.  Once the flour is added, don’t beat too much.  You don’t want tough cookies.

Add the Ritz Crackers!  Note how big the pieces are.

On low speed, stir until the crackers are mixed into the dough.  This breaks the larger pieces into smaller ones which is what you want.  You don’t want cracker dust.  Refrigerate dough for 30 minutes, this helps a bit with excessive spread.

Using a 2-tablespoon scoop, form dough balls, and place on a parchment-lined sheet.  Word of caution, they spread quite a bit so space at 2-3 inches apart.  I also tried a 3-tablespoon scoop, interestingly enough it didn’t spread that much more than the 2-tablespoon scoop and formed a thicker cookie.

To create round cookies, as soon as you remove the cookies from the oven, quickly shape each cookie with a spatula or cover each with a  glass cup and swirl the cookie around.  Voila’ round cookie.  Cookies on the left were made with a 3-tablespoon scoop while the ones on the right were with a 2-tablespoon scoop.  Thinner cookies were a bit chewier.

Bake Time

The original recipe calls for 1/4 cup or 4-tablespoon scoop, 10-12 minutes.  These still took about 11 minutes despite less dough.  The bottoms were definitely a toasty brown, the edges crispy, and the center chewy and sturdy. Start checking early, as they color quickly. Remove when there is still a hint of sheen on the top of the cookie.  The cookies will continue to cook out of the oven.

Enjoy!

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Ritz Cracker Cookie by Christina Tosi

A buttery, crispy-edged, sweet-salty, chewy-centered cookie, thanks to Ritz Crackers!
Course cookies, Dessert, Snack
Cuisine American
Keyword Chewy Toasted Sesame Cookies, christina tosi, cookies, Crispy, Ritz Crackers, sweet-salty
Prep Time 15 minutes

Ingredients

Creamed Mixture

  • 2 sticks unsalted butter (1 cup) at room temperature
  • 1-3/4 cups granulated sugar
  • 1 large egg

Dry Ingredients

  • 1-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup nonfat milk powder
  • 1-1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
  • 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
  • 3/4 teaspoon baking soda

The Star

  • 2-1/2 cups or 1 sleeve + 5 Ritz crackers Break crackers into big pieces, once added to batter they will breakdown a bit more. Do not crush.

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 375°F.
  • Combine flour, milk powder, salt, baking powder, and baking soda in a small bowl. Set aside.
  • Combine the butter and sugar in the bowl, on medium speed, mixing until smooth about 1 -2 minutes. Add the egg, beat again until well combined.
  • Add flour mixture and beat on low speed just until it is blended. Do not overbeat.
  • Add the crackers and mix until fully incorporated. You want your crackers to break down into smaller pieces as you mix, but not to cracker dust stage. There should be small pieces of crackers in the dough.
  • Scoop dough on a greased baking sheet (or use parchment paper) 2 to 3 inches apart. The recipe calls for a 1/4 inch scoop which makes HUGE cookies and about 18 cookies. Use a 2-tablespoon or 4-tablespoon scoop which yields 24-36 cookies. You should have twice the number of cookies.
  • Bake for 10-12 minutes until the edges are a deep golden brown and the center a paler golden brown. The dough spreads quite a bit. Chilling the dough helps a bit, but my quick fix to rounding the cookies-as soon as the cookies come out of the oven. Use a spatula to push the edges to shape the cookies into circles. Conversely, use a glass slightly larger than the cookie, place over the cookie and swirl the cookie to round out the shape.
  • Remove cookies from oven and allow to cool. Enjoy!
Rowing for Coconut & Jam Oat Bars

Rowing for Coconut & Jam Oat Bars

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About this time of year, I wax nostalgic about one of my passions (not food this time), rowing.  Say what?  Yes, rowing.  I started rowing, gosh too many years ago to count, and it changed my life.  Instead of trudging toward a sedentary, middle-aged lifestyle, it became my sport and form of exercise.

Spending early morning hours on the water (trust me, I am not a morning person) watching the sunrise, the first rays of light hitting the ripples of water made by the boat, it’s magical.  Beyond that (there’s more?), I have made lifelong friends, found a community, and experienced the camaraderie created by competition, joy, and pain.  #Crewlife

Rock Star Regatta

Boston annually hosts the largest regatta (rowing competition) in the world, the Head of the Charles.  Every October, collegiate, high school, Masters (anyone out of school) converge for the regatta.  Imagine the Boston Marathon but with a bunch of really tall people, wearing spandex (lol) in boats on the Charles.  We row as hard as we can for 5km.  All the while navigating through boats, under bridges (5), and around turns.  Throngs of spectators line the bridges and banks of the Charles to watch and root their rowers on.  It’s exhilarating, I haven’t raced there in a while and I miss it.

Side Trip Fun

If you go that far to race for twenty minutes, you might as well take advantage of being there.  We began taking side trips after Head of the Charles. One year we went to Vermont to find pie, visit King Arthur Flour, and tour Ben and Jerry’s.  Another year found us in Martha’s Vineyard.  The crowds of summer long gone, we wandered the island taking in the cool, crisp, fall weather, foliage colors, and FOOD!  We stopped at 7aFoods for pastries and coffee which I highly recommend.  Finally, a stop at  Morning Glory Farm to roam their pumpkin patch and eat more pie, the Buttermilk Pie was a standout.

The 7AFoods Oat and Fruit Bars were dreamy-a buttery crust topped with blueberry preserves, dried fruits, oat, and a delicious crumble. I asked for the recipe which they graciously sent BUT I have yet to try as it makes two full sheets of bars!  So I searched for a simpler, smaller recipe that would satisfy my 7AFoods bar craving.  Luckily, I found a delightful, easy-to-make Raspberry Coconut Oat Bar cookie from One Girl Cookies that did the trick.

So, I made a batch of these delicious bars while watching this year’s Head of the Charles Regatta.  Sigh, maybe next year I’ll be rowing instead of baking.

Finally, Notes on the One Girl Cookies Raspberry Coconut Oat Bar

These bars are easy to make.  The base crust and crumble are from the same dough.  The dough starts with cold butter, eliminating the time to soften butter, and can be made in a mixer or by hand.  Yep, that easy.  Use a mixer, add the flour, sugars, salt, and butter (diced into little pieces) and mix until it forms a crumble, then add coconut and oatmeal.  Use a pastry blender to cut butter into flour and sugar mixture.  This is much like making pie dough.  Do not blend until it forms a single mass as that would result in a tough crust.  As it bakes, the bits of butter in the dough melt and create steam that makes a tender, flaky crust.

NACL Note

The recipe calls for 1 teaspoon of salt.  It is intentionally salt-forward, a play on the salty and sweet vibe.  If you use a really sweet jam, I would leave the amount of salt.  If you are salt sensitive, try 3/4 teaspoon instead.  You do need some salt as a flavor booster.

Reserve 3/4 to 1 cup of the crumble mixture.  Press the remaining dough into a 9×13 baking pan that has been lined with parchment.  The recipe calls for baking the crust for 14 minutes, it took a couple of minutes more for the edges to brown for me.  Spread preserves over the cooled crust.  I have used blueberry, mixed berry, and apricot, it’s your choice. The base crust is pretty thin so a thin layer of jam is all that is needed.  I might sprinkle the jam layer with dried fruit and sliced almonds before adding the crumble next time.

Before adding the crumble, squeeze the crumble mixture so there are some bigger crumbs, it looks nicer.

With Blueberry Lichi Jam!

With apricot cherry preserves!

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JAMMY COCONUT OAT BARS

Jam & Coconut Oat Bars, a buttery shortbread base topped with preserves and a coconut oatmeal crumble. Adapted from One Girl Cookies.
Course bar cookies, cookies, desserts
Cuisine American
Keyword bar cookies, Jammy Coconut Oat Bars, One Girl Cookies
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Resting Time 10 minutes

Ingredients

All About the Dough

  • 1-1/4 cups (150g) all-purpose flour
  • 3/4 cup (150g) packed light brown sugar
  • 1/3 cup (67g) granulated sugar
  • 12 tablespoons (170g) unsalted butter, cold and cut into small pieces
  • 1 teaspoon salt Very salt forward, decrease to 3/4 tsp. if desired

Add to Dough Crumble

  • 3/4 cup (85g) unsweetened shredded coconut
  • 1-1/2 cups (148g) old-fashioned rolled oats

The Finish

  • 1/2 cup raspberry preserves or use your favorite preserves

Optional Adds

  • 1/4-1/3 cup diced dried fruit that compliments the preserves you use
  • 1/4-1/3 cup sliced almonds or chopped nuts of your choice

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350°F.
  • Spread the coconut on a baking sheet. Toast 2-3 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool. Keep your eye on it as coconut will brown quickly
  • Grease a 9"x 13"x 2" baking pan. Line the bottom with parchment paper.
  • In an electric mixer on low speed, mix the flour, brown sugar, granulated sugar, and salt until combined. Add the butter and continue mixing until the dough begins to come together. Stir in the coconut and oats.
  • Remove 3/4-1 cup of the crust dough. Set aside. If adding optional ingredients remove 3/4 cup of crumble.
  • Pour the remaining dough to pan. Press evenly into the bottom of the prepared pan, I use a flat bottom cup to press dough into pan. Bake 14-17 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through baking. The crust should be golden brown around the edges. Allow the crust to cool for 10 minutes.
  • Spread the preserves evenly over the crust, leaving a scant 1/2-inch border. If you are adding nuts or dried fruit, sprinkle on preserves now then crumble the reserved dough over the top. Bake 7 minutes, or until the preserves are bubbly. Cool completely in pan.
  • Run a knife around the edges of the bars. Place a baking sheet on top of the pan and flip the pan over to release the bars. Peel the parchment paper off. Then flip again. Using a sharp knife, cut the bars into squares, which in a 9x13 won't be exactly squared, lol.