Category: Desserts
Peche a Trois’ (Peach Hand Pies)

Peche a Trois’ (Peach Hand Pies)

By | | Comments 0 Comment
I am going to miss Jamie’s and my weekly forays to the farmer’s market.  Not that the season is ending, but Jamie heads back to Houston this coming week so there goes my kitchen buddy for a while. We found some luscious peaches at the market (it’s been a good summer for peaches) and coincidentally Smitten Kitchen  posted a recipe for peach pie.  As Jamie perused the recipe she said “Is it hard to make pie crust?”  Well, what kind of mom would I be if I didn’t lay a little pie crust wisdom on my kid before she heads back to college? Kind of like a lovely parting gift.
Though the Smitten Kitchen peach pie served as our inspiration, we decided to make peach hand pies instead.  Fingers over forks is our mantra so hand pies are the perfect ending for our final summer happy hour gathering.  Luckily, Smitten Kitchen also has a recipe for Bourbon Peach Hand Pies.
DSC04343
We turned to a favorite pie crust recipe from Julia and Jaques Cooking at Home.  It’s a great recipe to teach pie crust 101 making.  It has a high proportion of butter so it’s yummy and flaky and it is easy to work with.
COLD, COLD, COLD.  Did I say to keep things cold? Butter and shortening.  I cut my butter and shortening or lard into pieces and put them back in the fridge while I measure out my flour.

LESS IS MORE, DON’T OVER-PROCESS OR OVERWORK YOUR PIE CRUST

Place your flour, sugar, and salt in the food processor and pulse a couple of times to mix.  Scatter your COLD butter and shortening or lard on top and PULSE mixture until the butter is approximately the size of peas.  At this point, you can pour your flour mixture into a bowl or you can continue using your processor.

Add ICE-COLD Water

 to your flour mixture and pulse until it just begins to clump then STOP.  Do not overdo it, especially if using the food processor or you end up with tough pie crust, yuck.
If you are not using the processor.  Sprinkle water on the flour mixture and stir with a fork until mixture begins to clump and come together.
Reserve one tablespoon of water, if the dough still seems dry or does not hold together add the remaining one tablespoon water.
At this point for either method, gather the dough into a disc on a sheet of plastic wrap.  Using the palm of your hand gently push a portion of the dough away from you.  This flattens out the butter lumps into sheaths and incorporates the butter and flour evenly. This creates a flaky, tender crust.  This is called fraisage ‘(yep, more French lingo) Repeat until you have pushed all of the dough.  Gather it into a ball, flatten into a disc and place it in the fridge to rest for approximately 30 minutes.

How Easy is That?!

As the dough chills start on your peaches.  We adapted Smitten Kitchen’s recipe for Bourbon Peach hand pies for the filling.  We added a bit of brown sugar and a pinch of salt. Omit the cinnamon if you like.  Although delicious the hand pies have less filling and would have benefitted from a flavor boost.  I think I would add a bit of peach jam to the fresh peaches to try to intensify the flavor next time.  We had quite a bit of filling left and Jamie BRILLIANTLY (shameless parent plug) grabbed some ramekins and made peach crisps with the extra.  YUM!

Back to the pie crust dough…

On a lightly floured board or surface, pat your dough into a rectangle.  Divide in half and roll each piece into a 7×11 rectangle, approximately 1/8 inch thick.  You may need to trim the edges to make a pretty rectangle.  Divide the dough into 4 pieces 7x 2.75”.
Hint– Roll it out on parchment paper on a flat cookie sheet, makes it easy to transfer to the fridge.  Once you have cut it into four pieces chill for 30 minutes.  While it is chilling, roll out 2nd disc of dough.
Hint-Use a ruler and a pizza cutter to cut out your rectangles.
Or if you like use a 4.5” round cookie cutter for half-moon-shaped pies.

Pearls of Pie-Making Wisdom

If at any time the dough gets too soft, throw it back in the fridge to chill.
DSC04345
Print

Peche a Trois’ (Peach Hand Pies, Crisp, Unadulterated)

Really, does this need an intro? Handpies of buttery, flakey crust filled with summer sweet peaches
Course Dessert, Pie
Cuisine American
Keyword Peach handpies
Prep Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes

Ingredients

Peach Hand Pies

Pie or Galette Crust from Julia Childs

  • 2 cups AP flour
  • 7 ounces cold unsalted butter cut into 1/2 pieces
  • 1 tablespoon cold shortening or lard cut into 1/2 inch pieces
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp sugar
  • 1/3 cup ice cold water reserve 1 tablespoon to finish dough

Filling

  • 2 pounds fresh peaches
  • 1/4 cup flour
  • 1/4 cup granulated sugar + 1 T light brown sugar
  • Pinch of salt
  • 1 teaspoon bourbon
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/4 tsp cinnamon omit if you like
  • One egg yolk beaten with 2 tablespoons water for egg wash or cream
  • Coarse sanding sugar for decoration

Instructions

See above for directions for making pie dough!

    Filling

    • Make the filling. Peel and dice peaches into 1/2 inch pieces. Add remaining ingredients, mix gently and set aside. If you wish, add 1-2 tablespoons peach preserves.
    • Remove chilled dough from fridge, let stand a couple of minutes until pliable. Spoon 1.5 tablespoons filling onto one half of each rectangle or circle of dough. Brush a little water on the edge and fold in half. Seal and crimp edge with a fork. Repeat with remaining dough. Transfer to fridge and chill for 30 minutes. We used cream on our pies and sprinkled some sugar on top, you could use an egg wash if you like.
    • You can make these hand pies bigger or smaller as you want. The key is to keep the dough’s thickness at approximately 1/8 inch.
    • Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Remove pies from fridge and place on parchment lined baking sheet. Cut a small slit in each pie and brush with wash. Sprinkle with sugar and place in oven to bake.
    • Bake approximately 20 minutes until edges are golden brown. Remove and let cool slightly before serving.

    Peach Crisp

    • We had quite a bit of peach filling left so we made crisp using our apple crisp crumble topping recipe. So this is probably more crumble then you will need. Cut the recipe in half if you want. Fill lightly buttered ramekins with extra peach filling. Sprinkle crumble on top and bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes until crisp bubbles and top is golden brown.

    Crumble topping

      Mix topping ingredients, except for oats and nuts, with pastry blender or fingers until crumbly.

      • 1/4 cup granulated sugar
      • 1/2 cup brown sugar
      • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
      • 3/4 cup all purpose flour
      • 1 stick of unsalted butter, softened
      • 1/4 teaspoon salt

      Add oatmeal and nuts and stir to combine

      • 1/2 cup old fashioned oatmeal (not instant or quick cook)
      • Add 1/2 cup chopped pecans or walnuts (optional)
      • Take excess filling and spoon into selected-size buttered ramekins. I like 3/4-1 cup ramekins. Top with crumble.

      Finishing the Crisp

        And to complete our trio....

        • Fresh ripe peaches, sliced, leave them whole, your choice. Take a bite, let the juice drip down your chin, hand or both. Yum!
        Jamie’s Back Scouring Farmer’s Markets and Binge Baking! (Raspberry Buttermilk Cake)

        Jamie’s Back Scouring Farmer’s Markets and Binge Baking! (Raspberry Buttermilk Cake)

        By | | Comments 1 comment

        DSC04295

        Hello friends!

        Since I have written more than a few slightly embarrassing posts about my—quite glamorous—life on this lovely blog, and since I know you all read it religiously, I’ve decided that we are now on the “friend” level.  (We are friends now, so you guys can’t judge me for my terrible grammar—I’m a bioengineering major, give me a break here) And since we are all friends, I have decided to let you in on a little secret: I am addicted to farmers markets.  Before you roll your eyes and laugh at how incredibly basic/dramatic/priviledged/annoying I sound let me defend myself:

        1) I had to switch it up from my normal introduction of saying hi, long time no post, complaining a little bit about my life in Texas, and making fun of my mom’s blog. Yeah. You’re welcome.

        2) I grew up in Los Gatos, the land of Kate Spade bags and Tory Burch sandals, excuse me for being a little basic.

        3) Farmer’s markets rock, whoever disagrees with me can hit the unsubscribe button right now.  (just kidding, my mom would kill me if that happened).

        Anyways, to get back on track, I love farmer’s markets.  You can literally get a free breakfast there if you just walk up and down the stalls eating samples of fruit.

        IMG_1342

        Plus, farmers markets in California during the summer are pretty much guaranteed to be sunny and filled with the prettiest, tastiest fruits and veggies EVER.  True story.  Sam came to visit over fourth of July weekend and I dragged him around the Bay Area.  Obviously, one of the first places I took him was the San Francisco Farmer’s Market at the Ferry Building.  We were on a mission to acquire 4 pounds of peaches—yes, you read that right—to make homemade peach ice cream.  The ice cream was super simple-heavy cream, sugar, vanilla, and lots of peaches.  We made it after a long day of walking around the city, so by the time it was finally frozen enough to eat, I was asleep.  I woke up just in time to watch the end of a Euro cup quarterfinal match while eating a bowl of sweet, peachy goodness.

        To go along with our ice cream, I had baked up a simple berry cake from Epicurious that morning—you dot the cake with berries of your choice before sprinkling it with sugar and popping it into the oven.  As my mom says, “stupid easy”.  The sugar gives the cake a caramelized top crust, while the berries sink into the batter, giving it a warm and gooey center.  Unfortunately, the cake was forgotten over our  homemade ice cream excitement, but it was so good on its own the next day that no one minded a bit.  I tried to make the cake festive by using blueberries and raspberries to create red and blue stripes, but the berries sink in such a way that the stripes get all jumbled up.  Not worth the effort, but the cake still looked pretty great!

        All in all, it was a successful weekend of food!

        Stay tuned: next time I talk about my other guilty/basic pleasure: happy hour!

        Hi Claire! 🙂

         

        Print Pin

        Raspberry Buttermilk Cake

        Ingredients

        From Epicurious

        • 1 cup all-purpose flour
        • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
        • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
        • 1/4 teaspoon salt
        • 1/2 stick unsalted butter softened
        • 2/3 cup plus 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar divided
        • 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
        • 1 large egg
        • 1/2 cup well-shaken buttermilk
        • 1 cup fresh raspberries about 5 ounces or a mix of fresh berries

        Instructions

        • Preheat oven to 400°F with rack in middle.
        • Butter and flour a 9-inch round cake pan or springform pan
        • Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt and set aside.
        • Beat butter and 2/3 cup sugar with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes, then beat in vanilla.
        • Add egg and beat well.
        • At low speed, mix in flour mixture in 3 batches, alternating with buttermilk, beginning and ending with flour, and mixing until just combined.
        • Spoon batter into cake pan, smoothing top.
        • Scatter raspberries, I used a mix of berries including blueberries and blackberries and probably closer to 11/2 cups of berries) evenly over top.
        • Sprinkle with remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar.
        • Bake until cake is golden and a wooden pick inserted into center comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes. Cool in pan 10 minutes, then turn out onto a rack and cool to warm, 10 to 15 minutes more. Invert onto a plate.
        • Serve with whipped cream or ice cream! Yum!

         

         
        What the Heck is Posset? Hmm Think Delicious Pudding or Panna Cotta Asian Style

        What the Heck is Posset? Hmm Think Delicious Pudding or Panna Cotta Asian Style

        By | | Comments 0 Comment

        This recipe is STUPID. EASY.  Recipes on my blog are generally straight forward and simple, tailor made for a busy family, but this one?  Well, this one is the poster child for stupid easy. DSC04316But it is delicious, the perfect summer dessert.   I found it on the blog NoRecipes by Marc Matsumoto (which, by the way, you should bookmark right now). Just three ingredients: cream, sugar and a citrus juice.  It comes together in a snap.  Heat and the citrus juice act as a natural thickener to create this delicious posset that is a cross between creme brûlée and pudding.  The twist in this recipe is the Yuzu juice which gives it an exotic slightly tart flavor.  It will have your friends guessing, “Hmmm, what is it?”

        Do You YuZu?

        Yuzu is a Japanese fruit aptly described as what happens after a hook up between lemon, lime and grapefruit. You can be like me and let your inner OCD come out and hunt down actual Yuzu juice or you can go the easier, less pricey but still pretty tasty route and use lemon or lime juice.  I found my Yuzu juice at a Japanese market.  It is sold in bottles much like key lime juice.  Look for real Yuzu juice as oppose to the stuff that is made from citrus fruit concentrates (I asked one of the employees to translate the labels).  Actual Yuzu will be a bit more expensive.

        I Couldn’t Contain Myself

        Notice the cute little containers  I used for my posset?  The perfect size to serve a sweet treat at the end of any meal.  These cute little jars started their lives as designer yogurt containers that caught my eye at the market.  A cynic would say I paid for the packaging (ok they got me) but the yogurt was yummy and the jars are great for mouthwatering treats like these possets.  They would also be perfect for panna cotta or a decadent homemade chocolate pudding.  Hmmm, I think I need to go to the store for more yogurt now.

        Print Pin

        Posset (English Pudding)

        Quick and easy, decadent dessert with 3 ingredients! Cream, sugar and Yuzu (Citrus) Juice
        Course Dessert
        Cuisine Asian, English
        Keyword almond cream, Dessert, panna cotta, Posset
        Prep Time 10 minutes
        Chill Time 1 hour
        Servings 3 -4 servings

        Ingredients

        • 1 cup heavy whipping cream
        • 1/4 cup granulated sugar ~2 ounces
        • 2 tablespoons yuzu juice* or substitute lemon or lime juice or a combination of the two
        • Fresh berries for garnish

        Instructions

        • Combine heavy cream and sugar in a medium saucepan. Over medium heat bring to a boil, reduce heat and stir until sugar is completely dissolved.
        • Remove saucepan from heat and add all of the yuzu or lemon juice at once.
        • Stir until mixture thickens. It will still be a liquid just slightly thicker than the heavy whipping cream.
        • Pour into cute little jars or cups.
        • Place in fridge to chill. As the posset chills it will thicken to a pudding like consistency.
        • Garnish with fresh berries
        • This entire will process will take you about 10 minutes...really stupid easy

        Notes

        Yuzu Juice can be found in Asian markets, in particular Japanese Markets.  Similar to Key Lime Juice (you could probably use Key Lime in place of Yuzu!), it is a bottled product found on the shelves not in the refrigerator section.
        Crazy Stupid Lemon Love (Atlantic Beach Pie)

        Crazy Stupid Lemon Love (Atlantic Beach Pie)

        By | | Comments 1 comment

        STOP Whatever You Are Doing Right Now

        Go to your pantry, take out the box of Ritz Crackers, sugar, and that can of sweetened condensed milk from last year’s holiday dessert extravaganza.  Reach into your fruit bowl, grab a couple of lemons and from the fridge pull out eggs, butter and whipping cream.  That’s it, everything you need to make this absolutely scrumptious pie.  Six items to launch yourself into pie bliss.

        NPR-Nice Pie Review

        During my drive to work one day, a segment on NPR caught my attention when I heard the word PIE followed by “Oh My God, Oh My God, Oh My God”.  It was cookbook author Katie Workman describing her first bite of Bill Smith’s Atlantic Beach Pie.  I adore pie and here was a story about a lemon pie that originated in North Carolina and is a favorite of the folks in the South.  Is it a lemon meringue pie?  Kind of, except top the citrusy filling with billowy mounds of whipped cream.  No meringue here. The crust is made with saltines instead of graham crackers and is delightfully crispy, sweet and salty .

        I couldn’t wait to get home and make this pie.

        DSC04239Though the original recipe calls for saltines, I used Ritz crackers instead.  I love Ritz crackers and I always have a box around.  The crushed Ritz crackers (do not pulverize your crackers but should be fine crumbs) are mixed with sugar and softened butter.   The key is to mix the crumbs with the butter until they hold together similar to dough.  This is best accomplished by first pulsing your crackers in a food processor or smashing them with a rolling pin in a Ziploc. Then use your hands to combine the crumbs and butter.   Press crumbs into an 8-inch buttered pie plate.  Don’t worry, the mixture will still be loose when you are pressing it in the pie plate, especially on the rim, but it’s ok.  Bake until golden color about 15 minutes.

        Easy Peasy Lemon Squeasy Filling

        Combine egg yolks, sweetened condensed milk, and lemon or lime juice (or both).  I added two tablespoons heavy cream (not in the original recipe but an optional add). Whisk together, pour the filling into the pre-baked crust and bake for 15 minutes. EASY-PEASY  As the pie cools, whip one cup of heavy cream until soft peaks form and hold their shape.  I did sweeten my whip cream slightly (1-2 teaspoons sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla).  Chill the pie until set and then pile on the cream.  Garnish with a sprinkling of coarse salt and strands of lemon zest.  DIG IN!  Yum, yum, yum.

        Yep, CRAZY good, STUPID easy.

        Here is the link to the NPR segment on Atlantic Beach Pie in Found Recipes.

        Print

        Atlantic Beach Pie, Crazy Stupid Lemon Love

        This pie is so good it's iconic now, Atlantic Beach Pie, crumb crust, lemon filling topped with whipped cream, delicious.
        Course Dessert, Pie
        Cuisine American
        Keyword Atlantic Beach PIe, lemon, pie
        Prep Time 15 minutes
        Cook Time 35 minutes

        Ingredients

        For crust:

        • 1 1/2 sleeves of saltine crackers or Ritz crackers about 6 ounces
        • 1/3 to 1/2 cup softened unsalted butter
        • 3 tablespoons sugar

        For the filling

        • 1 can 14 ounces sweetened condensed milk
        • 4 egg yolks
        • 1/2 cup lemon or lime juice or a mix of the two
        • 2-4 tablespoons of heavy whipping cream
        • 1 teaspoon lemon zest optional I added zest to increase the lemon flavor

        Da Finish

        • 1 cup heavy cream
        • 1 tsp vanilla
        • 1-2 tsp granulated sugar
        • Coarse sea salt for garnish
        • lemon or lime zest for garnish

        Instructions

        • Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
        • Crush the crackers finely, but not to dust. I use my food processor or dump the crackers into a ziploc and crush with a rolling pin.
        • Add the sugar, then knead in the butter until the crumbs hold together like dough.
        • Press into a buttered 8 inch pie pan.
        • Chill for 15 minutes, then bake for 18 minutes or until the crust colors a little.
        • While the crust is cooling (it doesn't need to be cold), beat the egg yolks into the condensed milk, then stir in the citrus juice. Make sure filling is well combined.
        • Pour into the shell and bake for 14-16 minutes until the filling has set.
        • Chill until set.
        • Pile whipped cream on top of pie. Sprinkle with salt or garnish with zest
        Oh Birthday Cake, My Carrot Cake

        Oh Birthday Cake, My Carrot Cake

        By | | Comments 1 comment

        We celebrated Jeffrey and my brother’s birthdays yesterday.  Yes, they share the same birthday…but many, MANY years apart.  I remember sitting on the couch dreading each new contraction while my family celebrated my brother’s birthday chomping on big juicy rib-eye steaks off the grill.  The meal was cut short when I “exclaimed” through gritted teeth,  “I think I need to go to the hospital,  YOU (referring to my brother) will have to take your birthday cake home.”  That was twenty-two years ago. Wow, time flies.

        24 Carrot Gold Recipe

        The tradition of celebrating every birthday with Wes’s delicious carrot cake would not exist if not for a college girlfriend (his roommate’s), a classmate’s birthday, and a bag of carrots.  After finding a lone bag of carrots in their fridge, John’s girlfriend decided to bake a carrot cake for their classmate’s birthday.  Thus began the love affair between Wes and Carrot Cake (tough competition for me, lol).  He can’t recall the girlfriend’s name or the classmate’s whose birthday they celebrated.  But luckily he asked her for the recipe and the rest is, as they say, history.

        Over the years he has modified it to his liking.  Out went the nuts and shredded coconut, and in went raisins.  He doubled the luscious cream cheese frosting, because everyone knows you can never have too much frosting. He also cut the sugar to temper the sweetness.  This is a classic American cake; spicy, moist, sweet, peppered with pineapple and raisins, and finished with a buttery sweet cream cheese frosting. YUM.

        One Bowl Babee

        That’s how simple and easy this cake is, you can make it in one bowl and a spoon or whisk.  Wes pulls out an old tattered goldenrod Tupperware bowl (yes goldenrod, circa 1987), a whisk, and a grater when he makes his signature cake.  That’s it.   Grate the carrots on the small holes of the grater. He likes a denser cake and often throws the pineapple in without draining.  I have convinced him to drain the pineapple for a lighter, less dense cake.  Bake the cake in a 9×13 rectangular cake, or 2-9×2-inch circular pans, or even a muffin tin for cupcakes.  Throw in some nuts if you like (Wes never does), walnuts are usually the nut of choice.

        Frost, Frost Baby

        Tips for the cream cheese frosting:   Start with slightly softened butter but not warm, whip the butter first, add the cream cheese and continue to whip the two until light and creamy before adding the sugar.  Once the sugar is added, beat just long enough to fully incorporate the sugar, and then STOP.  Overbeating after adding the powdered sugar will cause the frosting to lose its structure.

        I crossed out the above section just to show that baking and cooking is not static.  You’re always tweaking, or changing something in hopes of making it better.  I have revised how to make Cream Cheese Frosting.  I love Zoe Bakes, and her carrot cake episode has step-by-step instructions for making Cream Cheese Frosting. The frosting comes out smooth, luscious, and creamy.  This prompted me to give my favorite frosting its own post.

        So there you have it, hubby’s two, no, now four, favorite recipes, Good Cookies, Carrot Cake, Foil wrapped Chicken (coming), and his famous Super Bowl Tuna Dip.   I’m not jealous, credit is like community property in California, I get half the credit, right?  In fact…

        I think I will have a slice of cake right now.

        Happy Birthday, Anson and Jeffrey!

        Print
        5 from 1 vote

        Birthday Cake, Carrot Cake

        Hubby’s carrot cake that is the fam’s cake of choice for birthday celebrations….no I’m not annoyed…not at all, lol.
        Course Cake, Dessert
        Cuisine American
        Keyword Carrot cake, Carrots, cream cheese frosting
        Prep Time 23 minutes
        Cook Time 1 hour

        Ingredients

        Cake

        Dry Ingredients:

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

        Wet Ingredients Part 1

        • 3/4 cup vegetable oil
        • 3 large eggs
        • 2 cups granulated sugar

        Wet Ingredients Part 2

        • 3/4 cup low fat buttermilk
        • 2 cups grated carrots use small holes of grater
        • 2 tsp vanilla extract
        • 1 8 oz. Can Crushed pineapple in pineapple juice See notes
        • 1 cup Regular raisins Can sub golden raisins if you like.

        Frosting:

        • 1 stick salted butter 4oz
        • 1 8-ounce brick of cream cheese
        • 3/4 cup powdered sugar sifted
        • 2 tsp vanilla extract

        Instructions

        Cake:

        • Preheat oven to 350. Rack should be in center of oven
        • Grease and flour a 9 x 13 pan.
        • Combine the flour, cinnamon, salt and baking soda in a small bowl. Set aside.
        • Beat oil, eggs and sugar together in a large bowl
        • Add the dry ingredients to the oil-egg mixture along with the rest of the ingredients (wet ingredients part 2) and stir with a whisk until well mixed.
        • Pour into pan and bake for 45-50 minutes.
        • Bake for 60 minutes if using the 10 inch round cake pan.
        • Bake for 25 minutes if making cupcakes.
        • Cake is done when the top is a rich golden brown, a tester should come out with just a few crumbs and relatively clean.

        Frosting:

        • Using a mixer, on medium speed beat butter until softened and slightly creamy.
        • Add cream cheese and vanilla, beat until well incorporated and mixture is light and creamy
        • Sift sugar over mixture and mix until combined and to desired consistency. Don't overbeat!
        • Use 1-1/2 recipe of frosting for 9x13 cake out of pan, single layer or cupcakes
        • For two layer cake double frosting recipe

        Notes

        For a denser cake use the pineapple without draining.  For a cakier, lighter, texture drain the pineapple before adding.  I personally like draining the pineapple, hubby has begrudgingly started to do this although he probably does leave a bit in.  Marriage is always a compromise 😉

        Update!

        The first of the 3jamigos got married in April of 2024!  Her request was for “Daddy” to make her wedding cake.  It turned out beautifully
        Donut Hole Muffins for National Donut Day!

        Donut Hole Muffins for National Donut Day!

        By | | Comments 0 Comment

        Happy National Donut Day!

        Also known as an excuse to have something sugary and yummy.  I’m guessing this is pretty much the food version of a Hallmark-created holiday to boost card sales, and I’m ok with that.  So, of course, I pulled out my donut hole pan and made these poser donuts “Donut Hole Muffins”.  Yum.  I first enjoyed these little gems during our search for “Delicious PIE” road trip.  Here is the link to the original post with the recipe for those very easy, very quick Donut Hole Muffins.

        I also wanted to show off hubby’s hobby (not to be confused with Hobby Lobby), woodworking. The wood serving plank in the banner of this post is courtesy of the hubby.  I have been asking (nagging) him to make me wood breadboards and serving trays.  This is just an extra piece of wood he had left from a project, the grain of the wood just caught my eye, and I just love using it as a backdrop.  Boards today, bowls some day soon…hopefully.

        DSC04170

        Celebrate. Life is good, eat donuts.
        Donuts by Jamie!

        Donuts by Jamie!

        By | | Comments 0 Comment

        Hey guys! It’s Jamie, again!  I am finally back home for the summer, and I am loving it. Not only did I escape the disgustingly humid heat of Houston but I also escaped the disgustingly awful classes I took last semester.  I am petitioning to rename Sophomore Spring to Sophomore Suck.  Those classes were horrible. I digress.  I promise this post was not supposed to be me venting about my last semester.  Now that I am back, I have wasted no time in hitting up all of my favorite restaurants.  I have gorged myself on countless pieces of sushi, stuffed myself full on Los Gatos Cafe’s famous cinnamon buns, and snacked on more of my mom’s granola than I thought humanly possible. It’s been great.  In addition to eating my way through Los Gatos, I have also been partaking in one of my ultimate favorite pastimes: cooking.  Surprise, I caught the bug from my mom. I actually missed cooking a lot this past semester; not only does anything homemade taste light years better than cafeteria food but cooking also is a way for me to unwind.  No matter how many things I have going on or how stressed I am, I can always turn to baking or cooking.  It’s just me, a recipe, probably a couple episodes of Gilmore Girls, and awesome smelling (and hopefully tasting) food. It gives me a time to think for myself and get away from the stress that can sometimes be very overwhelming. This last semester, I’ve turned to watching cooking shows as a way to unwind.  IMG_1614 copyI know, I’m turning into my mom, pretty scary stuff.

        My suite mate and I have gotten really into watching this one show called Raw. Vegan. Not. Gross. The girl who hosts it, Laura Miller, is kind of raw vegan, and is really cool.  She’s a huge advocate for eating food that will make you feel good and is kind of crazy/quirky in a cool way.  She blogs, wears the cutest clothes, and has a dog named Buzz.  Basically, I want to be her.  She recently came out with a cookbook, and, as I am my mothers daughter, I preordered it. I read it front to back when I got it, and I got so excited to try all of the recipes.  I made vegan tacos the other day (kind of, I may or may not have added salmon to them) and today I tried making vegan, gluten free donuts.  You bake them in the oven, and they come out light and fluffy, with a slight almond taste, which I love. I dipped them in a chocolate glaze made out of coconut oil, cocoa powder, maple syrup, and salt. Give them a try! They’re really good.

        P.S. If you are a vegan food skeptic like my mother, I promise they are good.  Jordan and his friend even tried them and said they were good before they knew they were vegan.
        P.P.S.  Here is a link to Laura Miller’s blog! Check her out! https://imlauramiller.com
        P.P.P.S.  Hi Claire
        IMG_1602
        Print Pin

        Vegan Donuts Adapted from Laura MIller

        Ingredients

        Donuts

        • 1 cup almond flour
        • 1 cup sorghum flour
        • 1 cup potato starch
        • 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
        • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
        • 1/4 teaspoon xanthin gum
        • 1/2 teaspoon salt
        • 3/4 cup maple syrup
        • 1/3 cup applesauce
        • 1/2 cup hot water
        • 1/3 cup coconut oil
        • Juice of 1 lemon

        Chocolate Glaze

        • 1/2 cup coconut oil
        • 3/8 cup cocoa powder
        • 1 Tbs maple syrup
        • Small pinch of salt

        Instructions

        • Directions:
        • 1) Preheat oven to 325 degrees F
        • 2) Mix dry ingredients in a bowl
        • 3) Mix wet ingredients in a bowl
        • 4) Add wet ingredients to the dry and mix with a spatula until thoroughly combined. The batter will be a lot like pancake batter
        • 5) Add 1/4 cup of batter into each donut mold. Spread around evenly
        • 6) Optional: Add about a teaspoon of your favorite jam, nut butter, or sprinkle on coconut flakes to each donut. Spread around evenly with a spoon.
        • 7) Bake for 10 minutes, rotate, then bake for another 5-7 minutes, until browned on the top and cooked through.
        • 8) Optional: Dip the top half into chocolate glaze after donuts have cooled.

        Directions Chocolate Glaze

        • Blend all ingredients until smooth, then place in a shallow bowl for donut dipping.
        TBC (Throwback Cake Day) Rum Doused Lemon Poppyseed Cake

        TBC (Throwback Cake Day) Rum Doused Lemon Poppyseed Cake

        By | | Comments 0 Comment

        Now and then, out of nowhere something from the past pops into your head.  Maybe it’s that Dead Head purple/green tie-dyed tank top.  You immediately drop whatever you are doing, rummage through your closet, and search for that top.  You find it in that dusty cardboard box hidden in the back corner, throw it on, and dance around the house.  It just makes you happy.

        Sometimes a long-forgotten recipe pops into my head, and I feel the need to pull it out and make it, like this Rum Doused Lemon Poppyseed Cake.  Back in the day, we would add a box of instant pudding to a boxed cake mix sprinkle it with a liqueur and voila’ an incredibly moist bundt cake that everyone raved about.  This cake reminds me of that one, BUT so much better. It doesn’t have box cake mix or instant pudding (thank goodness) but it is easy to make and extremely delicious.  I’m glad it popped into my head, I think you will be too.

        DSC03873

         

        A golden oldie…to go along with this cake, Lemon Tree by Peter Paul and Mary

         

        DSC03823The cake is made with a combination of butter and cream cheese which creates a wonderful fine crumb.  The poppy seeds give it a nice crunch.  After baking, the cake is doused with rum.  I use a pastry brush to spread the rum on the cake.  It tastes better a day or two later as the rum, lemon, and poppy seed flavors blend.  So dig in your closet or pantry, find your Mom’s old 10-inch tube pan, and bake this cake.

        If you love pound cakes like I do, try  Eric Kim’s Butter Cake (Sara Lee would be proud) or Avery’s Kentucky Butter Cake are scrumptious.  I’m so glad I remembered this Lemon Poppyseed Cake it’s wonderful.  I think I’ll go have a slice with a hot cup of tea right now.

        Print

        Rum Doused Lemon Poppyseed Cake

        Classic Lemon Poppyseed Cake with rum. Moist, tender, with a fine crumb and a bit of crunch from the poppyseeds
        Course Cake
        Cuisine American
        Keyword cake, lemon, poppyseeds, rum
        Prep Time 20 minutes

        Ingredients

        1 10 inch tube pan

        Dry Ingredients

        • 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
        • 1 t baking powder
        • 2 T poppy seeds

        Creamed Mixture

        • 1 cup butter, salted softened, If using unslated butter, add 1/2 tsp salt
        • 4 ounces cream cheese softened
        • 1-3/4 cups sugar
        • 3 large eggs
        • 1 T grated lemon rind

        Glaze

        • 1/4 cup light rum

        Instructions

        • Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
        • Grease and flour 10 inch tube pan or bundt pan
        • In a medium size bowl, sift together the flour and baking powder, set aside
        • In a large mixing bowl, beat together the butter and cream cheese until well blended.
        • Whip sugar, eggs, and lemon rind until mixture is light and fluffy.
        • Stir in flour/baking powder into the butter mixture
        • Stir in the poppy seeds.
        • Spoon the batter into the prepared pan and bake until the cake is a light golden brown and springs back firmly when pressed, 55-60 minutes. Watch carefully, I found it took less than the 55 minutes to bake (~45 minutes)
        • Cool for 15 minutes in the pan, then invert onto a wire rack to cool.
        • Drizzle the rum over the cake slowly allowing rum to permeate cake
        • Transfer to a cake plate or cake stand, cover, and let stand a couple of hours before serving
        • Serve with vanilla ice cream or fresh berries
        Cheesecake LA Style

        Cheesecake LA Style

        By | | Comments 2 comments

        A couple of weeks ago my friend Anne posted photos of a slice of New York-style classic cheesecake she had for dinner one night and then for breakfast and lunch the next day.  Yes, the same piece.  It looked delicious and decadent.  Rich, dense, and yes, huge.  It screamed this is New York Baby.

        Just Can’t Stop Thinking About

        And because of her post I have had cheesecake on the brain.  I haven’t made cheesecake in a long time. Not because I don’t like cheesecake, on the contrary, I love cheesecake and therein lies the dilemma. Cheesecake is the Alfredo of desserts and it has a magnetic attraction to my hips, really.  But last weekend was a special occasion and the perfect reason to make one, my Mom’s 93rd birthday, and if you can’t have cheesecake then, when can you?

        As much as I love New York-style cheesecake my go-to recipe is one from the Los Angeles Times. As New York-style cheesecake reflects Gotham City’s personality, this recipe epitomizes Los Angeles, smooth and creamy, light and airy, and absolutely delicious.

        classic LA Cheesecake

        Cheesy Tweaks

        My favorite part of this cheesecake is the sour cream topping, it accentuates the creaminess and lightness of the cake. Along the way, I have tweaked the recipe by adding a lemon berry sauce (which takes it to the “holy cow!” level) and replacing part of the graham cracker crumbs with chopped pecans to add crunch to the crust.  So good…

        The recipe calls for beating the eggs and sugar for 5 minutes creating a light and foamy mixture. Room-temperature cream cheese helps when blending it with the beaten eggs.  If the mixture is still pretty lumpy after beating the eggs and cream cheese, use a hand blender to smooth out the batter.  Grand Marnier or Amaretto instead of Brandy also works or replace the pecans with almonds or walnuts in the crust.  If you love cheesecake, and who doesn’t….make this one.

        And the tricky part? Baking time, amirite? Bake until the center jiggles slightly, the outer edge will puff a little and set but not crack…here are tips from Aussie Chef Curtis Stone.  The cheesecake will continue to cook after you remove it from the oven, it’s okay if the center looks slightly underdone when you remove it from the oven.

        Print
        5 from 1 vote

        Classic Cheesecake

        Classic LA Cheesecake with sour cream topping, graham cracker crust, delicious
        Course Dessert
        Cuisine American
        Keyword blueberry sauce, Cheesecake, cream cheese, Icing for Glazed Sour Cream Gem Cakes
        Prep Time 25 minutes
        Cook Time 1 hour

        Equipment

        • 1 8" springform pan

        Ingredients

        Crust

        • 1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs substitute with Digestives, Biscoff, or Speculoos.
        • 1/4 cup sugar
        • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
        • 1/4-1/3 cup butter melted, if using nuts use only 1/4 cup due to oil in nuts
        • 1/2 cup finely chopped pecans or almonds to replace 1/2 cup of graham crackers

        Filling

        • 2 eggs room temperature
        • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
        • 2-8 ounce cream cheese-softened Philly brand preferred
        • 1 teaspoon vanilla
        • 1 teaspoon Grand Marnier Amaretto or Brandy would work

        Sour cream topping

        • 1 pint sour cream
        • 6 T sugar
        • 1 teaspoon vanilla
        • 1 teaspoon Grand Marnier

        Lemon Blueberry Sauce

        • 1 pound fresh or frozen blueberries or mixed berries
        • 1/2 cup sugar
        • 3 tablespoons lemon juice
        • 2 teaspoons cornstarch
        • 1 1/2 teaspoons grated lemon peel

        Instructions

        Crust:

        • Place crumbs in bowl and add 1/4 cup sugar and cinnamon,stir in butter.
        • Lightly butter 8-inch springform pan bottom and sides.
        • Sprinkle crumbs on bottom of pan-press down. Press crumbs on sides and bottom of pan.
        • Work around sides with fingers to make crumbs of even height.
        • Bake crust at 350 degrees 7-10 minutes until brown on sides. Remove from oven.

        To make the filling.

        • Using a stand mixer, beat eggs until light, then add 1/2 cup sugar and beat 5 minutes. Add cream cheese, vanilla, liqueur and mix well. If still lumpy, smooth batter using a hand blender or food processor.
        • Turn into prepared crust, bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes. Cool 15 minutes.
        • Pour sour cream topping over and bake at 475 degrees for 5 minutes. Let cheesecake cool before chilling.
        • Chill thoroughly.

        Sauce:

        • Combine all ingredients in a heavy saucepan. Stir over medium heat until cornstarch dissolves. Boil until thickened, stirring occasionally, about 4 minutes. Cover and refrigerate until cold.
        • Makes about 2 1/4 cups.