Farmers Market Treasures – Strawberry Rhubarb Pie and Spring Pea Salad

07/05/2017 by Laura 3 Comments

Wow…4 months since my last post! I’ll catch you up on the reasons for that, but first I have a couple recipes for you! Both of these dishes are the result of an over-the-top buying spree at last weeks neighborhood farmers market. It was my first outing of the season and everything was calling my name! The perfect weather, the beautiful fruits and vegetables, plenty of cash, and a longing to get back into my kitchen resulted in two very large bags of goodies. I bought far more then we needed for one week. With a few things approaching the end of their usefulness, I got busy to ensure none of it would go to waste! The results were a fantastic Strawberry-Rhubarb pie and an over the top “spring on a plate” pea salad.

The salad is a result of a Google search based on the unused veggies I had bought…shelling peas, pea pods, and ramps. I had asparagus on hand, as I always have asparagus on hand until it disappears from the market or becomes ridiculously expensive. I found this recipe on the Serious Eats website. I made just a couple alterations, and it was fantastic. I felt like it was something that would be a first course in a fancy French restaurant… ooh la la!

For the Vinaigrette:

6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons juice from 1 or 2 lemons

2 tablespoons finely minced fresh parsley leaves

1 small shallot, minced (about 1 tablespoon)

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard (my addition)

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Whisk the ingredients together and set aside. I always make my dressing in a measuring cup to make it easy to pour.

For the Salad

1 cup fresh shelled English peas

2 cups fresh sugar snap peas, strings removed, ends trimmed, cut into 1/2-inch pieces on the bias

1 pound asparagus, stalks trimmed, tips removed, tips and stalks reserved separately

2 to 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

8 to 12 whole ramps, ends trimmed and cleaned

1 large very fresh egg, per serving

2 tablespoons distilled white vinegar

Place a pot of water on the stove. Salt heavily. Bring to a slow simmer. Blanch the shelled peas, then the snap peas and then the asparagus tips, about 1 minute, until bright green. Remove with a slotted spoon. Dip in an ice water bath. Place each vegetable in a small bowl and pop in the fridge.

Blanch the asparagus stalks until tender and place in a blender cup with a couple tablespoons of the blanching water and 2 Tablespoons of olive oil. Puree until smooth. Set aside.

Meanwhile, prepare the ramps. Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a heavy sauté pan. Saute the ramps until tender. Place on a paper towel line plate. Set aside.

When ready to assemble the salads, bring the pot of water back to a slow simmer. Add 3 tablespoons white vinegar.

Combine the peas and asparagus in a bowl. Add the dressing and toss gently.

Make your poached eggs, one per serving. Place a couple tablespoons of the asparagus puree on each serving plate. Top with the pea and asparagus salad mixture. Place the poached egg on top. Season with salt and pepper. Serve immediately!

Ok, now for the pie! Strawberry – Rhubarb. Not typically my first choice, when I think of a pie I want to eat / make. I honestly have a problem with most fruit pies as they always turn out to be thin, watery, runny, too sweet, too sour, fall apart messes on a plate. I decided to try a different approach this time. I roasted the fruit first. This allowed me to taste the fruit and adjust the sweetness, as well as remove some of the extra juice, prior to filling the pie shell. I will be using this technique for all future fruit pies.

For the Strawberry – Rhubarb Pie

Prepare pie crust for 2 crust pie – make your favorite or check mine out here.

4-5 cups fresh, ripe, strawberries – green part removed – sliced in half if they are large

4-5 cups fresh rhubarb, chopped into small, bite size pieces

3/4 cup of sugar

Place the fruit on a sheet pan, sprinkle with the sugar and roast at 375′ for about 20 minutes.

Remove the pan from the oven. Let rest about 10 minutes. Adjust the sweetness to taste. Add:

4 Tablespoons of flour

2 Tablespoons of quick cook tapioca

1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon

finely grated zest of one lemon

juice of one lemon – about 2 tablespoons

Mix all ingredients together in the roasting pan. Spoon into piecrust with a slotted spoon.

Place the top crust on the pie. Pinch the edges and cut steam vents. Place on a sheet pan. Place a foil collar around the edges of the pan. Bake at 425′ for 15 minutes. Reduce the heat to 375′, remove the foil, and bake 30 more minutes. Let pie cool at least 2 hours before serving. You definitely want to serve this with vanilla ice-cream! Enjoy!

Ok – on to the updates…In my last post, I mentioned I retired. What that has meant for me is working harder then I ever have, without a pay check every other Friday. LOL!!! I have been away from home, more then I have been at home, these past few months. Thankfully, it’s not that much different for Dave, then when I was working full time! He’s always been spectacular at fending for himself and holding down the fort.

The work began when my Mom bought a new house. She no longer needed stairs, 3000 square feet and a quarter acre yard! She bought the new house last fall, but we really didn’t get busy moving her to her new place until April. Mom updated 80% of her new place, which took a lot of time, decisions and work. Dave and I helped out by repairing decks and fences, and assembling cabinets and other things. Her new home has turned out to be a wonderful place for her.

Her move left us with the BIG job. Emptying and selling her old house. We spent the past few months sorting, packing, selling, donating, dumping, laughing, crying, screaming, and yelling our way through about 25 years of stuff! For those of you that have been through this, you know what I’m talking about! For those of you that have not…my advice would be to START NOW! I am so thankful I was able to go through family things WITH my Mom. I know what all the stuff is, who the people in the pictures are and what mattered to she and my Dad. I am still selling things on Ebay and I have a lot of pictures to scan, but the hard work is behind us. I am happy to say that her house sold in 8 days. She has a few things planned for fall, and none of those plans include yard sales or moving! For those of you that don’t know, my Mom is 88 years old! She is absolutely amazing. We worked side by side, hours on end, with her frequently ordering me to “sit down and rest”. We should all be so healthy and spunky!

With Mom’s big project behind me, I can start to sort out what retirement really does mean for me. You can see from the above, I am really happy to be able to wrap my head around cooking and photography again. Dave and I are taking our own advice of “starting now” on sorting, selling things and downsizing. Bit by bit, we are getting rid of the unnecessary things we’ve accumulated…just because we could! It’s amazing to me how quickly stuff accumulates, and how little of it we really “need”.

It’s been great catching up. Thanks for stopping by! Enjoy the food and have a wonderful evening.

Laura

Calling all lovebirds…a special meal for Valentine’s Day

02/04/2017 by Laura Leave a Comment

I previously mentioned we are trying to create a little excitement at dinner time this year. One way we are doing this is to randomly grab a cookbook, open it and make whatever is on that page! I have to say, this “experiment” is working out very well! While I did not make all three recipes below on the same day, I do think they would make an inspired meal for your sweetheart on Valentine’s Day, or any other “show the love” day for that matter.

This post is a little different, as I am going to just “refer” you to the recipes. I am endorsing all of them as truly inspired and delicious, and I hope you will give them a try. I have provided you links to the books and the specific recipes. The photos are from the dishes I prepared for Dave and I. I am privileged to own a copy of all the books referenced.

The Chocolate Orange Beet Cake with Cream Cheese Walnut Frosting, is absolutely delicious. It is from Vivian Howard’s new cookbook, Deep Run Roots and was also featured on her PBS series A Chef’s Life. The book is heavy on southern, seasonal produce. I cannot wait to cook from it this summer, when the fresh ingredients are readily available at the farmers market. I made only 2 changes to the recipe. I used two 9″ layer pans, rather than 3 8″ layer pans. I also frosted the entire cake, sides and top. It all worked out perfectly.

My next “open the book and cook” recipe is from Top Chef Master, Floyd Cardoz. His new book Flavorwalla is filled with recipes inspired by what he cooks at home, what he grew up with and a few from the menus of his restaurants. The Grilled Shrimp with Fennel and Radish Salad, is something that he served at Tabla. It makes a wonderful first course, or a light meal. It gave me the chance to use my mandolin! It’s a must for slicing the fennel and radishes perfectly thin.

I seem to be going backwards with the courses. But hey, you can certainly start with chocolate cake if you want to….with a little ‘bubbly, and come back later for the rest of the meal!

The main course is also from Flavorwalla! This one was not a random recipe, but one I chose due to a craving for fresh, seared scallops. It’s quite an unusual take on traditional pan seared scallops, with the Cider Glaze over the top and the Cumin Scented Cauliflower Puree underneath. It all works! It’s an amazingly flavorful dish. Here is the link for Cider-Glazed Seared Scallops with Cauliflower Puree. I especially love the addition of cumin, ginger and shallot to the cauliflower puree. It adds a wonderful depth of flavor and you will not miss the cream or butter at all!

So there ya go….Valentine’s or any other special occasion meal, all laid out for you. All you have to do is shop and cook, pour the bubbly and light the candles.

Thanks for stopping by. I hope you have a wonderful evening!

Laura

A few production photos….just for fun!

Corned Beef on Rye, please!

06/27/2016 by Laura Leave a Comment

Cooking officially turns into a project when it results in three trips to the store for ingredients, an hour searching for necessary equipment, and having the stove on all day. Dave did not realize what he had done by pulling a corned beef brisket out of the freezer on Saturday! I had bought it in March for a traditional St. Patrick’s dinner. He was not up to that kind of food, back then, so in the freezer it went. A traditional corned beef and cabbage dinner just did not sound good at the end of June.

What did sound good? Corned beef from Katz’s and Swirl Rye from Zabar’s! Since flying to NYC was not an option, I went in search of the swirl rye that shows up occasionally at one of our local supermarkets. No luck! With the corned beef simmering away in the crockpot, and the swirl rye determination of Jerry, I had no choice but to make the bread myself. I had everything on had except rye flour. For some reason Safeway had four different offerings of almond and coconut flour in three different sections of the store, and no rye flour anywhere. As a matter of fact – there were very few whole grain offerings, but that is another story. As an industry professional, I could fully explain the “reasoning” and/or “logic” behind what does and does not get stocked in the store, but you would all fall asleep in two minutes. So, off to Whole Foods I went. I easily found the necessary rye flour and some beautiful organic blackberries that I decided, on the spot, would go into a cobbler along with the “less than beautiful” apricots hidden in the back of our fridge. See – this is how it goes. All I wanted was a decent corned beef on rye, on a Sunday afternoon! Now I’m baking bread and making cobbler.

I consider myself a fairly accomplished bread baker, although I do not recall ever making a swirl rye. I used the recipe I found on line from Red Star Yeast. My biggest surprise was that darker dough is the same as the lighter dough, with the addition of some cocoa powder! The recipe can be found here.

Roll out the dark dough. Fold over and set aside

Roll out the light dough.

Place the dark dough on the light dough. Trim the sides and edges as needed.

Roll into a loaf. Place on a parchment lined baking sheet that has been oiled.

I made some mini bread sticks with the trimmings. The back deck is a great “proofer” in the summer. I got a great rise on the loaf.

Bake according to directions.

To assemble the sandwich, I sliced the bread a little thick. I spread both sides with mustard. I warmed the sliced corned beef in a small pan with Swiss cheese on top, until it got soft and gooey. I placed the meat and cheese on the bread. I served store bought coleslaw alongside.

I mentioned cobbler, didn’t I! Well, sharing this is going to result in coming clean with one of my short cuts. I use a cobbler mix. It’s fantastic. You can even make this with canned fruit and people will think you spent hours baking. There are a few mixes out there. I used one in a small bag that looks a lot like the fish fry product they also produce. Use any fruit you like. I used chopped apricots and blackberries. Bake according to the directions on the package. By the time I was ready to snap a shot of the finished product, half the pan of cobbler and a pint of ice cream had gone missing. Dave assures you, it was good!

Thanks for stopping by.

Have a great evening,

Laura

“Familiar” Lunchbox Cupcakes

01/25/2016 by Laura Leave a Comment

I’m still cooking for one and it is not any easier than it was a couple months ago. Dave is doing amazingly well; unfortunately his throat is still too swollen to swallow more than a smoothie, or an occasional IPA! The doctors tell us this is not unusual as it takes a long time to heal from intense radiation treatments. Dave being Dave, he has taken to making my dinner. It’s a nice break for me, but I believe it must be torture for him!

Flipping through Food & Wine magazine Friday night, I became intrigued with Mindy Segal’s Chocolate Buttermilk Snack Cakes. The truth is, I really miss baking. I used to bake before Fentons band practice as I knew whatever I came up with, would be gone in a few hours. I actually like “the baking” more than I like “the eating”. I am happy with one or two cookies, or as in this case, one cupcake. I knew our friend Jeff would be thrilled with a “clean” version of that familiar and “toxic” lunch box treat. Jeff and I frequently discuss possible recreations of our childhood favorites! I baked the cakes on Saturday, filled, frosted and delivered them on Sunday. The only resemblance to the elementary school lunch-box version, is the squiggle on top! The rich, moist dark chocolate cupcake is filled with creamy marscapone cheese and sweetened whipped cream and topped with a bittersweet dark chocolate glaze. My adaptation of Mindy’s recipe is below. And yes – that is Dave’s original lunch box!

For the cupcakes

1 cup buttermilk

1 cup strong, brewed coffee, cooled

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 tablespoon baking soda

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 cup granulated sugar

3/4 cup canola oil

1 large egg

Pour the buttermilk and the coffee into a 2-cup measuring cup. Add the vanilla. Set aside.

Place the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt in a small bowl. Fluff with a whisk to break up any clumps and mix all ingredients together. Set aside.

In a large stand mixer, beat the sugar and the oil until light and fluffy. Add the egg and beat until fully incorporated.

With the mixer running on low, add 1/3 the flour mixture and 1/3 the milk mixture. Repeat until all ingredients are incorporated.

Heat the oven to 350′. Oil two 12 cup cupcake tins, with coconut or canola oil spray. Place 2-3 Tablespoons of batter in each cupcake cup.

Bake for 6 minutes, rotate pans and bake another 6 minutes. Cupcakes are done when a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Let cupcakes cool slightly and remove to a rack, placed over a baking sheet. Meanwhile, make the filling.

For the filling

1 cup mascarpone cheese

3/4 cup heavy cream

1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar

3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Pinch of kosher salt

Beat the heavy cream with the powdered sugar for a few minutes to thicken up a bit. Add the vanilla and the mascarpone cheese and continue to whip until smooth and thick.

Two options for filling the cupcakes:

Slice the cupcake 2/3 of the way through and place filling in the middle of each one with a spoon.
Remove the center “core” of the cupcake and fill them using a pastry bag fitted with a metal tip. This is what we did. We used a large straw to “core” the cupcake.

Fill all cupcakes, and return to the wire rack placed over a baking pan. Meanwhile, make the glaze.

For the dark chocolate glaze

(inspired by this recipe)

5 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped

3/4 cup heavy whipping cream

1/2 cup sugar

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

pinch of Salt

Place the chopped chocolate in a medium bowl. In a small saucepan, combine the heavy cream with the sugar and bring to a simmer, stirring, until the sugar dissolves. Pour the warm cream over the chocolate and let stand until melted, about 5 minutes; whisk until smooth. Whisk in the butter, vanilla and a pinch of salt. Let the dark chocolate glaze cool until slightly thickened, about 15 minutes.

Drizzle a large spoonful of glaze over each cupcake. Please the cupcakes in the refrigerator to cool, at least 30 minutes.

I used Betty Crocker white frosting in the tube, with the tip provided, to make the squiggles on top. You could use homemade Royal icing. I chose not to, as I needed such a small amount.

I hope you enjoy these!

Have a wonderful evening,

Laura

Strawberry Rhubarb Shortbread Bars

05/31/2015 by Laura 2 Comments

This is one of my favorite weekends of the year. Amma is here in the Pacific Northwest as part of her summer tour. For many years, my dear friends Andrea, Sharon and Andrea’s son Jack have migrated to Seattle from Vancouver, BC to attend Amma. This year was no exception. To celebrate the visit, we made a glorious meal for Saturday’s dinner. Dave made his world famous macaroni salad and barbecued chicken. We also had some of the best early summer corn we have ever had. My contribution was the strawberry-rhubarb shortcake bars I concocted on Saturday afternoon. I had gone to the produce stand to get things for juicing. When I saw the bright red stalks of rhubarb sitting next to the strawberries…. I decided I would come up with something for dessert. I didn’t want to make a pie as I was also making quiche for the weekend, and I am not that into pie crust in the first place. I wanted something everyone could just help themselves to; like a bar cookie. A quick internet search led me to Carla Hall’s Strawberry Shortbread Bars. Perfect….I just had to incorporate my rhubarb. None of us care for things “too sweet” and the contrast of lemon, rhubarb and strawberry is a total winner. This recipe could actually accommodate any summer fruit. Blackberries rule, here in Seattle, which has me thinking about a blackberry, Thai basil and lime combination. Ooh la la!

Strawberry Rhubarb Shortbread Bars

1/2 pound butter softened

1 cup granulated sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 3/4 cup all purpose flour

1/2 cup almond flour

2 cups sliced strawberries

2 cups sliced rhubarb

1/4 cup lemon juice

2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest

2 tablespoons of sugar

1/2 cup Strawberry Jam

Heat the oven to 350′. Prepare a 9 x 13 baking pan by greasing it with a little butter.

In the bowl of the food process combine the butter and the sugar. Add the vanilla, salt, flours and pulse until coarse and crumbly.

Set aside about 1/2 cup of the mixture in the refrigerator. Pat the remaining dough into the prepared pan. Make sure it is even. Poke the shortbread with a fork to allow steam to escape. Bake until lightly brown around the edges, about 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool.

While the shortbread is baking, prepares the strawberry rhubarb mixture. Place the lemon juice and remaining sugar in a medium pot. Warm over medium-low heat. Add the rhubarb and bring to a simmer. Cook the rhubarb until it is soft, about 7 minutes. Add the strawberry jam and return to a simmer. Add the sliced strawberries and cook another 5 minutes. Add in the gated lemon zest.

Spread the mixture over the shortbread. Make crumbles out of the remaining shortbread dough that was chilling in the fridge and sprinkle them over the top of the fruit mixture. Return the pan to the oven and bake until the shortbread crumbles are golden.

Let cool and refrigerate. Serve with a big scoop of your favorite vanilla ice cream.

Enjoy, with gratitude and great friends!

Have a wonderful evening,

Laura

Crackle Top Cream Puffs filled with Rummy Pumpkin Mousse!

11/24/2014 by Laura 1 Comment

I have been away from my kitchen far too long! I hope you have escaped the ridiculous upper respiratory infection going around, but if you have not, you understand why I haven’t been cooking or eating much for almost 4 weeks! Food is just not very interesting when you cannot smell or taste! I’m feeling a lot better and I wanted to share this treat with you as it might be a nice addition to your Thanksgiving dessert table. My inspiration came from the baking demonstration I attended with Dorie Greenspan, where she shared her Crackle Top Cream Puffs from her newest book, Baking Chez Moi. A couple of days later, I found a Pumpkin Bourbon Mousse recipe, recently republished as part of Saveur magazines Thanksgiving suggestions. I added a personal twist by using a unique and new (to me) spice blend Advieh, from World Spice Merchants here in Seattle. I ran across it when I was ordering other fresh spices for holiday baking. I knew nothing about it, but after reading the ingredients: cinnamon, cardamom, roses, cumin, black pepper and coriander…. I knew it would be fabulous. I also changed out the bourbon in the mousse, for my favorite rum, which I think is a natural complement to pumpkin.

More Savory, Less Sweet isn’t just a catchy title for my blog; it pretty much defines my palate! These little 2-3 bite treats are just my style and are perfect with an after dinner espresso or a final glass of bubbly!

Crackle Top Cream Puffs with Rummy Pumpkin Mousse

adapted from Baking Che Moi, Dorie Greenspan, and Pumpkin and Bourbon Mousse, Saveur

I split this up over two days, just to make things easier. Make the custard and the cookie pastry the first day. As always, read all steps through carefully and make sure you have all ingredients and equipment needed on hand.

for the Pumpkin Mousse

¾ cup sugar
6 tbsp. high quality aged rum, like Zaya Gran Reserva (my all time favorite, thanks Dave!)
½ tsp. kosher salt
1 teaspoon ground Advieh or Pumpkin Pie spice
8 eggs, yolks
1 cup canned pumpkin
1 cup heavy whipping cream whipped with 2 teaspoons powdered sugar, 1 teaspoon cornstarch and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Bring 2″ water to a boil in a 4-qt. saucepan over medium-high heat. Place a medium metal bowl over pan, and add sugar, rum, salt, spice, and egg yolks; whisk together, and cook, whisking constantly until thickened and pale, about 6 minutes. Remove from the heat and add canned pumpkin, fold until almost combined. Place in a bowl and chill thoroughly. Make the whipped cream, fold the chilled mousse into the whipped cream. Keep cold until ready to fill the cream puffs.

for the Crackle Tops

4 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/2 cup lightly packed brown sugar

1/2 cup, plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Let the butter sit at room temperature for 10 minutes before using. Put the brown sugar and salt into the bowl of the food processor. cut the butter into 10 pieces and add to the sugar. Process until almost blended Add the flour and pulse until the dough forms moist curds. Pulse in the vanilla.

Scrape the dough onto a sheet of parchment or wax paper and form into a disc. Caver with another sheet or parchment or wax paper and roll out dough to a thickness of about 1/16th inch. Slide the dough onto a tray or cutting board and place in the freezer for a minimum of two hours. Cut the dough into 1 1/2 inch rounds and return to the freezer until ready to bake the puffs.

for the Cream Puffs

1/2 cup whole milk

1/2 cup water

8 tablespoons unsalted butter, one stick cut into 4 pieces

1 tablespoon sugar 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt

1 cup all-purpose flour

4 large eggs, at room temperature

Preheat the oven to 425′. Position the racks to be able to use the top 2 of 3. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Bring the milk, water, butter, sugar and salt to a rolling boil in a heavy saucepan over high heat. Add the flour all at once, reduce the heat to medium low and stir vigorously using a wooden spoon or spatula. Cook and stir for 2-3 minutes. The dough should be very smooth. Let the dough rest 3 minutes. Turn the dough into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix the eggs into the dough ONE AT A TIME, making sure each egg is fully incorporated before adding the next. The dough should be used immediately.

Either pipe the cream puffs onto the prepared pans with using a pastry bag, or use a small cookie scoop that holds about 1 1/2 tablespoons. Leave at least 2 inches between puffs. Gently top each puff with a round of frozen crackle top dough. Place the baking sheets in the 425′ oven and immediately turn the temperature down to 375′. Bake for 20 minutes and rotate the pans from top to bottom; front to back. Bake another 10-15 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack and let them cool to room temperature.

To fill the puffs for my recipe, I cut them in two along the edge of the crackle top and piped the whipped cream pumpkin mouse into each one using a large star tip. I did this about an hour before serving and kept them cold in the refrigerator.

I hope you give this pumpkin pie alternative a try!

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving,

Laura

“Baking Chez Moi” a book signing and baking event with Dorie Greenspan

11/05/2014 by Laura 1 Comment

I was one of the 60 lucky folks to attend the outstanding Hot Stove Society event with Dorie Greenspan. Dorie included a stop at Hot Stove Society on her book tour for her 11th book, Baking Chez Moi, Recipes from my Paris Home to Your Home Anywhere”. First things first…. Hot Stove Society is a year-round cooking school operated by Tom Douglas restaurants. It is located across the street from Tom’s first restaurant, Dahlia Lounge, on the second level of Hotel Andra. It is a beautiful space for hands on cooking classes, as well as lectures and demonstrations, like the event with Dorie. It is a warm and intimate environment. I had the chance to say hello to Dorie before she began speaking. I introduced myself and told her I was a blogger. When I informed her of the name of my blog, she said “well what are you doing here?”. I assured her I loved to bake and was actually a quite accomplished baker and I appreciated her recipes very much. I also spoke with her husband Michael and asked him how he and Dorie managed to stay so thin and fit, in spite of all the amazing goodies Dorie creates. He informed me they subscribe to a strict “taste and release” policy! I wonder if their doorman is as svelte? Chef Tom Douglas and Dorie pictured below.

Dorie’s newest book is a peek into what people in Paris actually bake at home as well as traditional recipes from her favorite Parisian shops. Dorie told many delightful stories about the effort it took to gather the recipes from friends and friends of friends, as well as their reaction to seeing the recipes in the book. She talked about the history of the Tarte Tropezienne; a delicious cake like creation made from brioche style dough, baked in a large round then split and filled with pastry cream lightened with whipped cream. You can find some version of this creation in every pastry shop in St. Tropez, along with a picture of Brigot Bardot who named the cake La Tarte Tropezienne. Dorie informed us the new trend in Parisian cream puffs includes different flavored fillings and a crackle top due to the addition of a butter cookie on top, a delicious twist. Un Dimanche A Paris, or Sunday in Paris Chocolate Cake is from one of Dorie’s favorite pastry shops. The cake called for peanut butter, which is a rarely used ingredient in Paris and took Dorie days to find before she could actually make the cake. We were treated to these three desserts, prepared by the students from the South Seattle Community College Culinary School Pastry Program, and demonstrated by the director of the program, Chef Christopher Harris under Dorie’s watchful eye.

Yes, my serving of Tarte Tropezienne is missing from the photographs. I totally lost my mind and ate it without taking a picture first. What was I thinking? It was delicious!

The event ended with Dorie graciously signing our books. In my case, it was a total of three of her books. She is so kind, friendly, witty, and charming and spent a good amount of time talking with each one of us. I cannot wait to bake and share with you, from Baking Chez Moi.

Have a great evening,

Laura

Bumper Crop Blueberry Pie

07/31/2014 by Laura 2 Comments

Our blueberry bushes are loaded with large berries in various stages of ripeness. The weather has been just perfect for them. I barely picked two gallons last year. I have picked about 4 gallons already.

So what do you do with an abundance of blueberries? You make pie, of course! This time, I made two. One for a friends birthday and one for my nephew, who just finished his bar exams. Lots of reasons to celebrate with pie.

Laura’s Blueberry Pie

pastry for 2 pies – detailed pie crust instructions here

Preheat the oven to 450′.

8-10 cups of blueberries, picked over to remove stems, leaves and green berries then rinsed and drained

2 cups of sugar

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 cup quick cook tapioca

1/4 cup flour

4 ounces of butter

Prepare crust for two pies – or 1/2 recipe, one pie

Mix the berries, sugar, cinnamon, tapioca and flour together in a large bowl, very gently.

Pour the mixture into the prepared pie pans.

Cut two slices of butter into 4th’s and dot the pie with the butter.

Add the top crust. Trim evenly as shown in detailed pie crust instructions linked above. If you like, add little cut outs made from the remaining dough. Brush the crust with milk and sprinkle with sugar. Place each pie on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. This makes the spill over a breeze to deal with!

Bake for 10 minutes at 450′. Reduce heat to 350′ and bake another 40 minutes. Rotate pies half way through the baking process. Let cool completely and then refrigerate. Serve with a big scoop of your favorite vanilla ice cream.

I almost forgot to mention…There is one more celebration happening today. Cooper is turning 3 years old and has officially been a part of our family for two years! (We adopted him on his 1st birthday.) It is traditional for our dogs to get an ice cream cone on their birthday! Happy 3rd Birthday Cooper, and many more!

Roasted Strawberry Rhubarb Ice Cream

06/02/2014 by Laura 1 Comment

I am committed to using everything in my garden when it is ripe. Saturday, it was a small bowl of strawberries and a few stalks of rhubarb. Inspired by memories of fresh strawberry rhubarb pie and ice cream – it struck me! Why not skip the pie and put the roasted fruit in the ice cream? Neither my husband nor my mom sounded very enthused when I shared my idea, but that did not stop me!

Remove the stems from the strawberries. Chop the rhubarb into small pieces. Place all in a baking pan and sprinkle with about 1/2 cup of sugar. Roast at 375′ for about 30 minutes, until the fruit is soft and caramelized. Place in bowl and chill thoroughly.

I am not sure how or when we ended up with the ice cream attachment for our Kitchen Aide mixer! As committed as I am to using all that my garden produces, I am also (newly) committed to using the wide assortment of “I must have this” (never used) kitchen gadgets I have accumulated. So, last weekend the ice cream attachment went from the box to the freezer, ready for it’s first performance.

I chose David Liebowitz Vanilla Ice Cream recipe. As I have never made ice cream before, I thought a tried and true recipe was the best place to start! I used organic milk, sugar and cream.

Vanilla Ice Cream

About 1 quart (1l)

1 cup (250ml) whole milk
A pinch of salt
3/4 cup (150g) sugar
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
2 cups (500ml) heavy cream
5 large egg yolks
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract.

1. Heat the milk, salt, and sugar in a saucepan. Scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean into the milk with a paring knife, then add the bean pod to the milk. Cover, remove from heat, and infuse for one hour.

2. To make the ice cream, set up an ice bath by placing a 2-quart (2l) bowl in a larger bowl partially filled with ice and water. Set a strainer over the top of the smaller bowl and pour the heavy cream into the bowl.

3. In a separate bowl, stir together the egg yolks. Rewarm the milk then gradually pour some of the milk into the yolks, whisking constantly as you pour. Scrape the warmed yolks and milk back into the saucepan.

4. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly and scraping the bottom with a heat-resistant spatula, until the custard thickens enough to coat the spatula.

5. Strain the custard into the heavy cream. Stir over the ice until cool, add the vanilla extract, then refrigerate to chill thoroughly. Preferably overnight.

6. Remove the vanilla bean and freeze the custard in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Add about 1/4 cup of the chilled strawberry rhubarb mixture during the last 7 minutes of mixing / freezing time.