Easter Shortbread

One very easy, melt-in-your-mouth shortbread recipe, this one is great for easter or just with afternoon tea. Try sandwiching two cooled cookies with strawberry or raspberry jam for a special treat!

Ingredients:

2 sticks of SALTED butter (softened)

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1/4 cup cornstarch

1 and 1/2 cup of flour

1 tsp Vanilla Extract

1 tsp orange or lemon zest

2 drops Almond Extract

granulated sugar (for rolling)

1. Slice butter and soften in microwave (15 sec on High for me)

2. Beat, either by hand or with an electric mixer until creamy

3. Add powdered sugar, cornstarch, zest, Vanilla and Almond Extracts. Blend throughly.

4. When smooth, add flour, 1/2 cup at a time

5. Form dough into a log and roll outsides in granulated sugar, cover in cling wrap. Refrigerate for one hour.

6. Slice and place on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 375 degrees for 8-9 minutes (or until edges barely brown)

7. Store in an air tight container for up to a week.

Creme Brulee

Late last night, following a discussion about meringue and shot glasses, Amy, CJ, and I came to the conclusion that life would not be worth living without an immediate infusion of Creme Brulee. Upon the assembling of my crack team of chefs, it was discovered that our youngest had never heard of tempering eggs. Killing two birds with one stone, she got a lesson that she won't soon forget, and we managed to create something resembling the French classic. and Sadly, creme brulees require some chilling time, and our patience was rather limited, so the one we ate immediately was a bit sloppy. The ones that spent the night chilling, however reached a wonderfully smooth consistency, and we ate them this afternoon. Here's the recipe, adapted from mooseybear at http://www.food.com/recipe/creme-brulee-54681

Ingredients

- 1/2 quart heavy cream

-1/2 of a vanilla bean

-1/4 cup sugar

-5 egg yolks

-1/2 tsp vanilla extract

-1/2 pinch of salt (very tiny)

Topping

-white sugar

Directions

1. Heat the oven to 325 F

2. Heat cream in a heavy saucepan until scalded (it forms a light skin on top and a few bubbles on the sides of the pan)

3. While the cream is heating, combine egg yolks, salt and sugar, whisking them into a smooth pale yellow mixture.

4. Split vanilla bean in half lengthwise and scrape seeds into the hot cream.

5. Temper the egg mixture by adding the cream slowly, whisking it in as you go. You may need two people to do this, one holding the sauce pan and one whisking. (hint: pouring the cream down the inside wall of the bowl helps it to cool a little more, which is good because if the cream is too hot, it can result in scrambled eggs, and although they're yummy, that's not what we're going for here).

6. Once all the cream is incorporated, add the vanilla extract and ladle the mixture into 6 shallow ramekins.

7. Bake the ramekins in a water bath (Pyrex dish or cake pan with water 3/4 of the way up the sides of the ramekins) for 25 to 45 min, until just set.

8. Cool ramekins in the water bath. Once room temp, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least two hours (and up to two days, if you can wait that long).

9. To make crust, sprinkle custard with white sugar and heat under a blow torch (or the broil setting on your oven) until it just caramelizes. Serve chilled with whipped cream and berries.

Serves 6

Battenburg Cake

Photo credit to Cakespy from serious eats


This was one of my favorite treats as a kid. While staying with a family friend in Switzerland, Lisa (a friend) and I, ended up staying up eating marzipan (almond paste) until one in the morning. On a cautionary note, this is one of those 'don't try this at home, kids...' the sugar rush was crazy. The cake is moist and chewy and the jam and marzipan give it just enough sweetness to delight adults and kids alike. (plus the checkerboard look is really cool!)

- serves about 8 -Adapted from Bron Marshall and Cakespy from serious eats

Ingredients:

1 cup butter
1 teaspoon Madagascar vanilla
3/4 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups white flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 cup of milk,
Red food coloring
1 ounce amaretto or orange oil (optional)
1/4 cup of your choice of preserves (apricot is traditional, but raspberry is also good)
11 ounces marzipan (almond paste) or fondant to cover

Procedure:

1. Pre-heat oven to 350°F.

2. Line a shallow square cake tin (9x9 inches works well) with parchment paper.

3. Cream the butter, vanilla and sugar until light and fluffy.

4. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.

5. Sift the flour, baking powder and fold into the creamed mixture.

6. Add sufficent milk to give the dough a soft consistency, kind of like that of a drop cookie.

7. Separate the dough into two equal parts. In a bowl, mix half of the dough with 1 ounce amaretto or orange oil. If you don't like amaretto, this step is optional. Place the dough into one half of your prepared cake pan. It should be stiff enough that it won't drip into the other half.

8. Add a strip of parchment paper to the middle of the pan, along the edge of where your white-colored dough ends at the halfway point. This will help keep the dough colors divided while you bake.

9. Add a few drops of red food coloring to the remaining mixture to turn it a pink color, then spoon this into the other half of the prepared pan.

10. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until the cake has risen and is lightly brown on the edges and has a dull finish on top.

11. Turn out on a wire rack and let cool fully.

12. Trim the edges of the cake so that both pieces are of uniform size; then cut each half in two so that you have four equally sized strips.

13. Gently heat the jam in a small pan and stick the stripes of cake together, one plain piece next to one colored one, and then again to make a checkerboard effect.

14. Brush the top of the assembled cake with jam.

15. Roll out the almond paste into a rectangle the length of the cake and wide enough to cover both sides.

16. Lay the jam covered top of the cake onto the almond paste, then brush the remaining three sides with apricot jam.

17. Press the almond paste neatly around the cake, sealing it together at the edges. This should form a smooth outside coat. Serve in slices.

Breakfast: Scones

Puyallup Scones (a.k.a. THE best breakfast IN the WORLD) are a staple at the world famous Puyallup Fair in Washington state. This recipie has been modified from one that was origionally published in 1930. Apparently the fair's been going on every year for a very long time. They are traditionally made with rasins, not chocolate chips, and served hot with butter and raspberry jam. I personally like both.
Here's how you can make your own.

2 1/2 Cups Unbleached all purpose Flour
2 Tsp. Baking powder
2 1/2 Tbsp. Sugar (plus extra for sprinkling)
1/2 Tsp. Salt
6 Tbsp. Butter
3/4 Cup Milk
1/2 Cup Chocolate chips
1 Large Egg (beaten)

1. Sift Flour, Baking powder, Sugar, and Salt.
2. Cut Butter into small pats and microwave for 15 secconds or until soft.
3. Work soft butter into dry ingredients until the mixture reaches the consistancy of bread crumbs.
4. Add Chocolate chips, and mix to distribute.
5. Poar Milk in slowly, mixing with your fingers until a sticky dough forms.
6. Sprinkle countertop with flour and split dough into two even pieces.
7. Roll one piece of dough into a ball and flatten into a circle about 1 inch thick. Cut into five wedges. Repeat with the other dough. (don't worry if the dough tastes bad right now. All scone dough tastes terrible. I figured that out the hard way.)
8. Lay wedges out on a baking sheet covered in tinfoil. Brush with beaten Egg and sprinkle with sugar for a nice crunchy top.
9. Bake in a 450 degree oven for fifteen minutes.

Serve them warm with butter and jam!

Beginning

It turned out to be an awful Christmas gift from the neighbor of a family friend that gave me the idea of writing this blog. Maybe I'm just being a snob, but we aren't talking about fruitcake here. No, this was much worse.
Some poor lady got the bright idea to mash cornflakes into melted marshmallows, and dye the whole mess a dull green, and managing to transform perfect golden flakes into something vaguely resembling a circular rice crispy treat dieing of gangrene .
There has got to be a better way.
So here we are.

BETTER USE No. 1
for Cornflakes

1 Cup slightly crushed Cornflakes
5 fillets of Talapia (or Catfish)
3 Large Eggs
2 Tbsp. Worcester Sauce
2 Cups of Milk (omit if useing Talapia)
5 Tbsp. Olive Oil
Italian Seasoning
Crushed Red Pepper flakes
Salt and Pepper (to taste)

Instructions:
1. In a clean kitchen sink, rince off fish, pat dry with paper towel.

2. Place the fillets in a large ziplock (or similar) bag, and add the milk. Press out all the air and seel. Refridgerate for at least eight hours (omit this step if using Talapia).

3. Drain the Fish, rince again, and pat dry. Place fillets one at a time in a clean plastic bag, covering them compleetly. Take a large sauce pan and hit the filettes untill they are approx. half an inch thick. Some portions may be a little thicker than others, but try to be relatively even in your smashing. Lay the (squished) fish out on a large clean plate. This will be your raw fish plate. Wash your hands before the next step.

4. In a shallow glass pan beat the eggs and worcester sauce until fairly well mixed. On a seperate plate, combine the Italian seasoning, cornflakes, red pepper, salt, and pepper. So far you should have three seperate plates. It's easiest if you lay them out so that the raw fish plate is on your left, the egg mixture in the middle, and the cornflake mixture on the right.

5. This is the tricky part, with your left hand, dip both sides of fish into the egg mixture. Using the same hand, transfer the fish to the cornflakes. With your right hand, this time, cover the top of the fillet with cornflake mixture, and pat it firmly, securing the crumbles in place. Turn it over, and make sure that both sides are coated evenly before returning it to the raw fish plate. Repeat process with the remaining fish, using the same hands so as not to mix the egg and crumbles. It's a process, I know, but the result is well worth the work.

6. Once all your fillets are well coated, heat oil in a shallow frying pan until it is just begining to spark. You may want a splatter shield for this. Lay fillets in the hot oil one at a time, being careful not to crowd them. If your pan is too small, do smaller batches. Usually my big pan fits three at a time, but yours may vary. Cook on each side until golden brown and crispy. Lay on a clean plate, and use a paper towel to blot off excess oil.
Eat em' while they're hot!