Citrus Pear Pie

I have had my eye on this recipe now for a few months, and a belated spring Easter dinner with Bob seemed the perfect time to try it out, especially with Bob around to help zest the lemons. He is a natural zester. Who knew?

I used my standard pie crust, but include their pie crust recipe just for future reference. This website is really into cold corn oil in their crusts. Maybe some day I'll be tempted to try it out, but for now I'm happy with my pie crust and Bob is happy with it so I don't feel like rocking the boat.

This is from the same place I got the boozy Liz banana pie recipe. They make a convincing argument in favor of pear pies. I have never even had a pear pie before and they list at least five different recipes! Very strange. The website advises using Anjou and Bartlett pears, but not too ripe! If you use Bartlett, you have to use more thickening as they are juicier. I used three Anjou and three red pears, just for effect. Here's the link:

http://everythingpies.com/citrus-pear-pie.html

The red pears were so pretty in the final baked pie. What is funny about this pie is that the Robber loved it more than I did. Since when does that happen for a fruit pie? He raved about it. It was good, light, and yet with an interesting flavor but wasn't my favorite fruit pie. None-the-less, because the Robber loved it so much I will be making it again. If I make it again I think I will increase the zest, add just a little bit of lime zest, macerate the pears first, and then boil down the released juices and add them back in so that the pie retains more of the lemon flavor. I also baked the pie for much longer than the recommended time (for an hour at the lower temperature) and I think I would do this again as the pears, which were firm and crunchy before baking, were the perfect softness with the longer baking time.

Ingredients:

Pie crust (makes one double crust)

3 C. all-purpose flour

4 T. sugar

1/4 C. ice cold water

1/4 C. cold corn oil

1/2 tsp. fine salt

1 C. (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter

1/8 tsp. fresh lemon zest

Pie filling:

3 pounds pears (about 6 pears)

1/2 C. fresh-squeezed lemon juice

1/4 tsp. fresh lemon zest

2/3 C. sugar

2 T. all-purpose flour

2 T. tapioca flour (I just used 2 T. more all-purpose flour)

1/4 tsp. ground ginger

1/4 tsp. ground cardamom

pinch of salt

1 T. cold unsalted butter

Directions:

1. Prepare the pastry: Roll the pastry and line a 9-inch pie plate with the bottom crust. Roll out the remaining dough for the top crust. Chill the pastry.

2. Preheat the oven to 425° F.

3. Pour the fresh-squeezed lemon juice in the bottom of a large bowl. Add your lemon zest to the bowl. Peel, halve and core the pears with a melon baller or corer. Be sure to remove the fiber in the center of the pear. Slice them evenly about a 1/4 inch thick into the bowl, coating them with the lemon juice as you go.

4. In a separate bowl, mix together the sugar, flour, tapioca flour, cardamom, ginger and salt. Add them to the pears just before you want to bake the pie, mix gently and then taste a pear slice. Add more sugar to taste as needed.

5. Scrape the filling into the bottom crust, dot with butter and cover it with the second crust. Trim and crimp the crust; chill the pie for 10 minutes in the freezer. Cut vent slits in the top crust. It is your option to sprinkle it with sugar or brush the top with egg white.

6. Bake the pie on a baking sheet for 10 minutes or until the crust looks dry, blistered, and blonde. Turner the oven down to 375°F, and bake for at least 30 minutes more or until the crust is golden brown, and visible juices are thickened and bubble slowly through the slits in the top crust. Check if the bottom crust has darkened. If not bake a little more and cover the top crust, so it does not burn.

7. Cool the pie completely before cutting at least a few hours. Serve it at room temperature. Store the pie uncovered in a cool place up to three days.

Snickerdoodle Scones

The last for a while (until I have eaten!!!) from my Annie's Eats scone collection. Originally from Baking Bites. Did I say the chocolate chip scones were the easiest to make? I take it back. These were. Simple ingredients. Easy assembly. Cinch-o. And you don't have to flash freeze them because the dough is already easy to partition out. The only thing I would change (without actually having tasted one) is that I think you only need half the cinnamon-sugar for the top. I had lots leftover and had to use it on a second batch of strawberry scones.

Here's the link:

http://annies-eats.net/2009/11/03/snickerdoodle-scones/

Ingredients:

2 C. all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. cream of tartar

¼ tsp. salt

6 T. sugar

6 T. cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

½ C. whole milk or heavy cream

1½ tsp. vanilla extract

For the topping:

¼ C. sugar

1½ tsp. ground cinnamon

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400° F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.

2. In a large mixing bowl combine the flour, baking soda, cream of tartar, salt and sugar; stir together with a fork.

3. Add the cold butter to the flour mixture and cut the butter into the dry ingredients using a pastry cutter or two knives, until the mixture is crumbly and the largest butter pieces are the size of peas.

4. Combine the milk and vanilla in a measuring cup. Pour the liquid over the dry ingredients and stir together with a fork just until the mixture forms a cohesive dough. If necessary, knead the mixture just a few times by hand to bring the dough together.

5. Transfer the dough to the prepared baking sheet and form a large round disc about 8-9 inches in diameter. In a small bowl, whisk together the sugar and cinnamon for the topping. Sprinkle generously over the top of the dough round (you will not need to use all of the topping.)

6. Bake for about 15-18 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool on the pan, then slice into 6-8 wedges for serving.

Cranberry Scones

Still marching on through Annie's scone recipes. So far, so good (although I wasn't a huge huge fan of the strawberry scones.)

These scones Annie recommends making at Thanksgiving time and freezing (of course!) and then baking for breakfast the morning after. Why not? She also notes that you can use lemon or orange zest in the recipe equally well. I used lemon. Also a very sticky dough that will probably have to sit in the freezer for a good old time before being sectioned.

Originally from Smitten Kitchen, by way of Annie's Eats:

http://annies-eats.net/2010/11/02/cranberry-scones/

Ingredients:

1½ T. freshly grated lemon zest

2½ C. all-purpose flour

½ C. plus 3 T. sugar, divided

1 T. baking powder

½ tsp. salt

6 T. cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

1¼ C. fresh or frozen cranberries, coarsely chopped (I used frozen and just chopped each berry in half)

1 large egg plus 1 large egg yolk

1 cup heavy cream

Additional sugar for sprinkling

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400˚ F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.

2. In a food processor*, combine the lemon zest, flour, ½ cup of sugar, baking powder and salt. Pulse briefly to blend. Add in the cold butter pieces and pulse again briefly until the mixture resembles coarse meal and the butter pieces are no larger than peas. Transfer to a medium mixing bowl.

3. In a small bowl, toss together the chopped cranberries and remaining 3 tablespoons sugar. Stir this into the flour-butter mixture.

4. In another small bowl or a liquid measuring cup, combine the egg, egg yolk and heavy cream; whisk to blend. Add the liquid ingredients to the bowl with the dry ingredients and stir gently with a spatula or wooden spoon just until all the dry ingredients are moistened. Knead gently to be sure the dough is evenly mixed, being careful not to overwork the dough.

5. Place a 2½- or 3-inch round biscuit cutter on the lined baking sheet. Scoop some of the dough inside the cutter and pat down gently to form a 1-inch thick round. Repeat with the remaining dough, placing the rounds 2-3 inches apart on the baking sheet.** Sprinkle lightly with additional sugar.

(To freeze before baking, flash freeze at this point. Place the baking sheet with the shaped scones into the freezer and chill until frozen. Transfer to a freezer-safe plastic bag and store until ready to bake.)

5. Bake in the preheated oven until light golden brown, about 15-20 minutes. (If baking from the freezer, add approximately 5 minutes to the original baking time.)

*Note from Annie: A food processor is not required for this recipe. You can achieve the same result using a stand mixer, a pastry blender, or even just two knives. I like the food processor because it is quick and easy, but all methods work equally well.

**Note from Annie: There are many different ways to shape scones. You can pat the dough into one large disc and slice into triangular wedges, roll it out and cut with a biscuit cutter, use a dough scoop and simply make drop scones, etc. Do whatever you prefer. I like this method for this particular scone dough because the dough is sticky and this prevents overworking.

Chocolate Chip Scones

These were, by far, the easiest scones to make so far. So few ingredients. So easy to measure. No butter to cut in. Just fast and quick! The downside is the batter was very sticky so I am "flash" freezing it in a pie plate before I cut the dough and freeze the scones individually. I'm not sure how you "freeze" just a lump of dough, and am too scared to use a cutter, because I don't have a really good round one the right size. Anyway. It is going to take a while to "flash" freeze, but otherwise the recipe was a cinch! I used 1/2 heavy cream and 1/2 half-and-half. And of course didn't do the butter/sugar part at the end, because I'm not baking these yet.

A reviewer on Annie's blog recommended using some buttermilk, which sounds like a good idea that I might try if I make these again.

From Brown Eyed Baker, originally from Hershey’s, by way of Annie's Eats:http://annies-eats.net/2010/08/04/chocolate-chip-scones/

Ingredients:

1½ C. plus 2 T. all-purpose flour

¼ C. sugar

2 tsp. baking powder

Pinch of salt

1 C. (6 oz.) chocolate chips (Annie prefers dark chocolate chips, I used them too)

1 C. heavy cream

2 T. butter, melted

Additional sugar for sprinkling (optional)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375˚ F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.

2. Combine the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl; stir to combine. Toss in the chocolate chips and stir to blend. Add the heavy cream to the flour mixture, stirring just until a dough forms and the dry ingredients are incorporated. Knead the dough very briefly with well floured hands to ensure even mixing.

3. Using a large dough scoop (or a large spoon), drop rounds of dough onto the prepared baking sheet. Brush lightly with melted butter and sprinkle with additional sugar (if using). Bake 15-20 minutes, until lightly browned.

Raspberry Chocolate Scones

These I also made fresh this morning and even baked one of them without any freezer time at all. The good news is that I think freezing the scones (at least overnight) works just fine, no worries. This scone was also among my favorites-- I think the fresh juicy raspberries just do it for me, and since the chocolate adds a contrasting flavor, I am happy. I would have to make it again and sample it all by itself though to offer suggestions on how to improve. Definitely a scone that tastes like a treat! I omitted the egg wash and just brushed the top of the scone with a little half-and-half and sprinkled on some turbinado sugar, which was just fine.

From the Joy of Eating by way of Annie's Eats:

http://annies-eats.net/2007/07/10/raspberry-chocolate-scones/

Ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/3 cup sugar

1 tsp. baking powder

½ tsp. baking soda

¼ tsp. salt

6 tbsp. unsalted butter, cold and cut into pieces

~1/2 cup dark chocolate chunks or chips

¾ cup fresh or frozen raspberries

½ cup plain or vanilla yogurt

1 ½ tsp. vanilla extract

1 large egg, lightly beaten

For egg wash:

1 large egg, lightly beaten

1 tbsp. milk or cream

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375° F and place rack in middle of oven. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Cut the butter into small pieces and blend into the flour mixture with a pastry blender or two knives. The mixture should look like coarse crumbs. Stir in the chocolate chunks (chips) and raspberries. In a small measuring cup, whisk together the yogurt, vanilla extract, and egg. Add this mixture to the flour mixture and stir just until the dough comes together. Do not over mix.

3. Transfer to a lightly floured surface and knead the dough gently four or five times and then pat, or roll, the dough into a circle that is about 7 inches (18 cm) round and about 11/2 inches (3.75 cm) thick. Cut the dough into eight triangles. Place the scones on the baking sheet. Make an egg wash of one well-beaten egg mixed with 1 tablespoon milk and brush the tops of the scones with this mixture. (Again, I just pressed it into a floured a pie plate and cut that into 8 pieces, I think this is the easiest way!)

4. Bake for about 18 to 20 minutes or until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Oatmeal Raspberry Scones

So I made these fresh this morning and then had half a scone at the little picnic R. and I had at Ontario Beach. It was terribly windy and we huddled on the floor of a gazebo to eat. The convicts were out, tearing down a fence, and it soon became apparent that their work place was going to be primarily right in front of us. We stayed for a little while, but after so many offers to join our party, decided to leave. The adventure at least afforded me the opportunity to try out little tastes of all the scones I have made thus far, and I have to say that this was one of my favorites. The oatmeal and the raspberry work well together, the texture is nice, the scone filling, and the nutmeg gives the scone the little extra kick I so dearly love.

From Joy the Baker, originally from Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan, by way of Annie's Eats:

http://annies-eats.net/2010/03/12/oatmeal-raspberry-scones/

Ingredients:

1 large egg

½ C. cold buttermilk

1 2/3 C. all-purpose flour

1 1/3 C. old-fashioned oats

1/3 C. sugar

1 T. baking powder

½ tsp. baking soda

½ tsp. salt

Pinch of nutmeg

10 T. cold unsalted butter, grated on a large grater or cut into small pieces

¾ C. fresh or frozen raspberries

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400˚ F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.

2. Combine the egg and buttermilk in a liquid measuring cup. Stir together; set aside.

3. Whisk together the flour, oats, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and nutmeg in a large mixing bowl. Add the butter to the bowl and toss. Cut the butter into the flour mixture with a pastry blender or fork until the mixture so that the mixture is crumbly. Pour the egg and buttermilk mixture into the dry ingredients and mix with a fork just until incorporated (the mixture will be sticky). Fold in the berries just until incorporated (be particularly gentle if using fresh berries).

4. Gently knead the dough 6-10 times, just until it comes together into a sticky dough. Portion the dough out into 8-12 scones, depending on the size you prefer, and transfer to the prepared baking sheet. (A large dough scoop is a good tool, but not necessary.) (I just pressed the dough into a floured pie pan, cut it into eighths, put it in the freezer for 30 min., baked one, and froze the other seven individually in plastic wrap.)

5. Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Transfer to a cooling rack and let cool for at least 10 minutes before serving.

Strawberry Scones

My third recipe in the scone series and second from Annie's Eats overall (where most of the remainder of the scone recipes will come from). Just making this recipe made me so hungry! After I had already cooked two other scone recipes. All those fresh strawberries. This recipe I followed as is, except I used tangerine zest instead of orange or lemon.

Here's the link to the recipe from Annie's, who gets the recipe originally from The Way the Cookie Crumbles, originally from Good Things Catered:

http://annies-eats.net/2010/05/26/strawberry-scones/

Ingredients:

1 large egg

¼ cup plain or vanilla yogurt

½ cup milk

1 tsp. orange or lemon zest

2¼ cups all-purpose flour

¼ cup sugar, plus more for sprinkling

1 tbsp. baking powder

½ tsp. salt

8 tbsp. cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

1 heaping cup diced fresh strawberries

Directions:

1. In a small bowl, whisk together the egg, yogurt, milk and citrus zest until blended; set aside. In the bowl of a food processor combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Pulse briefly to blend. Add the butter pieces to the bowl with the dry ingredients and pulse several times to cut the butter into the flour, until the largest butter pieces are the size of small peas. (If you don’t have a food processor, you can just as easily mix up the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl and cut in the butter using a pastry blender or two knives or forks.) Transfer the mixture to a large mixing bowl.

2. Add the strawberries to the flour mixture and toss to coat. Add the wet ingredients to the bowl with the dry ingredients and gently fold together with a fork or spatula until a sticky dough has formed. Knead just a few times to ensure that all the dry ingredients are incorporated and the dough is cohesive. (Only if absolutely necessary, add more milk 1 tablespoon at a time to hydrate the remaining dry ingredients.)

3. Transfer the dough to a well floured work surface and pat into a disc about 7-8 inches in diameter. Sprinkle lightly with additional sugar. Slice the disc into 8 wedges.

4. To bake the scones, preheat the oven to 425˚ F. Line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper. Place the shaped scones on the prepared baking sheet and bake until lightly browned on top, about 15 minutes. Let cool a few minutes before serving.

Note: To freeze, transfer the baking sheet with the shaped scones to the freezer and let them chill until they are firm, 30-60 minutes. Wrap the scones individually and store in a freezer-safe bag until ready to bake. Bake as originally indicated, adding a few minutes to the baking time (usually about 18-20 minutes for me.)

Pumpkin and Ginger Scones

The second recipe of my scone experiment/binge. This one comes, yes, from Recipes For Health and Ms. Shulman. How she suckers me in! I was at the less-fancy Wegman's, which didn't have crystallized ginger, so I substituted 1/2 cup baking raisins and 1/2 chopped walnuts for the ginger. Not the same effect, I know. And maybe raisins are weird with pumpkin? But they wanted using and I had them, so I guess I will find out when I bake up one of these! I also cut this into 8 instead of 12, because it just seems like a more reasonable scone size, and they are a little easier to freeze when cut larger.

Here is the link to the recipe in the NYTimes:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/26/health/nutrition/26recipehealth.html?ref=pumpkin

Ingredients:

3/4 cup whole-wheat flour

1 cup all purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

4 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces

1/2 cup pumpkin purée, well drained, canned or made from 1/2 pound fresh

1/4 cup buttermilk

2 tablespoons maple syrup

1/2 cup chopped candied ginger

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment. Sift together the flours, salt, ginger, baking powder and baking soda. Place in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade.

2. Add the butter to the food processor, and pulse several times until it is distributed throughout the flour. The mixture should have the consistency of coarse cornmeal. (I just do this step with a cutter, since I don't have a food processor.)

3. Beat together the pumpkin purée, buttermilk and maple syrup in a small bowl, and scrape into the food processor. Add the ginger, and process just until the dough comes together.

4. Scrape onto a lightly floured surface, and gently shape into a rectangle about 3/4 inch thick. Cut into six squares, then cut the squares in half on the diagonal to form 12 triangular pieces. Place on the baking sheet. Bake 12 to 15 minutes until lightly browned. Cool on a rack.

To roast the pumpkin: Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Cover a baking sheet with foil. Place the pumpkin pieces on the baking sheet, drizzle 2 teaspoons of olive or canola oil on top, cover tightly with foil and place in the oven. Roast for 1 1/2 hours or until thoroughly tender. Remove from the heat, transfer to a strainer or a colander set over a bowl or in the sink, and allow to cool and drain. Peel the pieces, and purée in a food processor fitted with the steel blade.

Nutritional information per serving: 143 calories; 4 grams fat; 3 grams saturated fat; 10 milligrams cholesterol; 25 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 223 milligrams sodium; 3 grams protein

Chocolate Orange Scones

The next little run of recipes will be different because I am going to try an experiment. In three days I start my medicine rotation, and I will have a lot less time to while away cooking, and I will be wanting for quick and accessible breakfasts. Enter Annie's Eats, my new food blog obsession. Annie makes all these scones and swears every time she posts a scone recipe that you can freeze rolled out, unbaked scones, for like forever and then just bake them the day you want to eat them, like fresh, like new! So I am going to take her up on it. This weekend I am going to try and make-- and freeze-- 56 scones. That way I will have breakfast all ready decided upon and ready to go for my whole medicine rotation. I really. hope. this. works.

Because I won't have tasted all of my scones when I blog the recipes, I will have to go back and comment as to how good they are a) after they have been frozen and b) after I write the post. Thus I won't be able to share my opinion until later. Via comment or re-post or something.

The first recipe in this little run is also a little step off the beaten path... from the LATimes instead of the NYTimes!!! I know. Really out there. But it tempted me during a perusal of the LATimes when I was bored during class one day and hence, it is my first frozen-scone attempt. The recipe is originally from Alice Medrich's "Bittersweet: Recipes and Tales From a Life in Chocolate" and here is the link:

http://www.latimes.com/features/la-fo-easterrec19amar19,0,6877913.story

Notes: I didn't have oat flour or a Whole Foods to buy oat flour, so I used wheat flour instead. I used another 3.5 oz. Lindt intense orange chocolate bar and supplemented with 0.5 oz. regular 60% cacao chocolate. I used tangerine instead of orange zest, and lastly used 1/2 heavy whipping cream and 1/2 half-and-half. You know. To cut down on calories, or something. And then I wrapped them all up in plastic wrap and a heavy-duty freezer bag and froze them. I will bake the first one tomorrow, before I get too caught up in all this scone mess.

Ingredients:

1 cup flour

1 cup oat flour

1/4 cup sugar, plus extra for sprinkling

2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt

Zest from 2 oranges

4 ounces coarsely chopped bittersweet chocolate (65% to 70% cacao)

1 1/4 cups heavy whipping cream, plus extra for brushing

Directions:

1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment.

2. In a large bowl, mix together the flour, oat flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Stir in the orange zest and the chocolate.

3. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the cream. Using a spatula, mix the ingredients until just moistened; the dough should look rough and shaggy. Gather the dough into a lump with your hands and knead it together five or six times, until it holds together and the sides of the bowl are clean.

4. On a lightly floured board, pat the dough into an 8 1/2 -inch round. Using a knife or a dough cutter, cut the round into 12 wedges. Place the wedges about an inch apart on the baking sheet. Brush the tops with cream and sprinkle them lightly with sugar.

5. Bake the scones until they begin to turn golden brown, about 15 minutes. Allow the scones to cool on a rack. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Each scone: 225 calories; 3 grams protein; 22 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams fiber; 15 grams fat; 8 grams saturated fat; 34 mg. cholesterol; 208 mg. sodium.

Broccoli and Red Onion Quesadillas

Another Recipes For Health concoction by Martha Shulman. Good thing I found this column, as it is just getting me into cooking up a storm. These looked healthy and good and I always like quesadillas but don't do well with too much cheese. Sad. :( But these looked like they had a good balance I could handle.

I didn't want to buy cheese for just 2 oz. and then have it go moldy before I use it. And I had two slices of Muenster cheese and some pecorino romano hanging around from when the Robber came last, so I substituted the cheese in the recipe for one slice of Muenster per quesadilla and some pecorino and was suitably satisfied; in fact, I kind of really liked the pecorino flavor with the red onion.

These are relatively easy and I could see making them for the Robber and me again since it's an easy recipe to scale. I also think that the amount of filling better makes three quesadillas rather than two, unless I am just using too small of tortillas.

Here is the link in the NYTimes:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/15/health/nutrition/15recipehealth.html?ref=nutrition

Ingredients:

1 large broccoli crown, about 1/2 pound

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1 medium red onion, cut in half lengthwise, then sliced across the grain

1 tablespoon chopped cilantro or epazote (optional)

Salt and freshly ground pepper

4 corn tortillas

2 ounces grated Monterey Jack, Cheddar or mixed cheeses (1/2 cup)

Salsa for serving (optional)

Directions:

1. Make the broccoli filling. Steam the broccoli crown for four minutes, then remove from the heat. Rinse with cold water and pat dry. Slice 1/4 inch thick. Heat the oil over medium-high heat in a large, heavy frying pan, and add the red onion. Cook, stirring, until tender and seared on the edges. Add the sliced broccoli. Cook, stirring, until seared on the edges, about three minutes. Stir in the cilantro or epazote, season with salt and pepper, and remove from the heat. Taste and adjust seasoning.

2. In a microwave: Place a corn tortilla on a plate. Top with half the broccoli and onions, and spread in an even layer. Sprinkle on half the cheese, and top with another tortilla. Press down gently, then microwave for 1 to 1 1/2 minutes until the cheese has melted. Remove from the microwave, cut into quarters or sixths, and serve. Repeat with the remaining ingredients.

In a pan: Place a corn tortilla in a pan. Top with half the broccoli and onions, and spread in an even layer. Sprinkle on half the cheese. Turn the heat on medium-high, and heat until the cheese begins to melt and the tortilla begins to brown. Place another tortilla on top of the cheese, and press down lightly. Flip over the quesadilla in the pan, and heat for about 30 seconds or until the cheese has melted. Flip back over, and remove to a plate. Cut into quarters or sixths, and serve. Repeat with the remaining ingredients.

Yield: Two quesadillas.

Advance preparation: The steamed broccoli will keep for three or four days in the refrigerator.

Nutritional information per quesadilla: 294 calories; 6 grams saturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 5 grams monounsaturated fat; 30 milligrams cholesterol; 28 grams carbohydrates; 6 grams dietary fiber; 267 milligrams sodium (does not include salt to taste); 12 grams protein.

Carrot Cake Muffins

Another one in the series of my new obsession with healthy-ish breakfast foods, thank you Martha Shulman. I didn't have high hopes for this recipe, because I hadn't like the matrices of the past few NYTimes muffins I had made. Yet I was surprised as these were not boring, but rather delicious. They definitely took longer to make, as all I had were baby carrots and I had to finely grate them-- a whole bunch of them-- instead of using a fat carrot or two. Do people actually use real carrots anymore? Baby carrots are so much easier to eat, and sweeter. But even with the work since I am satisfied with the result, I am happy. Can I mention the turbinado sugar inside the muffin? What an idea! So good. Gave the muffin just the right level of sweetness.

Original recipe from Martha Shulman found here:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/01/health/nutrition/01recipehealth.html?ref=recipesforhealth

Notes: I used 1/3 cup pecans, 1/3 cup raisins-- just the regular kind, not golden raisins. I'm not a big fan of raisins when I eat them plain, but whenever I bake with them I want there to be more, so I think you could easily put in 2/3 cup raisins and still have room in the matrix for 1/3 cup nuts. I also didn't have any allspice, and the muffins taste great without it, but next time I will definitely throw in the allspice as I am such a spicy fan.

Ingredients:

2 1/2 C. whole-wheat pastry flour

2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

2 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. nutmeg

1/2 tsp. allspice

1/2 tsp. ground cloves

2 eggs

1 1/3 C. buttermilk

1/3 C. raw turbinado (brown) sugar

1/3 C. canola oil

1 tsp. vanilla

2/3 C. golden raisins tossed with 1 tsp. flour or 2/3 C. chopped pecans

1 1/2 C. grated carrots

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees with the rack in the upper third of the space. Oil or butter muffin tins.

2. Sift together the whole-wheat pastry flour, baking powder, baking soda, spices and salt.

3. In a separate bowl, beat together the eggs, sugar, oil, buttermilk and vanilla. Using a whisk or a spatula, stir in the dry ingredients and mix until well combined. Do not beat; a few lumps are fine, but make sure there is no flour at the bottom of the bowl. Fold in the raisins or pecans and the carrots.

4. Spoon into muffin cups, filling them to just below the top (about 4/5 full). Place in the oven, and bake 25 minutes until lightly browned and well risen.

Yield: Twelve muffins, depending on the size of the muffin tins.

Nutritional information per muffin (based on 12-muffin yield): 239 calories; 1 gram saturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 4 grams monounsaturated fat; 32 milligram cholesterol; 38 grams carbohydrates; 4 grams dietary fiber; 323 milligrams sodium; 5 grams protein.

Chocolate Olive-Oil Mousse

I made this dessert for our Seder meal and served it with the hazelnut-pecan macaroons. Everyone loved it and it got rave reviews. However, I made the mousse two days in advance and stored it in the refrigerator, and when it was served it had a very fluffy texture, almost like eating rocky road icecream made of marshmallow cream. It was delicious, but I'm not sure it was quite the same product to a cream-based mousse. I would definitely make this again as it was not difficult, but I would serve it earlier and see if the texture was less gooey.

This recipe comes from "Dulce lo Vivas," by Ana Bensadón as referenced in the NYTimes:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/28/dining/281prex.html?_r=1

Note: I doubled the recipe (to feed 18) and used 16 oz. of 60% cacao and 6 oz. of Ghirardelli intense-orange dark chocolate. I also used 2 T. tangerine juice in lieu of the brandy and the mousse had a delicious flavor to it, like the dark chocolate oranges you can buy at Christmastime.

Ingredients:

11 ounces bittersweet (60 percent cacao) chocolate
8 large eggs, separated
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons kosher for Passover brandy

Directions:

1. In a double boiler, melt chocolate over low heat. Cool slightly. Beat egg yolks with 1/2 cup sugar until light. Whisk in olive oil, brandy and melted chocolate.

2. Using an electric mixer, whisk egg whites until soft peaks form. Add remaining 1/4 cup sugar, whisking until stiff but not dry.

3. Fold whites into chocolate mixture so that no white streaks remain. Spoon into an 8- or 10-cup serving bowl or divide among 8 or 10 dessert cups or glasses. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 24 hours before serving.

Yield: 8 to 10 servings.

Almond-Lemon Macaroons

You know how on Epicurious sometimes the readers choose a recipe, make substitutions for everything, and then give the recipe five stars? That is exactly what I did here. They were out of almond meal at the grocery store and I didn't have any whole almonds, so I made these with hazelnut flour and pecans... and they were really delicious. So I guess these should really be called Hazelnut-Pecan Macaroons, but my guess is that you could use the basic idea with mix-and-match flours and nuts and come out with a satisfactory product. The texture of the cookie was excellent! So light and chewy, and the toasted-ness of the tops of the nuts gave just the right counterpoint to the sweetness of the cookie. I served these with chocolate-olive oil mousse with the cookies half dunked in the mousse at our Passover Seder, and the overall effect was like eating a Nutella cookie. Even I, the Nutella non-enthusiast, enjoyed the combination.

Note: I tried really, really hard to make the proper calculation from whole nuts to meal amount, because I don't have a food processor to grind the nuts myself, and I couldn't find the right conversion factors. So I just faked it and used 1 5/8 cups of hazelnut flour instead of 2 cups of whole almonds, and not knowing any better, found the product satisfactory. I also rolled the cookies in turbinado sugar instead of regular white sugar, so good!

The recipe comes from "Dulce lo Vivas," by Ana Bensadón as referenced in the Passover section of the NYTimes:

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/28/dining/283prex.html

Ingredients:

2 cups whole blanched almonds, plus about 30 almonds for decoration
1 cup granulated sugar (I put the whole cup into the cookies and used extra sugar for rolling)
1 large egg
Finely grated zest of 1 lemon

Directions:

1. Using a food processor equipped with a metal blade, grind 2 cups almonds very finely. Add 3/4 cup sugar, the egg and lemon zest, and pulse to make a cohesive dough. Transfer to a medium bowl, cover and refrigerate for at least 12 hours.

2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a nonstick liner. Place remaining 1/4 cup sugar in a small bowl.

3. Pinching off pieces of dough about the size of a walnut, roll them first into balls, then into sugar. Gently press an almond point first into top of each cookie, so that half the almond can be seen. Arrange cookies one inch apart on baking sheet.

4. Bake until cookies have barest hint of color but still remain soft, 8 to 10 minutes. (Cookies must be soft when removed from oven to avoid excess hardening when they cool.) Cool completely, and store in an airtight container.

Yield: About 30 cookies. (I made my cookies a little bit bigger and got 23.)

Blueberry Scones

In searching for a recipe for "Citrus Black Beans" for the Robber, I came across this new food blog that I am instantly in love with. First of all, it is written by a young mom who is also a doctor by day and manages to run this food blog and feed her little family by night. Secondly, she is adorable. Thirdly, her blog is adorable. Fourthly, everything she makes looks so good. I want to make it all.

And I had blueberries. So I started with this. The recipe is from Entertaining from Cook's Illustrated Spring 2009, as referenced on Annie's blog. The link to her blog is below:

http://annies-eats.net/2010/03/18/blueberry-scones/

I didn't find these to be the most amazing scone I had eaten in my whole life as Annie did, but they were definitely very good and I would make them again. They were better than the blueberry muffins I made last month, but also a lot more work. So it's a trade-off. I guess it's something I would make-- again-- for a brunch with women. (I find a lot of recipes like that.)

Note: I used half-and-half instead of whole milk. Don't think it made a difference. The scones were very tender, as one would expect from the sour cream, and thus less scone-y and more biscuit-y. I also used turbinado sugar for dusting on the top, which always gives such a pleasing effect. I didn't find that I needed a dough scraper. The dough was easy to manipulate with my hands.

Ingredients:

8 T. (1 stick) unsalted butter, frozen whole
1½ cups (7½ oz.) fresh blueberries
½ cup whole milk (I used half-and-half)
½ cup sour cream
2 cups (10 oz.) all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting the work surface
½ cup sugar, plus extra for sprinkling
2 tsp. baking powder
¼ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
1 tsp. finely grated lemon zest
2 T. unsalted butter, melted (1 T. is probably sufficient)

Directions:

Adjust an oven rack to middle position and preheat to 425˚ F. Grate the frozen butter on the holes of a large box grater. Place the blueberries in the freezer until needed.

Whisk together the milk and sour cream in a medium bowl; refrigerate until needed. Combine the flour, ½ cup sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and lemon zest in a medium mixing bowl. Whisk to combine. Add the grated butter to the flour mixture and toss with fingers until thoroughly coated.

Add the milk mixture to the dry ingredients and fold with a spatula just until combined. Transfer the dough to a generously floured work surface. Dust the top of the dough with flour, and knead with well floured hands, 6-8 times, just until the dough holds together in a ragged ball. Add small amounts of flour as needed to prevent sticking.

Roll the dough into a 12-inch square. Fold the dough into thirds like a business letter (a dough scraper really helps with these steps). Fold the short ends of the dough into the center in thirds, to form an approximate 4-inch square. Transfer the dough to a plate lightly dusted with flour and chill in the freezer for 5 minutes.

Return the dough to the floured work surface and roll into an approximately 12-inch square again. Sprinkle the blueberries evenly over the surface of the dough, and gently press down so that they are slightly embedded in the dough surface. Using a dough scraper, roll the dough up to form a tight log. Lay the log seam side down and press the the log into a 12 by 4-inch rectangle. Using a sharp, floured knife, cut the rectangle crosswise into 4 equal rectangles. Cut each rectangle diagonally to form 2 triangles. Transfer to a parchment lined baking sheet.

Brush the tops of the scones with melted butter and sprinkle lightly with sugar. (If freezing ahead of time, flash freeze on the baking sheet for 20 minutes, then wrap individually and store in a freezer bag until needed.) Bake until the tops and bottoms are golden brown, 18-25 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool at least 10 minutes before serving.

Pizza Rustica

This I made for the Robber hoping he would love me forever. Instead, he just slathered this with catsup. Well he loves me forever anyway. I was proud of myself for making this recipe and having it turn out pretty much exactly like it should. The crust and the filling were both perfect!

Notes: I had to add serious amounts of flour to this dough while kneading it to make the correct product. I don't know if it is better to just not add as much water, or add more flour while kneading? At any rate, if you follow the directions you will get a very gummy pre-kneaded dough and will have to grapple with that mess.

I baked mine in an 8 x 13 and a 9 x 9 pan because I didn't have a 10 x 15 and I still had lots of dough left over, which I froze and hope to use for empanadas, calzones, or pizza in the future.

I didn't buy the diced form of some of the meats, and in the future I definitely would do so because it was a mess trying to cut up the sliced versions of the meat. It may be cheaper to do it that way also-- as this cost a pretty penny to make!

This feeds an ARMY-- or a Bob. So halving the recipe would make it cheaper and a lot more feasible, you could probably bake it in an 8 x 13 pan. Apparently this is an Italian Easter recipe. I guess it feeds and ARMY or a large Italian family.

This is a lot of work, but delicious! And good cold too, you can just take in a slice and eat it without warming it up and it is good that way as well as-- I hate to say this-- with catsup. Shudders!

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/30/dining/30feedrex.html?ref=dining

Adapted from Carlo’s Bakery, Hoboken, N.J.

Time: 21/2 hours, plus time for cooling

Ingredients:

FOR THE DOUGH:

6 cups all-purpose flour, plus more as needed
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 pound chilled salted butter, cut into large pieces
5 large eggs, beaten

FOR THE FILLING:

12 ounces prosciutto, in 1/4-inch dice
8 ounces boiled ham, in 1/4-inch dice
8 ounces pepperoni, in 1/4-inch dice
8 ounces soppressata, in 1/4-inch dice
8 ounces mozzarella, in 1/4-inch dice
8 ounces provolone, in 1/4-inch dice
2 pounds ricotta
4 ounces grated pecorino Romano
10 large eggs, beaten
1 teaspoon pepper

1 large egg, beaten, for brushing crust.

Directions:

1. For the dough: In a large bowl, whisk together 6 cups flour and the salt. Using a pastry cutter, large fork, or two knives, cut the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add eggs and knead for 1 minute. Add about 1 1/4 cups ice water, a little at a time, to form a cohesive dough. Knead the dough on a lightly floured surface until it forms a large smooth ball, about 5 minutes. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside for 30 minutes.

2. For the filling: Mix the meats, cheeses, the 10 eggs and pepper in a large bowl.

3. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Divide the dough into two pieces: two-thirds for the bottom crust and one-third for the top. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the larger portion of the dough into a rectangle to line the bottom and sides of a 10-by-15-inch glass baking dish, with some overhang. Add the filling and smooth it lightly. Moisten the edges of the dough with a little water.

4. Roll out the remaining dough to cover the top of the dish with some overhang. Trim off excess dough and crimp the edges to seal. Poke several sets of holes across the top with a fork. Bake for 45 minutes. Remove from the oven and brush top and edges with the beaten egg, then return to the oven until golden brown, another 45 minutes. Let pie cool completely before serving.

Yield: One 10-by-15-inch pie.

Grasshopper Pie

For my birthday I really really wanted a grasshopper pie. This because the Robber bought Thin Mints and I started thinking about them in pie form and hence the craving for grasshopper pie was born. I emailed my Mom for a recipe and she sent me this, which she says is of her own design.

1 baked 9 inch graham cracker crust

Ingredients:

I put a few things together from different recipes, but for my crust I used approximately:

1/3 cup crushed chocolate cookie crumbs
1 2/3 cup crushed graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup sugar
1 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped into fine crumbs
7 Tbsp. melted butter

Directions:

1. Mix the crumbs, sugar, and chocolate together. Melt the butter and pour the hot butter into the crumb mixture. The hot butter will melt the chocolate. Combine and press into a 9 inch pie plate. Bake at 350F for 10 minutes.

Note: You may have some extra crumbs. I just put these on the top of the pie, in between the top chocolate layer and the whipped cream.

Filling

Ingredients:

Green filling Chocolate filling
4 oz. cream cheese 4 oz. cream cheese
1/3 c. sugar 1/3 c. sugar
1/2 c. sour cream 1/2 c. sour cream
1/2 c. whipping cream, whipped 1/2 c. whipping cream, whipped
1 t. mint flavoring 1 t. vanilla flavoring
green food coloring 2 1/2 oz. sweet chocolate, melted

Directions:

1. Mix the ingredients as above. You can mix the cream cheese, sugar, sour cream, and whipping cream for both flavors together and then divide into half and then add the remainder of the ingredients to the two halves separately. Or mix them separately to being with. Whatever is your fancy. Make sure your cream cheese is at room temperature or it will not blend well.

2. Layer the fillings in the crust in three layers--chocolate, green, chocolate.

3. Top and decorate with whipped cream and chocolate shavings.

4. Store in the refrigerator.

Banana Cream Pie ala La La Liz

This recipe, from everythingpies.com claims to be Elizabeth Taylor's favorite pie! As R. said, "This tastes like a pie Elizabeth Taylor would like-- something you eat after you break up a marriage, or to celebrate a marriage... a bit boozy, a bit extravagant, and over all over-the-top."

That about sums up this pie. Contrary to what the website says, the Robber thought the pie got better with age. We all wanted it to have a larger cream-to-custard ratio. I used my standard pie crust recipe, and substituted 1 tsp. each of artificial rum and almond flavorings for the liquors in the recipe-- and yet it still tasted boozy. I don't know that I will make this exact pie again. I liked the white chocolate-banana combination, but to be honest right now I am a little disillusioned with banana cream pies in general. I think I would be just as happy mixing up a bunch of bananas in plain whipped cream and putting it in a pie tin as I am with any custardy recipe. The Robber said I could stick with coconut cream pies, which may just be what I end up doing. But for anyone wanting to try something for the times and a little off the beaten path, I give you Elizabeth Taylor's favorite pie recipe:

http://www.everythingpies.com/elizabeth-taylor-banana-cream-pie-recipe.html

Ingredients:

Pastry dough - double crust

3 cups all-purpose flour

4 tablespoons sugar

1/2 ice cold water

1/2 teaspoon fine salt

1 1/4 cup (2 1/2 sticks) cold unsalted butter

1 teaspoon cold corn oil

Filling Layer One - White Chocolate Pastry Cream

1 vanilla bean, slit lengthwise

1 cup whole milk or half-and-half

3 large egg yolks

1/3 cup white sugar

2 tablespoons cornstarch

3 ounces white chocolate, chopped in small pieces

1 tablespoon cold unsalted butter

pinch of salt

Filling Layer Two - White Chocolate Whipped Cream

1 cup cold heavy whipping cream

4 medium ripe bananas

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1 1/2 tablespoons banana liqueur or rum

1 1/2 tablespoons white creme de cacao or Amaretto

Garnish for top

5 ounces white chocolate curls for top

Unsweetened cocoa powder, for dusting top

Directions:

1. Prepare the pastry: Roll the pastry and line a 9-inch pie plate with the bottom crust. Chill the pastry for about one hour.

2. Pre-baked the pie crust shell in a 450° F preheated oven and set aside to cool.

3. Prepare Filling one: Warm the milk and the vanilla bean in a heavy non-aluminum pot over low heat. Mix in the white chocolate chunks. Stir with a whisk until the chocolate is melting. The mixture will speckle with white chocolate. Remove from heat.

4. Whisk together the egg yolks and sugar in a non-aluminum bowl. Mix until mixture is a pale yellow.

5. Add the cornstarch and salt to the egg mixture. Whisk it well.

6. Slowly pour the warm chocolate mixture into the yolk mixture while you are mixing.

7. Return the mixture to the pot and heat until it thickens. Continue to stir mixture while it is cooking. In about 10 minutes or more the mixture will start to bubble.

8. Remove it from the heat and stir until smooth, about 1 minute.

9. Pour the white chocolate filling into a glass bowl and smooth the top with a spatula.

10. Cover the pie filling with plastic wrap. Press the plastic directly onto the surface of the filling, to prevent a skin from forming. Let the pie filling cool in the refrigerator until cold and firm, 2-4 hours or overnight.

11. Whipped Cream: Chill a glass bowl. Beat the cream until it is stiff but not to grainy and refrigerate.

12. Thinly slice the bananas and toss with the lemon juice to prevent darkening.

13. Fold the bananas and the liqueurs into the chilled pastry cream. Be sure to remove the plastic. Carefully this mixture pour into your prebaked pie crust and level it with a spatula.

14. Gently cover the pie with the whipped cream. Fully spread it right to the edge of the crust.

15. Gently scatter some white chocolate curls over the whipped cream.

16. Very lightly dust the white chocolate curls with unsweetened cocoa powder.

17. Serve at once or chill up to 2 hours before serving.

Candied Nuts

Bob wanted to make some candied pecans for a spinach salad we were making, so I tasked him with looking it up on the internet and making it happen. This is what he found:

http://comfybelly.com/2009/04/crunchy-pecans-and-spiced-nuts/

We omitted the nutmeg, and tripled the cinnamon, and the result was much to Bob's liking and overall a very good addition to our salad. The nuts came out a little sticky, and perhaps would be less so if we had used syrup rather than honey. I guess I'll have to make these again and find out!

Ingredients:

1 cup of nuts
1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon of nutmeg
1 tablespoon of butter, melted
3 tablespoons of honey (or maple syrup)
pinch of salt

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

2. Mix all the ingredients together until well-coated.

3. Place nuts on a stick-free baking sheet (I recommend parchment paper) and bake for about 15 minutes or until the nuts start to brown.

4. Cool for 10 minutes, or until dry, and enjoy!

Savory Cornbread Muffins With Jalapenos and Corn

When I clicked on my link to this recipe found in the NYTimes, a little box popped up informing me that I only had 2 of 20 articles left for free this month. Boo you NYTimes! Boo! I am a little bitter about them making me pay for digital access, but I guess all is fair game and who am I to get access to such never-ending everything for free? I have only been religiously reading their paper for over ten years now. I am sad.

But anyway. The muffins. Not my favorite, either, although I might make them again to serve with a potato soup and some collared greens. The article suggests serving them with soup and salad for lunch and I suspect that might be their best use. They are not bad, just not my favorite. They are a rare savory muffin, which makes them different than most muffins which are sweet, and thus versatile in helpful ways. I served them at a visiting teaching breakfast with the Southwest Potatoes also recorded on this blog, and other women brought orange juice and fruit and so all in all it was a well-put together meal and very tasty, but the muffins are not good enough as a stand alone item to bring as a potluck item. Only as part of a synchronized meal. I think they might be better with white instead of wheat flour, as over all the muffin has a heavy and not chipper feeling to it and if I make this again I think I will try it. I did add the cheese-- sharp cheddar-- and would do so again.

From Martha Rose Shulman's Recipes for Health series: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/02/health/nutrition/02recipehealth.html?ref=recipesforhealth#

Ingredients:

1 cup yellow cornmeal, preferably organic stone-ground
1 cup whole-wheat flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh sage or 1 teaspoon rubbed sage
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
1/4 cup canola oil
1 tablespoon honey
1 cup corn kernels
2 tablespoons minced jalapeños
1/2 cup grated Cheddar or Monterey Jack (optional)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees with the rack positioned in the upper third. Oil or butter muffin tins.

2. Place the cornmeal in a bowl, and sift in the flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda. Stir in the sage. In a separate bowl, beat together the eggs, buttermilk, oil and honey. Whisk or stir the cornmeal mixture into the liquid mixture. Do not beat; a few lumps are fine, but make sure there is no flour at the bottom of the bowl. Fold in the corn kernels, minced jalapeño and optional cheese.

3. Spoon into muffin cups, filling them to just below the top (about 4/5 full). Place in the oven, and bake 20 to 25 minutes until lightly browned and well risen.

Yield: Twelve muffins, depending on the size of your muffin tins.

Advance preparation: These keep for a couple of days out of the refrigerator, for a few more days in the refrigerator, and for a few months in the freezer.

Nutritional information per muffin (based on 12-muffin yield; does not include optional cheese): 161 calories; 1 gram saturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 3 grams monounsaturated fat; 32 milligrams cholesterol; 23 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 362 milligrams sodium; 5 grams protein