Flavors 518

As part of Tuesdays with Dorie , using the book Baking with Julia  I made the blueberry nectarine pie. I made it for some friends we were having over for dinner, and even though I just walked in from a trip to the flea market late in the afternoon, I was able to make it in time for when people came over. I thought it was a pretty easy recipe. Everyone really enjoyed the pie and the unexpected combination of blueberries and nectarines.  Then, after we ate the full size pie I had a good amount of blueberries, nectarines, and pie crust leftover. I decided to make these little handpies to serve at my salad bar party .   To do this I used my tortilla press with small balls of dough. I did the first few by folding the dough around the mixture, but then I realized it was much easier to treat it like a ravioli. I put one piece down, put a spoonful of filling in the middle, laid another piece of dough on top of the whole thing and pressed down on the edges. I can than...

As part of Tuesdays with Dorie using the book Baking with Julia , I made the hazelnut biscotti. As with the pecan sticky buns , I tried to find someone else's house I could make them at since my husband is allergic to nuts. In this case, my friend Elizabeth agreed that I could use her kitchen. I mixed the dry ingredients all together at my house, and the wet ingredients (including eggs from my boss's backyard chickens), but then I realized I was late in going over there and skipped putting in the sugar. I got over there and she made a lovely cocktail with Hendrick's and an orange liqueur. It was delicious and refreshing. Their house is older with a lot of character, in contrast to my house which is new and might require less upkeep but might have less of a story to tell too. It is fun to see the inner workings of other people's kitchens - what awesome gadgets they have, cool books, different products or missing elements (my coworker doesn't own a fine mesh siev...

As part of Tuesdays with Dorie using the book Baking with Julia , I made the French Strawberry Cake. Check out the discussion about the recipe here .  Check out all the other bakers here . You can read the recipe on Sophia's Sweets . Check out mine: My thoughts: This is a great summer dessert. The cake is easy, tasty, and has a great spongy texture that holds up nicely against the juicy strawberries. It is not as tough as a biscuit for strawberry shortcake, but absorbs liquid better than airy angel food cake.  There is something very luxurious about desserts with contrasting multiple layers.  Light and refreshing, this recipe would be great to take to a summer BBQ.  Overall, from husband and coworkers rave reviews!

As part of Tuesdays with Dorie using the book Baking with Julia , I made the Oasis Naan. I've made naan before , and this recipe is better. You can find the recipe at Always Add More Butter and at Of Cabbages and King Cakes . Check out all the other bakers here! My thoughts: We served it with lamb with vinegar and min t , and that worked out great. I thought the dough was very pliable and easy to work with, much like a pizza crust . I loved how pricking the dough with a fork creates some areas with a texture that is sponge-like and other areas with a crispier texture. It was a nice contrast.  I also really liked the addition of the scallions. I think this could also be great with some garlic, ginger, or jalapenos sprinkled on top before baking.  Overall, definitely a keeper. This recipe is so easy (you don't even need to get out a mixer or food processor) and delicious, that I think it will encourage us to cook more Indian food in the future.

As part of Tuesdays with Dorie , using the book Baking with Julia I made the pecan sticky buns. My husband is allergic to nuts, and I was either going to leave off the pecans, replace them with sunflower seeds or just skip this one, but he suggested I go make them at someone else's house. It is quite an intimidating recipe. Check out some chatter about it here . You can read the recipe on Eat Drink Man Woman Dogs Cat and Cookies on Friday I started the brioche the night before. I thought it would be most powerful to use the dough attachment on my food processor, but by putting the ingredients in before the dough blade, some brioche dough got between the bowl and the blade causing my usually all powerful food processor to stop and overheat. I had to finish up the beating of the dough with my hand mixer. After I overheated half the appliances in my house, I couldn't believe how beautiful this dough was looking. I woke up at 6 am and completed the assembling and rolli...

As part of Tuesdays with Dorie using the book Baking with Julia,  I made the Hungarian shortbread. You can read the recipe on Cher's blog and also on 1smallkitchen . Check out some discussion about the recipe here . I used strawberry rhubarb jam that I bought at the shop at Indian Ladder Farms . Check out how my shortbread turned out. Great paired with coffee or tea.  I even packed some up to mail to my dad for his birthday.  Here's what I thought about the recipe: I listened to the bakers who thought we should bake the bottom layer for 10 or 15 minutes before applying the jam. That worked out well. My husband and my coworkers all approve of these cookies. I think you can tell whether people are just saying something is good, or if they really really like something. "Whoa, those are good! Seriously!" as opposed to "Thanks for making them!" One of my coworkers particularly like the crumbly nature of the topping. My hus...

As part of Tuesdays with Dorie using the book Baking with Julia I made the lemon loaf. My husband has just chimed in that "It is not too sweet, the use of real lemon really makes a difference, and it is a perfect snack". I agree. It is good for breakfast, good for a snack, good for inviting your friend over for a spot of tea and a screening of "Murder She Wrote" (hopefully one of the ones that take place in Cabot Cove). It is very versatile, and somewhere between a dessert and a breakfast item. Here is some chatter about the recipe . One issue that I can address is the one of cake flour. I did not find cake flour in my grocery store. So it is a good thing that my kitchen companion Joy the Baker explains in her book how to replicate cake flour when you cannot find any. "Set a fine mesh sifter over a medium bowl and lay a piece of wax paper on the counter. Put 1 cup minus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour into the sifter. Add 2 tablespoons of cornstarch t...

I'm thrilled to be one of the people chosen to write out the recipe for this week with Tuesdays with Dorie using the book Baking with Julia . If you check out what other people are saying about this recipe , they've summed it up pretty well - it is a sweet crust with a savory filling with the salty bite of prosciutto. Could it use some vegetables? Possibly some nutmeg? All the other bloggers who said that may be right. I do think though that the ricotta filling (I did buy ricotta made with skim) mixed with eggs is probably lower in fat than a quiche filling made with heavy cream - so that is a bonus. Overall, we liked it and my husband even immediately got up for seconds. It is a nice hearty dish that seems ideal cut up in slices and served at room temperature for a dinner party. It would probably be good for a brunch dish with a nice green salad. The other bloggers are right to point out that the fillings can easily be changed up. One problem I had: I read in Thomas Keller...

As part of Tuesdays with Dorie using the book Baking with Julia I made Irish soda bread. Check out the discussion about the recipe here . You can read the recipe here . Here's mine: And served with bacon, eggs, and salad: Here is what I thought about the recipe: It was super easy, took about an hour to make, and has little fat in it. All wins. Mark Bittman has a yeast bread recipe that just rises while the oven preheats, and I never thought it was that great of a recipe since it did not have time to develop. With this soda bread it isn't like you are hurrying it along, it is just meant to not take that much time to make. We love buttermilk (like in buttermilk poundcake !) and we are always looking for ways to use leftover buttermilk. We think it adds a good flavor without a lot of fat. Next time I have 2 extra cups of buttermilk I will just make this. The recipe says it is only good for a few hours, but I made mine on Sunday and it was still good for breakf...

As part of Tuesdays with Dorie , using the book Baking with Julia I made rugelach. You can find the recipe here and here . You can read many comments from other bakers talking about their rugelach here . Check out some pictures of mine, and I'll tell you what I thought about them! Since my husband is allergic to nuts I just completed left those out of the recipe. Also, as far as the spread in the middle I had some prunes, but I underestimated the measurement of them and ended up using two cups of dates and one cup of the prunes. This sort of date/prune butter concoction is great. It would be great to eat on toast, or to take in cans to a food swap . After spreading on the date/prune mixture, and sprinkling on a brown sugar, white sugar, and cinnamon mixture on the dough I made and rolled out, I included some cranberries and cherries. The tip on page 10 on the book to steam dried fruits under simmering water worked out great. I have never thought of that before, but it real...

As part of Tuesdays with Dorie using the book Baking with Julia , I made the chocolate truffle tartlets. Check out the full recipe here . I am going to start out by saying I did not find this recipe easy. I do feel like I knew a thing or two about pie crust, but I also learned more in trying this recipe (you've got to be careful and don't overwork it or force it too much!). One thing I have really enjoyed about this exercise it that I am encouraged to try recipes I might not normally try. But not only were these tartlets very laborious, but also expensive if you go for the Ghirardelli chocolate and if you buy the biscotti. They are also incredibly rich for regular consumption - but I think for a dinner party these would be amazing. If you had people coming over, it probably wouldn't matter so much about expensive ingredients or time consuming cooking techniques. First, the dough! Dutch process cocoa powder, flour, sugar, and salt in a food processor, then chopped up piec...

As part of Tuesdays with Dorie using the book Baking with Julia by Dorie Greenspan , I made the white loaves recipe. You can check out the recipe here . I enjoyed this recipe and was able to use some of my dough agitation techniques I learned from my King Arthur Flour pizza making class . Dealing with the sticky dough made me appreciate the bench scraper we had at the class ( like this one ), and I headed out to Different Drummer's Kitchen afterwards to pick up one for future bread making projects. I love my Roll'pat for projects like this, as it helps to keep the counter clean, and it is really quick and easy to rinse off afterward. First I gathered up the dough by mixing together warm water and yeast and then adding flour, sugar, and salt. You beat in some butter, and then put it in a bowl to rise. After an hour (ah - breadlove!): Then take that out and divide it in two on the counter. Then we are patting them out, rolling them up, and sealing the seam...