'Tis the season

For pumpkin. It is that time of year again. Pumpkin puree is being prominently displayed in grocery stores across the country. As a big fan of all things pumpkin, I love seeing new recipes where this is the star ingredient. Even Bosco loves a spoonful of pumpkin.

This time I tried healthy pumpkin chocolate chip oatmeal bars. They are good and really simple. For this you use oatmeal flour and it gave us an opportunity to use our new Vitamix. More on this to come.

Ingredients

• 3 cups oats
• 2 teaspoons aluminum free baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
• pinch of ground cloves
• 1 cup canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie mix)
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon olive or coconut oil
• 1/3 cup chocolate chips, plus 2 tablespoons for sprinkling on top

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and butter an 8" square baking pan.
2. Make oat flour: Place oatmeal into blender or food processor and blend for 1-2 minutes until oatmeal resembles flour. You may need to stop blender and stir oats a couple of times to ensure that all oats have been blended.
3. Measure out just 2 1/2 cups of the oat flour and place in a medium bowl. Whisk in baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices; set aside.
4. In a separate large bowl, whisk together pumpkin, brown sugar, vanilla extract and oil for 1-2 minutes until the consistency is smooth and creamy. Slowly add in oat flour mixture and mix until just combined.
5. Gently fold in 1/3 cup of chocolate chips. Pour batter into prepared pan and sprinkle remaining 2 tablespoons of chocolate chips on top. Bake for 15-25 minutes or until knife inserted into center comes out clean or with just a few crumbs attached. Timing will depend on what size pan you use, but definitely check around 15 minutes. Once finished baking, cool 10 minutes on wire rack. Cut into 16 slices.

Apple Tart

 

Much has happened since my last post in March (yowza). Ian graduated from law school, we moved to Seattle, Bosco turned one and we celebrated our first wedding anniversary. In all of that I did hardly any baking.

This weekend was the first weekend Ian and I have spent at home in Seattle. It has been pouring--hello, Seattle--and Ian turns to me and says, "this is great baking weather" with a half smile. It was then I realized it had been way too long. There are so many fruit, pumpkin and oatmeal things to bake!

So, here is my rusty take on an apple tart from Smitten Kitchen. All of the beautiful grocery stores in Seattle have some great apples right now, so I knew what must be done.

Here is the full recipe:
Alice Waters’s Apple Tart

Dough:
My favorite pie crust seen here.
Filling:
2 pounds (910 grams) apples (Golden Delicious or another tart, firm variety), peeled, cored (save peels and cores), and sliced
2 tablespoons (30 grams) unsalted butter, melted
5 tablespoons (65 grams) sugar
Glaze:
1/2 cup (100 grams) sugar

MIX flour, sugar, and salt in a large bowl; add 2 tablespoons of the butter. Blend in a mixer until dough resembles coarse cornmeal. Add remaining butter; mix until biggest pieces look like large peas.

DRIBBLE in water, stir, then dribble in more, until dough just holds together. Toss with hands, letting it fall through fingers, until it’s ropy with some dry patches. If dry patches predominate, add another tablespoon water. Keep tossing until you can roll dough into a ball. Flatten into a 4-inch-thick disk; refrigerate. After at least 30 minutes, remove; let soften so it’s malleable but still cold. Smooth cracks at edges. On a lightly floured surface, roll into a 14-inch circle about 1/8 inch thick. Dust excess flour from both sides with a dry pastry brush.

PLACE dough in a lightly greased 9-inch round tart pan, or simply on a parchment-lined baking sheet if you wish to go free-form, or galette-style with it. Heat oven to 400°F. (If you have a pizza stone, place it in the center of the rack.)

OVERLAP apples on dough in a ring 2 inches from edge if going galette-style, or up to the sides if using the tart pan. Continue inward until you reach the center. Fold any dough hanging over pan back onto itself; crimp edges at 1-inch intervals.

BRUSH melted butter over apples and onto dough edge. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons sugar over dough edge and the other 3 tablespoons over apples. (Deb note: I found it nearly impossible to coat it with this much sugar, so I used a little less–more like 3 tablespoons. It made a lightly sweet tart, which we found perfect.)

BAKE in center of oven until apples are soft, with browned edges, and crust has caramelized to a dark golden brown (about 45 minutes), making sure to rotate tart every 15 minutes.

MAKE glaze: Put reserved peels and cores in a large saucepan, along with sugar. Pour in just enough water to cover; simmer for 25 minutes. Strain syrup through cheesecloth.

REMOVE tart from oven, and slide off parchment onto cooling rack. Let cool at least 15 minutes.

BRUSH glaze over tart, slice, and serve.

Cake Crazy - Lemon Poppy Seed Sour Cream Cake

We have gone cake crazy around these parts. On Oscar night I made a lemon poppy seed sour cream cake from Rose's Heavenly Cakes. I baked it a little too long so it was slightly dry, but still edible. That delicate balance of taking it out when it seems baked, but then having it bake further while in the pan cooling - it gets me most every time.

Regardless, with all the great citrus in stores right now this seemed like a great choice. Ian bought toasted almond ice cream to go with it and it was a nice complement. The batter is light, rich and not too lemony, which I liked. The little crunch of poppy seeds is a nice touch too.

 

Batter

	2	large eggs, at room temperature
	1	large egg yolk, at room temperature
	¾	cup plus 1 Tbsp. sour cream, divided
	1¾	tsp. pure vanilla extract
	2½	cups (or 2 cups plus 3 Tbsp.) cake flour (or bleached all-purpose flour), sifted into the cup and leveled off
	1¼	cups (8.7 ounces) superfine sugar
	1½	tsp. baking powder
	½	tsp. baking soda
	½	tsp. salt
	5	tsp. loosely packed lemon zest (from 2 large lemons), finely grated
	⅓	cup (1.7 ounces) poppy seeds
	14	Tbsp. (1¾ sticks; 7 ounces) unsalted butter, at 65 to 75 degrees

Lemon syrup

	½	cup plus 1 Tbsp. (4 ounces) sugar
	~	The juice of 2 large lemons (6 Tbsp. or 3 fluid ounces), freshly squeezed

Steps

1. Preheat the oven: Twenty minutes or more before baking, set an oven rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees (325 degrees if using a dark pan).
2. Prepare the pan: Coat a 10-cup fluted tube pan with baking spray and then with flour.
3. Mix the liquid ingredients: In a medium bowl, whisk the whole eggs, yolk, ¼ cup of the sour cream, and the vanilla, just until lightly combined.
4. Make the batter: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the flat beater, mix the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, lemon zest, and poppy seeds on low speed for 30 seconds. Add the butter and the remaining sour cream. Mix on low speed until the dry ingredients are moistened. Raise the speed to medium and beat for 1½ minutes. The mixture will lighten in color and texture. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
5. Starting on low speed, gradually add the egg mixture in two parts, beating on medium speed for 30 seconds after each addition to incorporate the ingredients and strengthen the structure. Using a silicone spatula or spoon, scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the surface evenly with a small metal spatula.
6. Bake the cake: Bake for 45 to 55 minutes, or until a wire cake tester inserted between the tube and the side comes out clean and the cake springs back when pressed lightly in the center. The cake should start to shrink from the sides of the pan only after removal from the oven. Shortly before the cake is finished baking, make the lemon syrup.
7. Make the lemon syrup: In a 1-cup or larger microwavable glass measure (or in a small saucepan over medium heat), heat the sugar and lemon juice, stirring often, until the sugar is dissolved. Do not allow it to boil. Cover it tightly to prevent evaporation.
8. Apply the syrup and cool and unmold the cake: As soon as the cake comes out of the oven, place the pan on a wire rack, poke the cake all over with a thin skewer, and brush it with about one-third of the syrup. Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Invert it onto a 10-inch cardboard round or serving plate. Brush the top and sides of the cake with the remaining syrup. Cool completely and wrap airtight.

2.14

This past Thursday we celebrated Valentine's Day and our sixth anniversary. We ate, we drank and we hung out with Bosco; perfect.

Black Chocolate Party Cake

It really is a party. We received a stoneware fluted pan for our wedding from my Alaska family and it was time to put it to use. We need to throw a party so I can make this cake again soon. Ian and I had a long celebratory weekend and rang in our sixth anniversary on Thursday - Valentine's Day. On Sunday night, I wanted the celebrations to continue, so I made this Black Chocolate Party Cake from Rose's Heavenly Cakes. A party it was. 

This cake is so dark and chocolatey it is difficult to eat more than one slice. A little alkalized cocoa powder goes a long way and this recipe calls for three-quarters of a cup. Wowza.  For milk drinkers, this is the dream. A slice of this cake with a cup of milk would be the ultimate; ice cream also will suffice.

For this recipe, you grind walnuts to help bring out the rich chocolate flavor. This isn't something I have seen before, but I am a believer. The full recipe is below.

Black Chocolate Party Cake 
Cake:
1 cup sour cream
¾ cup (67g) unsweetened (alkalized) cocoa powder
3 large eggs - room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2/3 cup walnuts - ground
 2 cups all-purpose flour
1 ¼ cup (250g) turbinado sugar
1 ¼ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
¾ teaspoon salt
1 cup (226g/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

Cocoa syrup:
¼ cup (22g) unsweetened (alkalized) cocoa powder
1/3 cup (67g) superfine sugar
1/3 cup (80ml) boiling water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Generously butter a 10-cup capacity flute pan.

In a medium bowl, stir together the sour cream, cocoa, eggs and vanilla – then wisk slightly, the mixture will be lumpy. Set aside.

In the large bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the ground walnuts (toasted and ground in a food processor), all-purpose flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt on low speed for about 30 seconds. Add butter and mix until moistened.

Add one-third of the cocoa mixture and mix on low speed until just combined. Scrape the side of the bowl. Add half of the remaining cocoa mixture and beat for 30 seconds. Raise the speed to medium and beat for 1 ½ minutes. Scrape the side of the bowl then beat for another 30 seconds. Add the last of the cocoa mixture and mix for 30 seconds. Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and smooth the surface.

Bake for 50-60 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.

Make the cocoa syrup shortly before the cake is finished baking: in a small saucepan, whisk together the cocoa and sugar. Add a small amount of the boiling water, whisking until all of the mixture is moistened. Add the remaining water, whisk, and then bring the mixture to a boil over low heat, stirring often. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla. Cool for 5 minutes before using it in the cake.

As soon as the cake comes out of the oven, poke it all over with a wooden skewer then pour 1/3 of the cocoa syrup over the cake. Let the cake cool in the pan over a wire rack for 10-15 minutes. Carefully invert the cake onto a plate and brush with the remaining cocoa syrup. Cool completely.

Coconut Cake

This year, I diverged from the norm. Every year Ian asks for a sour cream chocolate chip cake for his birthday; every year. This year, he asked to mix things up for his 30th year. Herein lies the coconut cake. I am not a fan of coconut, but Ian is and this is not about me. We decided to compromise and make a coconut cake with chocolate buttercream frosting. This was one of the cakes we wanted for our wedding, but the bakery was all out. How a bakery runs out of a particular kind of cake is beyond me, but that is for another discussion.

The recipe comes from Rose's Heavenly Cakes, one of the best cake books in town, but I will admit her recipes are hard. Her cakes usually come out with the best consistency, but there are a lot of bells and whistles.

The actual cake came out so well and Ian loved it, but the buttercream was a different story. You essentially have to make candy so the frosting has a smooth and glossy texture. This is hard.  My buttercream had little chunks of hard candy in it, but overall it tasted good and Ian was pleased. Maybe this means sour cream chocolate chip cakes are a thing of the past.

Here is the recipe:
Southern (Manhattan) Coconut Cake
6 large egg whites, room temp
1 1/3 cups canned (10.6 fl oz) coconut milk
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 tsp coconut extract
4 cups cake flour, sifted
2 cups superfine sugar (I hand-blended caster sugar)
5 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
2 sticks unsalted butter (firm but not hard is best)

1. Oven preheated at 350 degrees  Prepare two 9 by 2 " round pans by lining with baking paper, then greasing them and lightly flour them
 2. Use a hand whisk to whisk the egg whites, 1/3 cup of the coconut milk, vanilla and coconut extract until just combined
 3. In the bowl of a stand mixer, mix the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt at low speed for a couple of seconds
 4. Add the butter and remaining coconut milk. Mix on low speed until the dry ingredients are moistened, then increase speed top medium and beat 1 1/2 minutes. Scrape down sides of bowl
 5. With the mixer at medium speed, gradually add the egg white mixture in 3 parts, beating at medium speed for 20 seconds after each addition
 6. Divide the batter evenly between the two pans and bake 30 to 40 minutes or until a wire tester inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean or the cake springs back when pressed lightly in the center
7. Let the cakes cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes then remove from pans with a metal spatula

Chocolate Buttercream 
3 large egg yoks
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 cup corn syrup
1 teaspoon lemon juice, freshly squeezed
2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3 ounces 60% - 70% chocolate

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the yolks on high speed until light in color
2. In a small saucepan, combine the sugar, syrup and lemon juice. Using a silicone spatula, stir until all the sugar is moistened. heat over medium-high, stirring constantly until the sugar dissolves and the syrup begins to bubble around the edges. Stop stirring completely and continue cooking for a few minutes until the syrup comes to a rolling boil. The entire surface will be covered with large bubbles. Immediately transfer the syrup to the glass measuring cup to stop the cooking
3. In the stand mixer, add the syrup to the yolks. Begin by pouring a small amount of syrup. Immediately beat on high speed for five seconds. Add the remaining syrup the same way in three parts
4. For the last addition, use a scraper to remove the syrup clinging to the glass measure and scrape it against the beater
5. When the outside of the bowl feels cold, beat the butter by the tablespoon on medium-high speed. The buttercream will not thicken until almost all the butter has been added. Add the vanilla and beat on low speed until incorporated.
6. Beat in three ounces of melted chocolate (cooled)

Snow Day + Baked Oatmeal

There is nothing I love more than being home with my little family while it is snowing outside. We had our first real snow today and I thought it appropriate to make something warm and comforting. The obvious choice here was baked oatmeal. This is becoming a weekend favorite for us, and it indulges my love of oatmeal (seen here, here and here).

Baked oatmeal is so simple, and a healthy brunch item! How have I gone on for so long without this? The recipe comes from 101 Cookbooks, but I found it on Lottie + Doof and I made slight tweaks.

Baked Oatmeal

• 2 cups / 7 oz / 200 g rolled oats
• 1/2 cup / 2 oz / 60 g walnut pieces, toasted (see page 219) and chopped
• 1/3 cup / 2 oz / 60 g natural cane sugar
• 1 teaspoon aluminum-free baking powder
• 11/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• Scant 1/2 teaspoon fine-grain sea salt
• 2 cups lowfat milk / 475 ml
• 1 large egg
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 2 ripe bananas, cut into 1/2-inch / 1cm pieces
• 11/2 cups / 6.5 oz / 185 g huckleberries, blueberries, or mixed berries

Preheat the oven to 375F / 190C with a rack in the top third of the oven. Generously butter the inside of an 8-inch / 20cm square baking dish.

In a bowl, mix together the oats, half the walnuts, the sugar, if using, the baking powder, cinnamon, and salt.

In another bowl, whisk together the maple syrup, if using, the milk, egg, half of the butter, and the vanilla.

Arrange the bananas in a single layer in the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Sprinkle two-thirds of the berries over the top. Cover the fruit with the oat mixture. Slowly drizzle the milk mixture over the oats. Gently give the baking dish a couple thwacks on the countertop to make sure the milk moves through the oats. Scatter the remaining berries and remaining walnuts across the top.

Bake for 35 to 45 minutes, until the top is nicely golden and the oat mixture has set. Remove from the oven and let cool for a few minutes.

Serves 6 generously, or 12 as part of a larger brunch spread

New York City In Review

We spent Ian's 30th birthday in New York with friends and the weekend was full of upgrades, surprises, celebrities (one) and fun. We had the best time and look forward to going back soon. 

Penthouse suite overlooking the park 

 Cold day across the Brooklyn Bridge:

Arguing the nuances of 'Girls'

 Brucie and Kelly

 Cam Diaz says hello

 My 30-year-old

Bouchon Bakery! I will never forget this galette; Ian was lucky to get a bite.

 

 Cold day in the park

2007

2013 - same spot in Central Park

Bosco is the Best

We have had our little Bosco for nearly five months and while I can't say the time has flown by, we are so incredibly happy to have him. This guy was easy to fall in love with. Here he is, the one and only Boz.

Boz's preferred mode of transportation in the cold: 

First snow!

 The ultimate napper:

Look! I'm on the desk!