Pumpkin Pancakes

Christmas came alarmingly early this year, so I am fighting it off the best I can by continuing to celebrate fall, November, pumpkins, gourds, leaves, slow cooked meals, etc. I tried a new recipe in Pinch of Yum for Whole Wheat Pumpkin Pancakes and they were good! Simple and good. The recipe suggested sliced bananas on top. We didn't do it, but I think it would be a good addition.

As of Late

Over the past week I tried a few new recipes, some worked and some didn't. Cauliflower is all the rage these days, so I hear. Whether it's cauliflower crust or cauliflower mashed potatoes it is having its moment in the sun.

Smitten Kitchen posted a Cauliflower Cheese recipe. It originates in England and is a "healthier" version of macaroni and cheese. My ratio was off and the cheese sauce overwhelmed the cauliflower. It was good, but really decadent and Ian and I felt enormous afterward. 

To counterbalance the Cauliflower Cheese I made these Skinny Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins from Ambitious Kitchen. These are a hit around the Rogers household. They use wheat flour, yogurt and honey and taste like a million bucks. A great, quick recipe for breakfast during the week.

Lastly, I have been eyeing this Skillet Apple Cobbler from A Couple Cooks and made it this weekend to usher in fall belatedly. I used Honey Crisp apples, but I think this would be better served with a tart apple. The topping is semi healthy and pretty easy. I would definitely make this again. It makes the house smell incredible.

The Pumpkin Patch Collection

I forgot my login and password it has been so long. It is a goal of mine to get this blog going again and there is no better time than October (the best month). As we headed out on our annual pumpkin patch trip we reminisced on how many years we have been doing this. It has dated back to 2007, minus a few years in Oregon that remain undocumented.

So here, for my first post in a year, is a collection of pumpkin patch photos through the years. I hope to keep these trips going for many years to come. 

First year in 2007 we headed out to Virginia. Of course there was a Civil War reenactment taking place over the hillside. 

Pumpkin patch in Illinois in 2010. First year in Chicago. 

Ill-fitting sunglasses in Indiana in 2011. The weather was so very classic Midwest. 

We headed to Amish Country in Illinois for 2012. This was our first patch visit as marrieds. 

Back in Washington for 2013! We moved back to the Northwest and visited Snohomish this go around.

Quick, cold trip to Arlington in 2014. Bosco came and hated it, so he is not pictured. 

'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.