Batter-Splattered

finally! some strawberry ice cream

I had to wait for it, but I finally got that strawberry ice cream I was yearning for.

I fixed it up in the form of ice cream sandwiches, made with these lovely little triple (triple!) chocolate cookies.

Oh my goodness, were these ever good.

I bought some ice cream rather than making it, as the recipe directed. I just can't make the leap into ice-cream-making. Like I don't have enough junk in my kitchen -- I'm supposed to store an ice cream maker, too? Plus, we had an ice cream maker when I was a kid. I remember there was lots of cranking involved.

Cranking, when I would have rather been sliding and swinging at the picnic in the park.

I have issues with home ice cream makers.

I'm sure they've advanced by leaps and bounds and all but...back to the cookies.

Those are some good cookies. But next time I make them (and I will), I'm going to make them much smaller than the recipe suggests. They were so rich and chocolate-y I had a hard time making it through one. And ordinarily, I'm one who scoffs at other people who set down their spoon and protest that something's too rich. Hand it over, then. I'll finish it off.

Thank goodness I bought no-sugar-added strawberry ice cream. It was just the thing to fend off the richness. Although I still couldn't polish off a whole ice cream sandwich. I had to put the last few bites back in the freezer for later.

So. Next time. Smaller cookies. If you can handle the richness, you can eat more than one.

Triple Chocolate Cookies (for ice cream sandwiches or for the hell of it, you decide)

Makes about 16

10 ounces bittersweet (not unsweetened) or semisweet chocolate, chopped
1/2 cup plus 2 teaspoons all purpose flour
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
3 large eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
6 ounces (1 cup) semisweet chocolate chips

Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350°F. Line 2 large rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. Stir chopped chocolate in top of double boiler set over simmering water until melted and smooth; remove from over water. Cool melted chocolate 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, sift flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt into medium bowl. Using electric mixer, beat sugar and butter in another medium bowl until crumbly. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Continue to beat until mixture is light, pale, and creamy, about 5 minutes. Add lukewarm melted chocolate and vanilla and beat just until blended. Fold in dry ingredients, then chocolate chips.

Drop chocolate cookie batter by 1/4 cupfuls onto prepared baking sheets, spacing 2 inches apart. Bake cookies, 1 baking sheet at a time, until tops are evenly cracked but cookies are not yet firm to touch, about 16 minutes. Cool cookies completely on baking sheets. Using metal spatula, carefully transfer 4 cookies to each of 4 large resealable plastic bags, arranging in single layer. Freeze cookies overnight. (Can be made 3 days ahead. Keep frozen.)

you win some, you lose some

Doesn't this look good?

It's cod with seasoned couscous baked in a foil packet in the oven. Looks just wonderful, right? It has the pretty lemon slices on top and the pretty sprinkled parsley.

But.

It is completely devoid of flavor. No taste to it, whatsoever. Nada. Zip. Zilch. Which is weird because it has all sorts of flavorful things packed into it -- lemon, a little butter, currants, sliced almonds, coriander, paprika, a dash of cayenne...

Huh.

What is this recipe's problem? Thank god I tried it before you did. Now you don't have to waste your time and your cod on it. I took a bullet for you, my friend.

But now take a look at these babies:

This recipe for apple and currant oatmeal muffins was on the back of the package of currants I bought for the shameless recipe above. Thank goodness it redeemed itself in some small way. Because after picking my way through the tasteless fish and couscous it sure was nice to pull these out of the oven for dessert.

These muffins are really, really good. Especially hot out of the oven. They have oats and currants and diced apples and lots of spices. They're small. They're cute. I think I'll keep this recipe! I'll need something to remember them by because I think my husband took this bag to work with him today -- I could find no trace of it in the kitchen this morning.

Apple and Currant Oatmeal Muffins

Makes one dozen muffins

1 cup zante currants or raisins
1 cup cored, peeled and chopped apple
1/4 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cup milk
1 egg beaten
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar
1 cup uncooked oats
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons packed brown sugar

Directions:

COMBINE currants or raisins with apple, oil, milk, egg and sugar in a medium mixing bowl.
STIR together flour, oats, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice and salt in a separate bowl.
STIR into raisin mixture just until combined.
DIVIDE batter equally into 12 greased or lined muffin cups.
SPRINKLE top of batter with 1/2 teaspoon brown sugar per muffin cup.
BAKE at 400 for 20 minutes or until golden.  

strawberry galette

 

On the plane home from Portland my friend and I stared hungrily at a recipe and photos of this strawberry galette in the pages of the May Martha Stewart Living magazine. On the side, it has a basil-infused whipping cream and fried and sugared basil leaves.

I had to make it.

But I must admit I didn't fry and sugar any basil leaves. Because I'm lazy. It's time you knew that about me. I kind of wish I had though. I bet those would have made for some very pretty photos.

The basil whipped cream was lovely. Not overwhelmingly basil-ish. It just has a nice herbal twist at the end when you taste a bit of it.

And my galette didn't turn out looking anywhere near as pretty as Martha's minion's galette but I could have told you that would be the case before I even started. Oh and I used some of my own dough because I had a single crust of it stored in my freezer.

Strawberry Galette

Serves 6 - 8

FOR THE BASIL CREAM

3/4 cup heavy cream

1/3 cup loosely packed fresh basil, chopped

2 tablespoons sugar

3/4 cup mascarpone cheese

FOR THE FRIED BASIL

2 cups vegetable oil

18 to 24 large fresh basil leaves

Sugar, for sprinkling

FOR THE DOUGH

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for surface

1 1/8 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon sugar

8 ounces (1 cup) cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

1/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons ice water

FOR THE GALETTE

1 pound strawberries, hulled

1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar

2 teaspoons cornstarch

1 large egg yolk

1 tablespoon water

1 tablespoon cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

Make the basil cream: Combine cream, basil, and sugar in a heatproof bowl. Set bowl over a small saucepan of simmering water, and stir until sugar dissolves, about 4 minutes. Cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour (or up to 2 hours for a more pronounced basil flavor). Strain through a fine sieve into a bowl. Add mascarpone, and whisk until medium peaks form. Cover, and refrigerate until ready to serve, up to 2 hours.

Make the fried basil: Heat oil in a deep skillet to 325 degrees. Fry basil, a few leaves at a time, for 12 seconds. (The leaves will cause the hot oil to spatter; step away from the pan while they cook.) Drain leaves on paper towels, and let cool completely. Sprinkle both sides of the leaves with sugar. (Basil can be stored at room temperature overnight.)

Make the dough: Pulse flour, salt, and sugar in a food processor to combine. Add butter, and pulse until mixture forms coarse crumbs. Add ice water, and pulse until just combined (dough will still be crumbly). Shape dough into a disk, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour (or overnight).

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. On a floured surface, roll dough to 1/4 inch thickness. Cut out a 10-inch round, and transfer to a parchment-lined rimmed baking sheet. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Make the galette: Cut strawberries lengthwise into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Reserve end pieces for another use. Toss slices with 1/4 cup sugar and the cornstarch, and immediately arrange them in concentric circles on dough. Start 1 inch from edge, overlapping slices slightly. Fold edge of dough over berries. Refrigerate for 15 minutes.

Whisk together yolk and water. Brush dough with the egg wash, and sprinkle with remaining 1 tablespoon sugar. Dot berries with butter. Bake until crust is golden brown, 40 to 45 minutes.

Transfer to a serving plate. Serve warm with basil cream and fried basil.

Peach and Blueberry Cobbler

Here's the dessert I mentioned in yesterday's post, a peach and blueberry cobbler, as pretty as it is toothsome:

I wish I would have thought of the word toothsome when I was trying to think up a name for this blog. What a great name for a food blog. Take it, if you want -- just be sure to send me a check for a million dollars. You don't hear it very often which is such a shame. I like the sound of it. It accurately reflects that sort of tastiness that makes you want to sink your teeth into something.

I got this recipe from that same old cookbook I've been sampling from lately. I'm SO GLAD I tried this because the biscuit topping is phenomenal. Better than anything else I've tasted in its class. You toss together the dry ingredients and make a well in the center, then whip up whipping cream until soft peaks form. Stir it into the dry ingredients with a fork just until a dough forms. The dough is so light and puffy and sweet. I saved alot of scraps for eating raw!

I would have eaten those peaches and berries just like that, spooned over some vanilla ice cream. Or maybe just with a big spoon.

Costco just started selling these big bags of frozen fruit that I'm really excited about. Only $8 and the bag is full of good-looking wedges of peaches, white peaches, plump blueberries, and rounds of honeydew melon... so good! You can pick your way through it and make yourself a helluva pie. I take a big bowl of it to work with me and spear fruit with a fork throughout the day at my desk.

I used peaches -- white and regular -- for this cobbler recipe along with a couple of handfuls of tart little blueberries I picked myself last summer. My supply in the freezer is rapidly dwindling so summer better hurry her ass up so I can pick some more.

This was good and oh so easy.

Peach and Blueberry Cobbler

Serves six

4 1/2 c peaches sliced into wedges (you can also use nectarines or apricots)

1 pint blueberries (you can also use blackberries or raspberries)

1/2 c sugar

1 T plus 1 t cornstarch

1/2 c water

1 T lemon juice

1 3/4 c all-purpose flour

3 T sugar

1 T baking powder

Pinch of salt

1 c heavy cream

Milk, for brushing

Sugar, for sprinkling

Vanilla ice cream or whipped cream, for serving

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

In a large saucepan, combine the fruit and berries, sugar, cornstarch, water, and lemon juice. Bring mixture to a boil, stirring constantly. Reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes, or until fruit has softened. Transfer to a shallow baking dish and set aside.

In a large bowl, combine the dry ingredients and make a well in the center. Whip the cream until soft peaks form. Spoon cream into the well and mix with a fork just until a dough forms.

On a lightly floured surface, gently knead the dough several times. Roll or pat the dough to 3/4 inches thick. Cut with a biscuit or cookie cutter of your choice and arrange biscuits on top of the fruit, brush with milk, and sprinkle with sugar.

Bake cobbler for 15 minutes or so, until biscuits are golden and fruit is bubbling. Let cool slightly. Serve warm with ice cream or whipped cream.

there's nothing prettier than pie / orchard patch pie

I call this my Orchard Patch Pie. It's a little something I came up with this afternoon, on the fly.

The pie fly.

'Orchard' because it has peaches (both white and regular) and 'patch' because it has berries (raspberries, blueberries, maybe a blackberry or two).

The husband and his friends were more than happy to help me out with the near-polishing-off of this pie (luckily, there were two slices left). One of them kept asking me to repeat the name for two reasons: one, he thought it was funny, and two, he wanted to be sure to be able to ask for it by name in the future.

I think you'll agree with me when I say there's nothing prettier than pie.

Here's my very simple recipe I created today. I think I need to make another one real soon.

Orchard Patch Pie

Makes one 9-inch pie

2 apples, peeled, pitted and diced

2 peaches, frozen or fresh, diced or sliced -- no need to thaw, if frozen

Handful of assorted berries, fresh or frozen -- no need to thaw, if frozen

3/4 c sugar plus more for sprinkling on top

1 T cornstarch

two piecrusts (I like this recipe)

egg white

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and position rack in center of oven. Combine all the fruit and berries in a big bowl. In a small bowl, stir together the 3/4 cup sugar and the cornstarch. Toss it thoroughly with the fruit. Roll out one pie crust and roll it into the bottom of the pie plate. Add the fruit and berries. Roll out the second pie crust and roll it on top of the fruit. Crimp the edges prettily. Poke the top all over with a fork, then use the fork to beat the egg white a little bit. Brush the top of the pie with the egg white and sprinkle with sugar. Bake in oven at 400 degrees for 15 minutes. Lower temperature to 350 and continue baking until it looks done -- lightly browned on top with a little juice bubbling out here and there.

Nordy bars

I stumbled upon this recipe recently in the recipe swap section of Oregon Live, which I've been reading every morning because I have a trip to Portland coming up soon. I like to get a feel for a place before I go there -- and what better way than through the local paper. And then of course, I'm always drawn to a food and recipe section when I see one.

I'd never heard of these bars or seen them sold at my local Nordstrom but they were spoken of with such religious devotion, you know I had to make them. Further research showed that these were originally made and sold at the Nordstrom Café (where you can get a mighty fine salad) but are no longer offered on the menu there.

Pity, because they're really good. You melt butter and butterscotch chips in a saucepan, add some dry ingredients, then stir in chocolate chips, marshmallows, and walnuts. A little something for everyone!

I cut mine up into bite-sized morsels for a party and put them in little paper cups so guests wouldn't get all that ooey-gooey goodness all over their fingers, although I doubt anyone would have complained.

 

Nordy Bars

1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
1 (11-ounce) package butterscotch chips
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 (12-ounce) package semisweet chocolate chips
2 cups miniature marshmallows
1 cup chopped pecans

In medium saucepan, melt butter over medium heat; add butterscotch chips and brown sugar, stirring until they're melted.

Remove pan from heat and stir in eggs; add flour, baking powder and salt, mixing thoroughly. Stir in vanilla; set aside until cool.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

When cooked mixture is cool, stir in chocolate chips, marshmallows and pecans; spread in greased 9-by-13-inch pan.

Bake 25 minutes. Remove from oven. Cool, cut in bars.