Spinach, Ricotta, and Mushroom Tartlets

I’ve always enjoyed playing with pastry dough. But, crimping the edges of a pie crust, cutting and weaving lattice pieces, or making leaf shapes of pastry for the top of a pumpkin pie is about as far as I’ve taken it. When I received a review copy of The Pastry School: Sweet and Savoury Pies, Tarts and Treats to Bake at Home, I soon realized how much more could be done. These pies and tarts are works of art. For Julie Jones, pastry is her medium of choice, and she’s practiced the skills to produce masterpieces. There are recipes for different types of pastry including shortcrust, puff pastry, choux pastry, gluten-free, and vegan followed by tips for rolling, baking, blind-baking, and decorating. I appreciated the tip for blind-baking a tart shell with overhanging pastry beyond the edge of the tart pan. I’ve seen many pastry shells shrink down below the top edge of tart pans over the years. By leaving extra in place, you’ll have a full height of pastry in the tart pan when you trim the baked excess. And, the suggestion for trimming the edge is to slide a vegetable peeler along it until it’s level with the edge of the tart pan. Such a great idea. Another great tip is to use a pasta rolling machine to get extra smooth, thin pastry. A lot of the decorations are achieved by using very thin sheets of pastry cut and shaped into designs that are then adhered with egg wash to a very thin pastry lid cut to the size of the top needed. So smart. In some cases, the filling becomes part of the design as well. The Apple Rose Tart is made with curled apple slice roses and pretty flower- and leaf-shaped pastry pieces. For the little Mango and Coconut Cream Tartlets, the decorations are very thinly sliced grapes and tiny coriander flowers. The Pistachio Tart with Rhurbarb Tiles, shown on the book cover, is particularly stunning with perfectly lined-up rectangular pieces of rhubarb topped with a pretty profusion of swirling apple slices, blackberries, and pastry pieces. There are also savory pastries, and the Griddled Greens, Cauliflower, and Lemon Triangles made with sheet pastry and baked until shatteringly crisp look delicious. It was the parquet look of the Chicken, Chorizo, and Spinach Pie that I had to try. I decided to limit my first attempt at this type of decorative pastry to smaller tartlets, and I filled mine with a vegetarian mixture. 

I made the shortcrust pastry and let it chill while working on the filling. I sauteed a mix of mushrooms and set it aside. Next, spinach was sauteed with garlic and allowed to cool. I mixed the spinach with ricotta. Next, I rolled out half of the pastry and cut and filled tartlet pans with overhanging pastry. I cut parchment paper to fit into each pan, and filled them pie weights for blind-baking. After 20 minutes, the pie weights and parchment were removed, and the tartlet shells baked for another 15 minutes. Once cool, the overhanging edges of pastry were trimmed with a vegetable peeler, and the pastry shells were cleaned of crumbs with a pastry brush. For the decorative tartlet tops, I rolled the other half of the pastry through my pasta machine. I cut thin sheets of pastry into circles to fit the tops of the tartlets. Those base tops were chilled to firm them up. Next, I used more of the thin, pasta machine rolled pastry to make tile shapes. I measured and cut the rectangles and then placed them in the parquet design on the chilled thin pastry lids. I worked on top of parchment paper, and flipped the whole assembly over onto another piece of parchment paper so I could trim the tiles to the edge of the bottom layer of pastry. I flipped the whole assembly back to parquet-side-up and chilled the finished tops. While the tops were chilling, I filled the tartlet shells with the ricotta and spinach mixture and topped that with mushrooms. I ended feeling like the day had gotten away from me, and I only topped two tartlets with the parquet effect. The other two received plain pastry lids. The chilled pastry tops were set in place and brushed with egg wash and the tartlets went back into the oven until golden and crisp. 

Let me tell you what I’ll do differently next time: I won’t attempt to do all of these steps on the same day. The pastry can be made in advance and refrigerated. The tartlet shells can be blind-baked and trimmed in advance. The thin pastry lids on which the decorative layer is placed can be cut and chilled in advance. And, of course, the filling can be made in advance. With everything prepped and ready, more time and attention can be focused on the fun, decorative layer. I loved learning these tips for working with pastry; I especially loved all the inspiration for amazing pastry art; and I look forward to getting more practice.

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Poppy Seed Danishes with Cherry-Cream Cheese Filling

One of my favorite things about Easter is choosing a sweet bread or pastry to bake for the occasion. Over the years, I’ve made various coffee cakes and filled, yeasted breads. I’ve made hot cross buns and other sweet rolls. And, this year, I pulled out a recipe that had been waiting in the files for a few years. The recipe for these danishes is from the May 2011 issue of Living magazine. I do love finding a gem like this in the files. Of course, the day couldn’t be about sweets alone even after weeks of Lent with no sugar. I also revisited a quiche recipe I made a couple of years ago and this time served slices of it with roasted asparagus. It’s a tall, grand quiche with a light and fluffy texture. I feel like it deserves a special occasion but would enjoy it on the menu regularly. But, back to the danishes. They were just rich and indulgent enough. The pastry dough is easy to shape, and the cut and folded corners were to make each one look like a flower with curved petals. They’re made with two fillings. First, a cream cheese-poppy seed filling was spread in the center and then a little dollop of cherry preserves was added on top of that. I found some cherry preserves made with apple juice rather than sugar and that helped keep the overall sweetness in check. 

The dough was started with warm milk, butter, and sugar. Yeast, flour, and salt were added, and the dough was mixed with a dough hook in a stand mixer. Eggs were added, one at a time, followed by more flour. After kneading the dough a bit more by hand and forming a ball, it was left to rise for an hour. The first filling was made by mixing room temperature cream cheese with confectioners’ sugar and vanilla. An egg yolk and poppy seeds were added and mixed to combine. The dough was then rolled into a big square and trimmed to 15 inches on each side. That square was cut into nine smaller squares. Each square of dough was then cut with a two-inch line from each corner toward the center. The cream cheese filling was spread on the center of each, a spoonful of cherry preserves was added on top of the filling, and the corners were folded up and into the center of each. The folded dough was brushed with egg wash, and the danishes were baked for about 18 minutes. After cooling for a few minutes, they were drizzled with a confectioners’ sugar glaze. 

The cream cheese filling with the spoonful of cherry preserves made these irresistible. And, the tender pastry dough bakes into a golden, puffy, light, delightful treat. This is going to be a hard one to beat next Easter. I might have to start repeating myself rather than trying something new each year. 

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Summer Vegetable Tartlets with Parmesan Cream

I received a review copy of Anne-Sophie Pic’s newest book, Scook: The Complete Cookery Course. It’s a big, beautiful cookbook that she wrote to continue the tradition of passing along kitchen experience to new cooks. The recipes are some of her favorites from her childhood as well as her professional life in the kitchen. This new book is just as stunning as her previous book, Le Livre Blanc, which was focused on her incredible restaurant creations, but these recipes are much more doable by the home cook. There are even helpful step-by-step instructions with photos for some techniques. Pic is a third generation chef in her family, and she’s a three-Michelin starred chef at her restaurant Maison Pic in Valence, Drôme, France. This book is divided into categories like Entertaining, Everyday, and For Children. Some of the selections for each of these categories represent ideals that might not be quite realistic for everyone. Personally, I wouldn’t think of Foie Gras with Beetroot or Lobster and Celery with Red Fruits as “everyday” dishes, but the idea is that everything in this chapter is quick enough to prepare on an everyday basis. It’s meant as inspiration to elevate your game of go-to, quick dishes. I’m definitely inspired to try the Roman Gnocchi Revisited topped with a tomato concasse with capers and black olives. A recipe from the Entertaining chapter that I keep turning back to is for a Tuna Tartlet with Sauce Vierge. This reminds me of some tartlets I watched Dorie Greenspan make at a cooking class when she was promoting her book Around My French Table. Both Dorie’s tartlets and the ones in this book make use of the same technique for the pastry base. Puff pastry is cut into shapes and baked between two baking sheets to keep it pressed and flat. Then, the crisp, flaky pastry pieces get some delicious toppings. Tuna was used in both versions, but I’d love to try these with smoked salmon and Pic’s suggested black olive tapenade, Espelette chile powder, and basil. Tartlets continued to capture my attention, and when I saw the lovely, little Vegetable Tarts with Young Parmesan Cream I had to try a summery version. 

In the book, these golden pastry rounds are topped with incredibly perfect-looking spring vegetables and a drizzle of the parmesan cream. I wanted to summer-ize the concept by using some grilled baby eggplant and cherry tomatoes. The rich pastry dough was made with lots of butter, ground almonds, all-purpose flour, and salt. The recipe called for lavender flowers, but I didn’t have any handy. The dough was rolled thin and then covered with plastic wrap and placed in the freezer for 15 minutes. Once firm, rounds were cut, brushed with egg wash, and baked. The parmesan cream was a simple mix of grated parmesan and milk that was heated in a saucepan and blended. Mine seemed thin, so I made a roux and whisked in the mixture to thicken it. I grilled quartered, little eggplants for the main topping. They were set on the pastry rounds with halved cherry tomatoes, drizzled with olive oil, and topped with the parmesan cream. 

Anne-Sophie Pic writes that she hopes the reader becomes comfortable with these dishes and makes the recipes his/her own. Switching out the vegetables for this tart was an easy change, and the parmesan cream would be a delicious accompaniment to just about any vegetable. This is a fun book to curl up with and page through the photos. And, there’s lots to learn from it too. 

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Spinach and Chard Empanadas

I always think of Nick Malgieri as a great baking teacher. Back when the Food Network aired only shows about how to cook, rather than so many cooking competitions, I used to love seeing Nick Malgieri appear on shows like Cooking Live with Sara Moulton. I always learned new things. Years ago, I also attended a fantastic class he taught here in Austin at Central Market Cooking School. His latest book, Nick Malgieri's Pastry, is an excellent guide for all sorts of pastries, and I received a review copy. There are clear instructions and photos for each step of the way, and he writes: “if you follow the simple instructions here, you’ll be able to tackle any pastry project you like.” I believe it. He guides the reader through several versions of dough and how to work with each, and then there are the recipes for using them. As I read through the chapters with tarts and pies, I made mental notes for upcoming holidays. The orange and almond tart is a beauty for New Year’s when citrus season is in full swing, the Sour Cherry Tart with Almond Meringue would be festive for Christmas with jarred sour cherries, and for Thanksgiving I can’t decide between the Cranberry Pecan Pie and the Old-Fashioned Sweet Potato Pie. I’m also fixated on the “French” Apple Pie which is a double-crust pie baked in an eight-inch round pan with straight sides, filled with cooked chopped apples and raisins, and it’s topped with a confectioners’ sugar glaze. I’ve never seen a pie like this, and I have to try it. Beyond the tarts and pies, there are strudels both sweet and savory, baklava and yufka recipes, puff pastries, yeasted doughs, and pate a choux. The Pear and Almond Dumplings made with puff pastry are on my to-try list, and so are the Coffee-Filled Cream Puffs. Before I dive into the gorgeous dessert options, I wanted to try the savory empanadas. In the book, they’re called Argentine Christmas Eve Empanadas because their spinach and anchovy filling make them appropriate for the day before Christmas. They’re made with Sour Cream Dough which was a delight to work with. 

As promised, following the simple instructions produced a perfect dough for the empanadas. Flour and salt were combined in a food processor, and pieces of butter were added and pulsed. Sour cream was spread around on the surface of the flour-butter mixture so it would mix in more easily. A few pulses later, the dough was ready. It was shaped into a disk and chilled for a few hours. Meanwhile, I started on the filling. I used a mix of fresh spinach and Swiss chard. Lots of scallions were chopped, garlic was minced, and anchovies were finely chopped. Oil was heated in a large saute pan, and the scallions were added followed by the garlic and anchovies. I added the spinach and chard directly to the scallion mixture without pre-cooking. It was seasoned with salt and pepper and smoked paprika. Parsley was added last. I tipped the pan to the side and let the moisture run away from the spinach and chard before removing it to a bowl to cool. After the dough had chilled, I divided it into eight pieces and rolled each into a round. The sour cream made it especially tender and easy to roll. I stacked the rounds between pieces of parchment, covered the stack with plastic wrap, and chilled them overnight. The next day, I filled each dough round with some of the spinach and chard mixture and shaped the empanadas. They were brushed with an egg wash and baked for about 25 minutes. 

The dough was incredibly easy to roll and resulted in that perfectly fragile, shatteringly crisp texture just like it should. The filling was savory and flavorful with the scallions and anchovies. I was thrilled with the result and can’t wait to try more things from the book. And, I’m already ready to start baking for Thanksgiving. I predict several dessert options on the table this year. 

Argentine Christmas Eve Empanadas (Empanadas de Vigilia) 
Recipe reprinted with publisher's permission from Nick Malgieri's Pastry.

These spinach empanadas make a delicious alternative to the typical meat-laden ones and are traditionally eaten on Christmas Eve, a day of abstinence from meat in Catholic countries. These are usually deep-fried, but I decided to bake them—it’s easier, and they turn out much less rich. 

Makes eight 7-inch empanadas 

1 batch Sour Cream Dough, chilled 
2 pounds baby spinach, rinsed and drained, or 2 10-ounce packages frozen chopped spinach, thawed, squeezed dry, and chopped 
3 tablespoons olive oil 
1 cup finely sliced scallions (the white part and half the green) 
2 cloves garlic, grated 
1 ounce anchovy fillets packed in olive oil, finely chopped 
Fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper 
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley 
1 1/2 teaspoons hot Spanish paprika (pimenton) 
Egg wash: 1 egg well whisked with a pinch of salt 

1. Put the fresh spinach with the rinse water still clinging to it in a large Dutch oven with a lid. Place over medium heat, cover, and steam for a few minutes until it reduces in volume. Uncover and, stirring occasionally, cook for 1 to 2 minutes longer. Drain, cool, and chop the spinach. 
2. Put the oil and scallions into a large saucepan over medium heat. Once the scallions start to sizzle, lower the heat and cook slowly, stirring often, until tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook for a few seconds. Stir in the chopped spinach and anchovies; cook for a minute or two. If using frozen spinach, cook a couple of minutes longer at this point. 
3. Taste the spinach and season with salt and pepper. Stir in the parsley and paprika. Cool the filling. 
4. While the filling is cooling, divide the dough into 80-gram pieces and shape each into a flat disk. Roll each piece of dough into an 8-inch disk and chill if you’re not going to assemble the empanadas immediately. 
5. Arrange the disks of dough on the work surface and brush the edges with water. Divide the filling equally among the dough rounds, mounding it in the center of each one. Fold the dough over to make a fat half-moon-shaped pastry. 
6. Press the edges of the pastry together with a fingertip, then fold and overlap the edge of the dough to seal the empanadas. 
7. Chill the empanadas, loosely covered with plastic wrap, until you’re ready to bake them, up to 24 hours. When you’re ready to bake, set a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat to 400°F. 
8. Arrange the empanadas on a cookie sheet lined with parchment and brush them with the egg wash, making sure not to let puddles accumulate on or under the empanadas. Place the pan in the oven, lower the temperature to 375°F, and bake until deep golden, 20 to 25 minutes. 
9. Cool the empanadas briefly on the pan on a rack and serve warm. 

Sour Cream Dough 
My dear late friend Sheri Portwood ran a Dallas catering business for years and was constantly trying to perfect her recipe for rugelach, which uses this dough. I’ve included recipes for rugelach in several other books, but I love this dough as the top of a deep-dish savory pie, a cobbler (especially when it’s cut into separate overlapping disks for the top crust), or for any top-crust-only pie. It’s flaky, extremely tender, and delicate, almost like puff pastry. A food processor does the best job of mixing this. 

2 cups/270 grams unbleached all-purpose flour (spoon into dry-measure cup and level) 
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt 
8 ounces/2 sticks/225 grams unsalted butter, chilled and cut into 20 pieces 
2/3 cup/150 grams sour cream 

1. Combine the flour and salt in the bowl of a food processor and pulse several times at 1-second intervals to mix. 
2. Add the butter and pulse until it's finely mixed into the flour and no visible pieces remain. 
3. Spread the sour cream all over on the top of the flour and butter mixture (rather than adding it all in one spot). Pulse 3 or 4 times; if the dough is already starting to form a ball, stop pulsing; if not, pulse a few more times but don’t overmix or the flaky quality of the dough will be lost. 
4. Invert the dough onto a lightly floured work surface. Shape into a disk and wrap in plastic. 
5. Chill the dough for 2 to 3 hours or overnight before using. Makes enough for the top crust of a large savory pie or sweet cobbler or 8 empanadas. 

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Bittersweet Chocolate and Strawberry Tart

After attending culinary school in Brittany, Greg Marchand worked in London with David Nicholls at the Mandarin Oriental before being transferred to the location in Hong Kong to work at Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s Vong. He returned to London, then moved on to a restaurant in Andalusia, then another, and eventually returned to London where he become head chef at Jamie Oliver’s Fifteen. From there, he was off to New York where he worked at Gramercy Tavern with Michael Anthony. All of this led up to returning to France and creating his own “place that was the sum of all (his) best experiences.” That place is Frenchie on the rue du Nil in Paris. I seem to keep hearing great things about this chef and this bistro, and I couldn’t wait to read the new English version of his book. The book is Frenchie: New Bistro Cooking, and I received a review copy. The dishes are seasonal and made special with added touches. The Wild Garlic Broth with Fresh Crabmeat is a soup garnished with sourdough croutons, olives, thinly sliced spring onions, herbs, and lemon. For the Watermelon, Ricotta Salata, Mint, and Pine Nut Salad, in the restaurant, the watermelon is compressed sous vide to make the texture more dense resulting in a deeper shade of red. Of course, at home, fresh, cubed watermelon can be used instead. I want to attempt the Brined Chicken with Roasted Zucchini and Tapenade and the Fresh Tagliatelle with Chanterelles and Lemon Zest. But while our local strawberries are in season, I had to try the Bittersweet Chocolate and Strawberry Tart first. The other day, Kurt asked me if we’ve been eating a lot of strawberries lately. I might have gone a little crazy with how many I’ve brought home in a few short weeks, but I can’t get enough of them when they’re in season. 

In the book, fraises des bois are suggested for the berries, but sadly, they don’t grow here so far as I know. Our local strawberries are smaller than the grocery store variety, and far more flavorful. I brought home the smallest, reddest, local strawberries I could find. Making the tarts requires a few separate steps which can be spaced out as needed. First, the pastry dough was made with all-purpose flour, cake flour, and almond flour whisked with confectioners’ sugar and some salt. Cold butter was worked into the dough by hand, and then an egg was stirred in before the dough was flattened, wrapped, and chilled for a couple of hours. The dough was then rolled out and gently pressed into a tart pan, and it was chilled in the pan while the oven pre-heated. The tart shell was blind baked with pie weights in parchment, then with the pie weights and parchment removed, and last with a brushing of egg wash. As the tart shell cooled, the filling was made with warmed cream, milk, and sugar that was poured over dark chocolate pieces. The mixture was whisked until smooth and cooled, and an egg was added and mixed into the chocolate. The filling was poured into the tart shell, and the tart baked again until just set. Once at room temperature, the tart was topped with strawberries, a drizzle of olive oil, and a sprinkling of fleur de sel. 

This was a dreamy chocolate-covered strawberry in the form of a tart. The creamy, dark, bittersweet chocolate filling with the sweet crunchy crust and juicy, berries was a perfect combination. The olive oil and salt nicely pointed up all the flavors. The only caveat with this tart is that it’s best on the day it’s made. The filling is best at room temperature, and if left to sit too long, the strawberries would begin to give up their juices. If you need to store it overnight, you could try refrigerating the chocolate tart with no toppings. Then, bring it to room temperature, and add the strawberries, olive oil, and salt to each piece before serving. It does make for a delicious way to celebrate strawberry season, and I can’t wait to celebrate with more things from the book. 

Bittersweet Chocolate and Wild Strawberry Tart 
Excerpted with publisher's permission from Frenchie: New Bistro Cooking by Greg Marchand (Artisan Books). Copyright © 2014. Photographs by Djamel Dine Zitout. 

8 servings / Wine pairing: Red Pineau des Charentes; Domaine Château de Beaulon, or a good sherry 

Wild strawberries, fraises des bois, are a rare delicacy that form a magical alliance with the intensity of bittersweet chocolate. If you cannot find them, choose the smallest, most fragrant strawberries at your farmers’ market. 

Equipment 
A 10-inch fluted tart pan with a removable bottom 
Dried beans or pie weights 

For the Sweet Tart Dough 
8 tablespoons (1 stick/113 grams) cold unsalted butter 
1 1/4 cups plus 5 tablespoons (175 grams) all-purpose flour 
1/2 cup (66 grams) pastry or cake flour 
2 1/2 tablespoons (25 grams) almond flour (finely ground almonds) 
3/4 cup (72 grams) confectioners’ sugar 
1 1/2 teaspoons fine sea salt 
1 large egg, at room temperature 
1 egg, beaten, for egg wash 

For the Chocolate Filling 
6 ounces (170 grams) 70% bittersweet chocolate 
1 cup (237 ml.) heavy cream 
1/2 cup (118 ml.) whole milk 
2 tablespoons granulated sugar 
1 small egg 

For the Garnish 
8 ounces (225 grams) wild strawberries (see the headnote) 
Fleur de sel 
Olive oil 

The Dough 
Cut the butter into small pieces. Whisk the flours, almond flour, sugar, and salt together in a medium bowl. With your fingertips, work in the butter until the texture is sandy. Quickly beat the egg with a fork in a small bowl, then add to the butter mixture and mix with your hands until the dough just comes together. Flatten the dough into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap, and chill for 2 hours. 

Put the dough on a large sheet of plastic wrap or wax paper, cover it with another sheet, and roll it into a 12-inch circle. Lift off the top sheet of plastic wrap and carefully invert the dough into the tart pan. Lift off the second sheet and gently press the dough into the bottom and up the sides of the pan, then cut off the excess by running the rolling pin over the edge. (The dough is fragile, but any tears can be patched easily.) Chill for 30 minutes to 1 hour. 

The Tart Shell 
Preheat the oven to 325°F. Cut out a parchment paper circle (see the photos on page 74) and line the tart shell with the parchment. Fill with dried beans or pie weights and bake for 20 minutes. Remove the beans and paper and bake for 5 more minutes. 

Brush the tart shell all over with the egg wash. Bake for 5 to 7 minutes longer, until golden brown. Let cool to room temperature. Reduce the oven temperature to 300°F. 

The Chocolate Filling 
Finely chop the chocolate and put it in a bowl. Combine the cream, milk, and sugar in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Pour the boiling liquid over the chopped chocolate and let stand for 30 seconds, then mix with a rubber spatula until the mixture is smooth. Let cool to lukewarm, then mix in the egg. 

Pour the filling into the baked tart shell and bake for 25 to 30 minutes. The tart is done when the filling is just set. If you shake the pan gently, the chocolate mass should move in one block. Let the tart cool to room temperature on a rack. Do not put it in the refrigerator! This tart should be served at room temperature on the day it is made. 

Finishing Touches 
Unmold the tart. Arrange the strawberries on top of the tart (if using bigger strawberries, cut them into halves or quarters). Sprinkle with fleur de sel and add a dash of olive oil. 

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Rugelach

I always like a theme especially when it comes to choosing cookies to bake for the holidays. One year, it was pretty sandwich cookies, and last year, it was swirl cookies. I think this year the theme became classic cookies I’d never baked before. It started with the Linzer Cookies, and then I really wanted to try making Rugelach for the first time. I’d seen the Barefoot Contessa episode in which Ina makes Rugelach several times, so I wanted to use her recipe. It’s in her book Barefoot Contessa Parties!, and it’s also available online. I knew rolling up the little cookies from the wide end of a wedge to the point, just like rolling croissants, would be fun. I went with a classic filling of apricot preserves, chopped toasted walnuts, and currants for half of the cookies. The other half were filled with raspberry preserves and walnuts. These are great cookies to bake as needed just before serving. I filled, cut, and rolled all of the cookies and stored several of them in the freezer. Then, I baked some for dessert for a dinner with Kurt's parents, some a few days later for a party, and more when a cookie craving hit. With the tender, golden pastry encasing fruity preserves and nuts, they’re like little bites of pie in cookie form. 

First, the dough should be made in advance and chilled. Softened cream cheese and butter were creamed with sugar and vanilla before flour was added. This makes a sticky dough, but it’s much easier to handle after it’s been chilled. It was divided into four pieces that were each wrapped in plastic, and I left them in the refrigerator overnight. The next day, the dough was rolled out on a floured surface into a nine- or ten-inch circle. Apricot preserves were pulsed in the food processor until smooth. Some preserves were spread on the dough circle and topped with chopped, toasted walnuts, currants, and a mix of granulated sugar, brown sugar, and cinnamon. The filling was lightly pressed into the dough before the circle was cut into twelve wedges. Next came the fun part. Each wedge was rolled into a cute cookie with the point of the wedge neatly tucked under the bottom edge. For half of the dough, I used raspberry preserves, that had been strained to remove the seeds, and chopped walnuts. Before baking, the cookies were brushed with egg wash and sprinkled with cinnamon sugar. 

I love finally attempting classic cookies like these. Now I know what a delight they are to make and how delicious they are warm from the oven. I have more holiday cooking that I can’t wait to tell you about, and I’m trying to decide what to make for New Year’s. I hope you’re having a great holiday season with lots of fabulous food! 

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Kouign-Amann

When I look at recipes for cakes, I make mental notes like “this one would be great for a birthday,” or “this is the cake for a spring party,” or “I have to remember this one during the holidays.” But, with the new book from Gesine Bullock-Prado, I was making all those usual mental notes and also thinking “I want to bake this cake just to see if I can do it.” The new book is Bake It Like You Mean It, and I received a review copy. There are showpiece cakes with intricate layers and beautiful frosting; there are meringues layered with fillings or built into a torte; and there are cheesecakes, mousse cakes, and even simple pound cakes. The Banana Caramel Slices are layered with chocolate sponge cake and caramel cream and topped with a chocolate glaze and caramelized bananas. The Citrus Angel Food Cake combines lime, orange, and lemon batter baked in one pretty cake. And, there’s a Checkerboard Cake, a Puzzle Cake, and a big roulade turned on its side that looks like it’s made with vertical layers when sliced. I want to make all of these cakes. There are clear instructions and tips, a good bit of humor to keep the book feeling fun, and helpful photos show the process for some recipes. After reading through recipes and looking at photos, I had several aha moments of realizing these cakes look more complicated than they might actually be to make. In addition to all those stunning layer cakes, there’s also a chapter for yeast-risen goodies like Brioche, Tangerine Dream Tea Ring, and Kouign-Amann. Since I didn’t have a handy occasion for a big cake with several layers and Kouign-Amann is something I’ve wanted to try making for the longest time, I started with that. 

This is a Breton cake, or mini cake depending on how it’s made, and the name quite appropriately comes from the words for cake and butter. There are only a few ingredients here which means it's a celebration of butter and sugar. So, this is a time to splurge on really good butter, and I used vanilla sugar from a jar where vanilla pods get stuffed after scraping out seeds. Making the dough for the little cakes is a lot like making puff pastry. A simple yeast-risen dough was rolled out, a block of butter was placed on one side, the dough was folded over, and it was rolled and folded, chilled, and rolled and folded again. For these cakes, the dough is rolled in sugar rather than flour. So, you end up with layers and layers of butter, dough, and sugar that are cut and folded into squares that bake into sweet, little, tender cakes with crispy, sugary edges. 

I love finding out things aren’t as difficult to make as they look, and the Kouign-Amann was a perfect example of that. This will be the book to grab when special occasions demand an impressive dessert. And, it’s also the book to grab when you just want to try baking something new and fun. 

Kouign-Amann 
Recipe reprinted with publisher's permission from Bake It Like You Mean It.

If you’ve had the pleasure of spending time in Brittany, no doubt you have had a taste of a kouign-amann. If you’ve had the pleasure of spending time in Brittany and you didn’t eat kouign-amann, then you never really went to Brittany at all because you can’t fully appreciate the place and her people until you take a bite of that crispy, sweet, buttery, slightly-chewy-in-the-center-and-caramelized-on-top-and-on-the-edges pastry. 

2 1/4 cups (450 g) granulated sugar, divided 
2 teaspoons salt 
5 cups (625 g) all-purpose flour, plus extra for dusting the work surface 
2 tablespoons instant yeast 
 1 pound (455 g) unsalted European butter, at room temperature 

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the hook attachment, combine 1 1/2 cups (360 ml) water, 1/4 cup (50 g) granulated sugar, and the salt. Add the flour and yeast and mix until a smooth, shiny dough forms, about 10 minutes. If the air conditions are very humid, you may need to add a bit more flour. If dry, add a few tablespoons of water. The dough should be smooth and pull away from the sides of the bowl. 

Spray a large bowl with nonstick cooking spray. Place the dough in the bowl and turn it over a few times to coat thoroughly. Cover with plastic wrap and place in a warm area of your kitchen to allow to proof until doubled in volume, about 1 hour. 

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the butter and 1/2 cup (100 g) sugar. Mix until the two are well blended and the butter is smooth but not soft. Transfer the mixture to a piece of plastic wrap and shape into a rough 8-by-11-inch (20-by-28-cm) rectangle. Cover completely with plastic wrap and, using a rolling pin, gently even out the butter into an even block. Refrigerate for 20 minutes. 

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Lightly dust the top of the dough with flour as well. Roll the dough into a rough rectangle, approximately 12 by 18 inches (30.5 by 46 cm). Place the butter block on one side of the dough and fold the second half over the dough block. Press along the edges of the dough block to secure the butter inside the dough. 

Sprinkle the work surface evenly with 1/4 cup (50 g) sugar. Place the dough on the sugar and roll out into a rectangle approximately 12 by 18 inches (30.5 by 46 cm). Sprinkle the top with 1/4 cup (50 g) sugar. Fold one short half toward the middle and fold the other half over on top of that, as if you were folding a business letter. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for 20 minutes. 

Again, sprinkle your work surface with 1/4 cup (50 g) sugar, and sprinkle 1/4 cup (50 g) sugar over the top of the dough in an even layer. Roll out the dough into a rectangle 12 by 18 inches (30.5 by 46 cm) and fold into a business letter again. Cover and refrigerate for 45 minutes. 

Preheat the oven to 400°F (205°C). Line a half sheet pan with parchment paper. 

Sprinkle 1/2 cup (50 g) sugar onto the work surface and roll the dough into a rectangle 8 by 16 inches (20 by 40.5 cm). Using a very sharp pastry wheel, cut the dough into eight (4-inch / 10-cm) squares. Prepare each pastry by folding each corner of the square toward the center and pressing the corner to seal into place (you’ve just created a smaller square). Continue until you’ve finished folding all the squares. Sprinkle the squares with the remaining 1/4 cup (50 g) sugar. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rest for 20 minutes. 

Bake for 20 minutes, or until the top is a deeply golden brown and caramelized. Eat while warm! 

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Strawberry and Fig Jam Crostate

It's no surprise that after I read a cookbook, I want to run to the kitchen and start cooking. But, something different happened when I read The Mozza Cookbook a few months ago. Yes, there were some recipes that lured me toward the stove, but the book also really made me want to visit Mozza in Los Angeles. I'll need to plan this visit with a group because I imagine I'll want to taste just about everything from the mozzarella bar, the antipasti, several pasta dishes, pizzas, salads, contorni, and probably every single dessert. I love cooking Italian food, but the thought of sitting down to the kind of feast I'd enjoy at Mozza is dreamy. I couldn't even decide which pizza I'd try first. There's one topped with squash blossoms, tomato, and burrata, another with funghi misti, fontina, taleggio, and thyme, and the bianca that's spread with whipped cream as a thick sauce and topped with fried sage leaves and cheese. I want to try making the fresh pasta dough from this book since it contains even more egg yolks than my current go-to recipe, and I want to try shaping orecchiette and garganelli. But, of course, the dolci chapter is what I cooked from first. This book is by Nancy Silverton, which means the desserts are all going to be fantastic. I simplified the strawberry and fig jam crostate by skipping the little meyer lemon panna cottas that were to sit on top of each and the saba that should have been drizzled over the panna cottas. Instead, I served these mini crostate with whipped cream with creme fraiche.

You should start by making the jam because that can actually be made up to a week in advance. You combine stemmed and halved dried figs and dried strawberries in a saucepan with sugar, lemon zest and a vanilla bean and the seed scrapings. Water is added to cover, it's brought to a boil, and then it's left to simmer for 30 minutes. After the mixture cools, the lemon zest and vanilla bean are discarded, and the rest is pureed in a food processor. The jam is then refrigerated. Next, the dough is made for the crust. As the recipe is written in the book, it's suggested to be made in a stand mixer. I cut the quantity in half, and mixed the dough by hand since it was a small amount. So, flour, confectioners' sugar, butter, baking soda, baking powder, and salt were worked together until the mixture formed a coarse meal. Two egg yolks and some vanilla extract were added along with some toasted sesame seeds and mixed until the dough was smooth. The dough was wrapped in plastic and refrigerated for an hour before proceeding. The dough was then rolled out to a thickness of about one quarter inch, and six five-inch circles were cut from it. The dough circles were placed on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Then, the edge of each circle was rolled in just once to form a tiny edge. The dough scraps were to have been rolled by hand into thin ropes, but the dough kept breaking when I tried that. Instead, I kneaded the scraps together, rolled it out with a rolling pin, and cut thin strips to use for the lattice tops. The dough rounds were spread with the strawberry fig jam and topped with lattice dough strips in a diamond pattern. The baking sheet with the crostate was chilled before being baked for about 25 minutes.

What I loved about these crostate was that they're kind of like a cookie and kind of like a tartlet. They're sturdy enough to pick up and eat with your hands and pretty enough to be served on a plate with whipped cream. There's more I want to attempt from the dessert chapter, but next, I'm ready to try my hand at some pasta shapes I've never made before.

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Brownie Bow Ties

I have no idea how an entire year went by during which I watched so few current films. As of Oscar night, I had seen exactly two of the movies nominated for Best Picture. As usual, we attended an Oscar party and bet on the outcome of the awards. I was sure the Academy would pick George Clooney as Best Actor, and in my typical Oscar-betting fashion, I was wrong. At least I had these cookies to enjoy during the ceremony. They’re little squares of pastry that get folded over a filling of brownie dough and end up looking a little like bow ties. I thought bow tie cookies seemed appropriate for Oscar night. The recipe is from Chewy Gooey Crispy Crunchy Melt-in-Your-Mouth Cookies, and I have a couple of things to tell you about making these cookies. First, Alice Medrich is always very precise with her instructions, so rolling the pastry dough and cutting it to the size she suggests works well. She then instructs you to fill each pastry square with one rounded teaspoon of brownie dough and fold two corners of the square in and seal at the top with water. Maybe I rounded my teaspoons of brownie dough too much because the first batch I placed in the oven came out looking like they sort of exploded and not much like bow ties. So, less than you think of the brownie filling per cookie is better. The other thing I wanted to mention is that Medrich suggests optionally grating some cinnamon stick or nutmeg over the cookies before serving. I suggest definitely doing so. I used both cinnamon and nutmeg. When I tasted a cookie that hadn’t been dusted with the spices, it was of course delicious, but it seemed lacking or naked compared to the ones with spices.

You begin by making a cream cheese rugelach dough which needs to be refrigerated for at least a couple of hours before being rolled out. Next, you make the brownie dough by melting butter and chocolate in a double-boiler. Some sugar is added to the butter and chocolate followed by vanilla, salt, and eggs. A little flour is whisked in, and then this chocolate dough is also refrigerated for at least an hour or overnight. I made both doughs a day in advance of rolling, cutting, and filling. Working with one quarter of the rugelach dough at a time, it is rolled out and trimmed into a nine inch by eleven inch rectangle which is then cut into twelve squares. A barely rounded teaspoon of the chilled brownie dough should be placed in the center of each pastry square. Then, two opposite corners are pulled up and over the brownie dough, and the pastry corners are pinched with water to secure. Just before going into the oven, the cookies are brushed with milk and sprinkled with sugar, and they are baked for about 20 minutes. After cooling, I highly recommend grating cinnamon and nutmeg over the cookies.

These aren’t the quickest cookies to bake, but all of the steps involved are simple enough. The cream cheese pastry is delightfully flaky, rich, and tender for a cookie, and it makes a very nice wrapper for a bite of dark chocolate brownie. They’re dressy, little cookies suited for a black tie kind of night.

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Broccoli, Cheddar, and Mushroom Flipsides

It's fitting that a book with the title Cutie Pies was made in a cute little shape. It's a small square of a book, but there are 40 recipes for pies in various shapes and sizes including cutie pies which are baked in a muffin tin, petit-5s baked in a mini muffin tin, pie jars baked in mason jars, flipsides or hand pies, pie pops which are tiny lollipop pies, and full-sized pies. This is the new book from Dani Cone of Seattle's High Five Pie and Fuel Coffee, and I received a review copy. Although some pies are recommended for specific shapes and crusts, there are also tips for mixing and matching the fillings with other pie shapes and crusts where possible. And, there are both sweet and savory options in most configurations. A few ideas that caught my eye were the mac 'n cheese cutie pies, banana-blueberry pudding petit-5s, peach-ricotta-honey pie jars, caramel-pecan pie pops, and the peanut butter and jelly full-sized pie. I'm always drawn to the idea of hand pies since they're so easy to grab and go, and making savory ones sounded like a great idea for lunch. I zeroed in on the flipsides filled with broccoli, cheddar, and mushroom which are made with the all-butter crust.

The crust recipe is a straightforward one, and the mixing technique suggested is using a pastry blender or your hands. I actually prefer to work butter into flour with my hands so I can feel when the pieces seem to be about the right size. So, flour, salt, and a scant teaspoon of sugar were combined in a large bowl, and cold, cubed butter was worked into that mixture by hand. Ice water was slowly added while hand mixing until the dough came together. It was wrapped in plastic and chilled for an hour before being rolled and cut into circles. For the flipsides, six-inch circles are suggested, but that seemed kind of big to me. I found a round plastic lid to use as a guide, and it measured just over five inches in diameter which seemed fine. Before cutting the dough into circles, the filling was made by combining chopped broccoli florets, chopped mushrooms, and salt and pepper. Some cheddar was grated, and I left that in a separate bowl rather than mixing it with the vegetables. That way, I could top the pies with some extra cheddar, that wasn't mixed up with the vegetables, before baking. I found that the twelve ounces of suggested cheddar was a lot more than I needed, and I think six to eight ounces would have been plenty. With all the fillings ready, the dough circles were filled, pinched to close, and then cut with a fluted-edge pastry wheel. They were brushed with egg wash, topped with more grated cheddar and a sprinkling of sea salt and black pepper, and they baked for about 30 minutes.

They came out of the oven golden, crispy, and delicious. Leftovers can be re-warmed in the oven to bring back the crispness of the crust, or you could freeze extra pies before baking and then bake as needed straight from the freezer. The flipsides were fun to make and delightful to eat, and now I can't wait to try making a cute little pie on a stick.

Broccoli, Cheddar, and Mushroom Flipsides
re-printed from Cutie Pies with publisher's permission, Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC

makes 10 flipsides (or 16 cutie pies, 36 petit-5s, 8 pie jars, or 50 pie pops)

1 pound fresh broccoli florets, chopped (about 5 cups)
4 ounces fresh white button mushrooms, sliced (about 1 cup)
3 cups (12 ounces) shredded shard cheddar
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
All-Butter Crust (recipe follows)
1 egg, slightly beaten

All-Butter Crust
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cold, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
3/4 cup ice water

1. In a large bowl, combine the flour, salt, and sugar, and mix well.
2. Add the butter to the flour mixture, and mix gently with a pastry blender, a fork, or your hands. The goal is to lightly incorporate the butter into the dry ingredients. The butter pieces should be well coated with the dry mixture and somewhat flattened.
3. Gradually add the water to the flour mixture, 1 tablespoon at a time, and continue mixing the dough until it comes together and forms pea-sized or crouton-sized crumbs. The dough should look like coarse individual pieces, not smooth and beaten together like cookie dough.
4. With your hands, gather the dough crumbs together to form 2 patties, gently molding the crumb-like mixture into a patty shape and being careful not to overhandle the dough. Wrap each patty in plastic wrap.
5. Chill the dough for at least 1 hour, or up to 3 days. The dough can also be frozen for up to 2 weeks.
6. When you're ready to use the dough, let it sit at room temperature for at least 10 minutes to soften it and make it workable. On a lightly floured surface, roll out each of the 2 dough patties to about 1/4-inch thickness, lightly dusting it with flour, if needed, to prevent sticking, and making sure to roll the dough evenly.

For the flipsides:
1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Place a rack in the center of the oven. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, a silicone mat, or lightly spray with nonstick spray.
2. To make the filling, in a large bowl, combine the broccoli, mushrooms, and cheese, stir to thoroughly combine.
3. Pour the salt and pepper over the broccoli mixture, and toss to evenly distribute.
4. To make the crust, follow the All-Butter Crust recipe and roll out the dough per the instructions.
5. Cut 10 (6-inch) circles from the dough. Reroll the dough to make all the circles, being careful to avoid overhandling the dough. Brush each circle lightly with beaten egg, making sure to brush right to the edges.
6. Spoon the broccoli mixture evenly onto the center of the 10 circles. Pick up a dough circle so that it's lying flat(ish) in one hand. With the other hand, fold the circle up (like a taco) and tightly pinch the edges together flat to seal the crust, starting at one corner and pinching around to the other corner. Lay the circle down on the work surface, and with a fluted-edge pastry wheel, cut around the outermost edge to give the crust a neat finish. (This edge is for looks, not to seal the crust, so make sure you've thoroughly pinched the crust together.) Make 3 small slits in the top of the Flipside, and place it on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat this process for each of the 10 Flipsides.
7. Lightly brush the tops of the Flipsides with the remaining beaten egg.
8. Bake for 20 to 30 minutes, until the crust is golden.

Note: I used only six to eight ounces of grated cheese, and I left the cheese separate from the vegetables rather than mixing it all together. After brushing the flipsides with the beaten egg, I added extra grated cheddar on top and sprinkled them with sea salt and black pepper.

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Mini Cranberry Meringue Pies

I thought this recipe was from last year. The image of these cute, little, mini pies had been on my mind since last winter when I vowed to attempt them when fresh, fall cranberries came around again next time. Actually, this first appeared in Living magazine in November 2006, but it did appear again in a special holidays publication last year. I had the 06 article tucked away in my files, and I pulled it out last week to finally try this. The pasty is a citrus version of a pate sucree I've made before with the addition of lemon and blood orange zest. It occurred to me that I should make a big batch of these mini pastry shells and keep them in the freezer to use as needed. They would come in especially handy when I have some leftover pumpkin puree like I probably will later this afternoon. In this case, those handy pastry cups were filled with thickened cranberry sauce that was made in two stages. First, cranberries were cooked, and the juice was strained from the berries. Second, that juice was combined with whole cranberries to make a sweet, tart, filling with pops of flavor. Fluffy, toasted meringue topped it off.

The pate sucree was cut into four-inch circles which were crimped and fitted into twelve standard muffin cups. Each cup was lined with a small square of parchment paper, filled with weights and baked for fifteen minutes. The weights and parchment were removed, and the cups were baked for another five minutes or so. Once cool, they were ready to be filled. For the filling, first, fresh cranberries were brought to a boil with sugar and water. They were simmered until the cranberries burst and then passed through a sieve to extract the juice. The recipe states the solids should be discarded, but I'm getting more and more militant about not wasting food, so I kept the cranberry solids and enjoyed them on plain yogurt for breakfast. Next, the cranberry juice was returned to a saucepan, and sugar, lemon and blood orange zest, salt, cinnamon, cloves, and more whole cranberries were added. This time, the cranberries were cooked over a lower heat to prevent them from bursting. They should just become soft. Cornstarch was whisked into a mixture of blood orange juice and water, and that was added to the cranberries and juice to thicken it. Once cooked and cooled a bit, the filling was divided among the pastry cups, and they were chilled until set for at least an hour. Last but not least, a meringue was whipped to glossy peaks, spooned onto each mini pie, and the tops were browned under the broiler in about a minute.

While trying to get these pies done in less time than I should have planned to spend on them, the extra step of straining cranberries and then adding more whole cranberries seemed a little fussy. In the end though, I see why it mattered. The thickened juice nicely suspended the softened, whole cranberries in a way that a standard cranberry sauce would not have done. That being said, for a quicker version, a thick, sweet cranberry sauce would work fine here. Also, I'm always up for a meringue topping, but Kurt suggested that whipped cream would have been just as good. Either way, these festive, seasonal treats have earned a trip from my temporary, to-try file to my permanent, keeper file.

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Blueberry Pop-Tarts

Homemade pop-tarts had become just like sugar cookie bars. They were everywhere, calling out to me, insisting that I try making them. There are several different recipes, and really, you can make any pie pasty and cut it into rectangles and fill them however you’d like. I decided to follow the Bon Appetit recipe from last April’s issue. It’s a simple enough process, but you do need to make sure your rectangles are pretty similar in size so they can be sandwiched and crimped together easily. This particular dough is a sticky one, so if you make this one, refrigerate or freeze the pieces for a few minutes between steps to make them more manageable. For a filling, I had just what I needed in the freezer. Last month, there were Texas blueberries in our CSA delivery, and I had cooked them with some lemon juice and cornstarch thinking they would eventually become a tart filling of some kind. You could also use your favorite jam or preserves from a jar for a filling. Then, you can wake up on a Saturday morning and have pop-tarts for breakfast while watching tv. I watched Anne Burrell on the FoodNetwork instead of the Smurfs, and these pop-tarts were on another level compared to ones from the box that I remember, but it was still a nostalgic Saturday morning.

So, I mentioned this dough was sticky. I actually rolled it between pieces of parchment paper. I left the parchment in place and cut it into big rectangles and let that chill for a bit. Then, I measured and cut the final, smaller rectangles and removed the parchment as I filled each tart. For pastry rectangles that were about five inches by three inches, you should use a tablespoon and a half of filling. Pressing the edges with a fork worked better on tarts that had been chilled first, but dipping the fork in flour helped it not to stick to the dough as well. Last, each tart was pierced with a skewer a few times to allow steam to escape while baking. The formed tarts should be placed in the freezer for at least two hours before baking, and they go straight to the oven from the freezer.

The Bon Appetit version shows the pop-tarts dusted with confectioner’s sugar. That’s one option. I also considered going all the way with a white frosting and sprinkles. In the end, I just brushed on an egg wash and sprinkled sanding sugar over the tarts before baking. The pastry was rich and flaky and the filling was fruity and just sweet enough. This could become a Saturday morning habit all over again.

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