Nutty Vanilla Apricot Granola

I really love being on break, because it gives me a chance to finally get in the kitchen and make some of the delicious recipes I've seen floating around the blog world. Like granola! I think I tend to pass by granola pretty easily because it's usually so sugar-laden and SO expensive! (hello, whole foods??) But I wanted to make something for my friend L, since we had decided to meet in the city for lunch at Plant Cafe.

I had been deciding between a peanut butter brownie and cinnamon swirl bread, when I remembered she wasn't eating sweets! So after a quick check, I decided granola would be perfect.

I found several recipes I liked but none that sounded perfect to me, so I did what I do best and combined a bunch of ideas into one recipe I hoped would be a success. Luckily for me, and I guess L too, I think it was!

So here's my recipe for Nutty Vanilla Apricot Granola:


Ingredients:

• 3 cups old-fashioned oats
• 1 cup chopped raw, unsalted almonds
• ½ cup chopped walnuts
• ½ cup chopped dried apricots
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ¼ cup safflower oil (canola is okay too)
• ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons honey
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.
2. In a medium bowl, combine oats, nuts and apricots.
3. Add vanilla, oil, honey and cinnamon and mix well so that the ingredients are thoroughly combined.
4. Spread the mixture onto a greased cooking sheet and bake for 30-35 minutes, stirring occasionally.
5. Transfer to a cooling rack and let cool completely before storing in an air tight container for up to a week. (If it lasts that long!)

Happy Baking!
Jessica

Chocolate-Almond Biscotti

Today I went going to see my first baseball game ever! To help celebrate this fun event I wanted to make some cookies to to snack on during the game. Since I hadn't yet ventured into the land of double-baking cookies, aka biscotti, I decided it was time to try them.

And man am I glad I did! They were so much easier than I thought, and under Dorie's careful explanation and perfect timing, I didn't even work up a sweat making these! They're the perfect size to nibble on (so you can have a couple, or a couple dozen...) and everyone thought they were a big hit. :)

So much so, that when I got back from the game (Giants won against the Padres 3:2!!) I whipped up some more in a different flavor! But, more about those tomorrow. For now, here's the recipe for some crunchy and richly chocolatey-flavored biscotti.

Chocolate Almond Biscotti

(slightly adapted from Dorie Greenspan's Baking From My Home to Yours)

Ingredients:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
• 3/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 6 tbsp unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 cup sugar (I used slightly less)
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 heaping tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup chopped sliced almonds
• 4 oz bittersweet (60% cocoa) chocolate, coarsely chopped

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment or a silicone baking mat.
2. Sift together the flour, sugar, cocoa, coffee powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
3. With a mixer, cream the butter and sugar on medium speed for about 2 minutes until light. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the eggs and vanilla; beat for another 2 minutes. Decrease the speed to low and mix in the dry ingredients in 3 additions, mixing only until a dough forms. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and mix in the chopped nuts and chocolate.
4. Turn the dough out onto a work surface and knead a few times just to incorporate any dry ingredients that didn't get mixed in before. Divide into two portions; on the baking sheet, shape each portion into a 12 x 2 inch log. Bake for 25 minutes.
5. Remove the sheet from the oven and let it cool on a rack for 20 minutes. Then, with a very sharp knife, slice the logs into about 3/4 - 1 inch slices and lay the slices down on the baking sheet. Return to the oven for about 15 minutes.
6. Transfer biscotti to a rack to cool. Enjoy!

Happy Baking!

Jessica

Easy Healthy Rhubarb-Apple Crisp

After a wonderful hike this morning at the Dish at Stanford with my mom, I came home and grabbed a quick lunch before meeting up with Micala to see a new Bollywood movie that's out, "I Hate Luv Storys." It was so cheesy and over-the-top but totally entertaining, with WAY too much singing and dancing for us to take it seriously. :)

On my drive home I was trying to think of something to make and remembered we had a leftover bag of frozen rhubarb in the freezer that I needed to make before it went bad. So after a quick internet search, I found a nice recipe for a Rhubarb Crisp at Eating Well, and after a few changes I had three cute little individual servings of a yummy and simple dessert.

Rhubarb-Apple Crisp

(adapted from Eating Well)

Ingredients:

• 1 cup thinly sliced rhubarb (I used frozen and let it thaw for about 20 minutes before using)
• 1/2 cup chopped peeled Granny Smith apple
• 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons old-fashioned rolled oats, (not steel-cut or instant)
• 1 1/2 tablespoons finely chopped almonds
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
• 1/8 teaspoon salt

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Toss rhubarb, apple and granulated sugar in a medium bowl. Divide between three oven-safe ramekins or custard cups.
3. Mix flour, oats, brown sugar, almonds, butter and salt in a small bowl until crumbly. Sprinkle over the rhubarb mixture.
4. Bake until bubbling and lightly browned, about 25 minutes. Cool for 5 minutes before serving.

Happy Baking!

Jessica

Plum-Almond Tart for a special someone :)

So, I cheated a little bit and made a recipe I came to know and love already. But hear me out, we had our good friend Piper over for dinner and I KNOW she loves plums, so what could I do? Hold out on her and keep this recipe all to myself? Come on, you know me better than that! ;-)

So, here, have some pictures.

But, I just discovered a new website that I definitely intend on becoming a regular for: http://foodporndaily.com/pictures/light-crisp-chewy-cardamom-macarons-with-tangy-lemon-buttercream/

Good god, don't they look a-MAZING?!

Yep, I thought so. :)

Happy Baking!

Jessica

Apple Crumble

Today I've been patiently working on my brioche! Finally, I've decided it was time to tackle a longer commitment project, and whew! Was it ever! With all the rising and slapping down the dough and refrigerating- and BEATING 3 sticks of butter into the batter by hand! But I have faith that it will turn out properly, so now that it's resting in the fridge overnight, I can tell you about the simple Apple Crumble I made today- my Aunt Beatrice's recipe, and the new addition to my kitchen.

Finally after years of lusting after this amazing device that is constantly being used on the Food Network , that simplifies bakers' lives SO much- we finally bought a Kitchen Aid Mixer!

It's a beautiful Artisan mixer, with 5-quart capacity. It is shiny and new and white and I have yet to use it even though I already took it out of the box and cleaned it way too thoroughly. :)

So now that my life is going to be so much easier with this beauty in my kitchen, I will definitely continue making loads of bread and delicious desserts. And for the Apple Crumble, it's quite a simple recipe, but really tasty. It was perfect for our 4th of July backyard BBQ with the family, and then watching the fireworks from our roof. The only thing that can sort of make or break this recipe is if you sautee the apples for too long because then they'll become kind of mushy and applesauce-like, when it's really SO much better when they still have a little crunch in them. I love Granny Smith's but any firm apple will do, or you can do half apple and half pear which is a yummy swap, or if you're feeling really adventurous-add in some raisins to the saute pan about 2 minutes before they're done.

Tante Bibiche's Apple Crumble

Ingredients:

• 5 large granny smith apples
• 40 grams of unsalted butter
• 3 tablespoons of honey

Topping:

• 200 grams flour
• 100 grams butter
• 50 grams of minced almonds
• 50 grams granulated sugar

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
2. Heat 40 grams butter in a pan and add the apples (peeled and cored, and diced into large chunks). Let them heat for a few minutes until they start to soften, and add the honey. Let them saute uncovered for about 5 more minutes, and transfer the apples to the baking dish.
3. For the crumble topping, mix the flour, almonds, and diced butter, still slightly firm, and rub between your hands until the texture becomes like coarse meal. (It will be very irregular). Add the sugar until the mixture is well incorporated and grainy.
4. Pour the crumble mixture over the apples, and bake for 25 minutes or until nicely golden brown.

I really hope you enjoy this simple and delicious recipe, and hope you had a great 4th!

Happy Baking!

Jessica

Fresh grown plums mean a Plum Tart!

Yesterday, my brother came home with his arms full of fresh fruit! His very sweet girlfriend's parents gave us a HUGE tupperware-full of plums and a big ziploc-bag of lemons, yum!

After dinner, I was enjoying some of the delicious plums and my mom suggested I might consider making a plum tart from them- and after that seed was planted... Well, I knew I would need to try it out.

Thankfully, as I was looking at some of my favorite blogs, I found that Smitten Kitchen had a recipe for a Plum-Almond Tart that looked WAY too mouth-wateringly amazing to be allowed on the internet. So it was decided. :)

The tart took a bit of work to put together, but considering the multiple bakings and separate almond filling and fruit cutting, it was pretty simple! My favorite part was that the dough didn't require a long refrigeration time, just a quick 15 minutes in the freezer and directly into the preheated oven.

Plum-Almond Tart

(Originally from Bon Appetit Magazine)

Ingredients:

Crust

• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
• 2 tablespoons ice water
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Filling

• 1/3 cup whole almonds (about 2 ounces)
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1 large egg
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
• 2 teaspoons Cassis Liquor
• 12 ounces ripe red-skinned plums, pitted, cut into 3/4-inch thick wedges

Make crust:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Combine first 3 ingredients in processor. Using on/off turns, cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse meal. Mix 2 tablespoons ice water and vanilla in small bowl. Pour water mixture over dough. Process until moist clumps form.
2. Gather dough into ball; flatten into disk. Roll out on floured surface to 12-inch round. Transfer to 9-inch diameter tart pan with removable bottom. Trim overhang to 1/2 inch. Fold overhang in and press, forming double-thick sides. Using fork, pierce dough all over. Freeze 15 minutes.
3. Bake crust until pale golden, about 25 minutes. (In my oven) Cool on rack. Maintain oven temperature.

Make filling:

1. Finely grind almonds with sugar in processor. Add egg, butter and 2 teaspoons Cassis Liquor. Process until batter forms. Pour filling into crust. Arrange plums atop filling. Bake until plums are tender and filling is golden and set, about 50 minutes.
2. Cool tart and serve at room temperature.

This tart showcased the homegrown plums perfectly, but don't just take my word for it! Give this beautiful tart a try!

Happy Baking!

Jessica

What a day... Or two?

Oh jeez! What an intense few days! I started work this week and I'm having a little trouble getting used to getting up early again! And I am definitely an early riser, even on the weekend I can hardly sleep in past 8:30! But getting up at 6:30 and needing to be fully functional is another story. ;-) Anyways, when I got home from work yesterday around 5 I was feeling all out of whack so I didn't get a chance to bake! BUT, I did manage to whip together a crust for today's Galette that I knew would need refrigeration time. So.... I didn't really cheat, right?

Anywho, I thought about this Galette all day and how I was going to adapt it to my own fruit choices. So, after debating between Alice Medrich's Rustic Plum Tart recipe and Smitten Kitchen's Nectarine Galette, I chose the galette because of the intriguing almond layer she included beneath the fruit.

So, here is my take on a Rustic Peach and Raspberry Galette, I hope you enjoy it!

Happy Baking!

Jessica