Farmer's Market Whole Wheat Plum Tart

Today, I decided I needed to use up the remainder of whole wheat tart dough I had left over from my French Apple Tart and since we were lucky enough to have stopped by the farmer's market just hours earlier, I knew plums had to be used!

Anyone else love the farmer's market? I've gotten into the habit of going more often this summer and love the nearly endless supply of fresh produce that's offered. And the free samples? Definitely not something I turn my nose up at!

So for this recipe I used about a 3rd of the dough from the original whole wheat crust I made a couple days ago, and whipped up a very simple frangipane to pour over it, and topped it with about 3 sliced plums.

I was a little worried about the recipe since I kind of "eyeballed" it all, but it turned out deliciously light and yet sweet and nutty from the minced almonds.


Plum-Frangipane Farmer's Market Tart
(a Jessica original)
Yields 6 servings

Ingredients:

• Whole wheat (or other) leftover tart crust
• 3-4 medium plums
• 2 tablespoons white sugar
• 1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• 1 egg white
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup finely chopped almonds (or almond meal)
• 1/2 tablespoon all-purpose flour

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Wash and thoroughly dry the plums, and slice them.
3. Roll out tart crust to fit your desired pan, between 1/8-1/4 inch thickness.
4. Lay crust in pan and trim any overhang. Pierce the dough with a fork thoroughly all over to ensure it doesn't rise too much.
5. In a small mixing bowl, combine the sugar and melted butter. Add in the egg white and mix until well incorporated and fluffy.
6. Add the remaining ingredients and mix.
7. Pour mixture into the tart crust, and arrange sliced plums on top.
8. Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until golden brown and frangipane has set. (This will differ from oven to oven, and also depend of the amount of dough you use, so stay alert!)
   

I hope this tart helps you enjoy the warm summer days we're finally having here in NorCal after a couple REALLY cold weeks!

Happy Baking!

Jessica

Oatmeal Chocolate Apricot Cookies and a a mini-revelation

Sometimes you need a fruit.

It's not really what I would call a craving, because those can get kind of intense (hello, chocolate and peanut butter!), but it's one of those things that you KNOW will make your whole evening just fall into place perfectly. I was driving home after cashing my paycheck (cha-ching! $$$) and I couldn't get these cute little dried apricots out of my head. I wanted one. But I really wanted to share my mini-craving somehow, so here you go. My take on Martha's Dried Apricot and White Chocolate Cookies.

On another note, I really have not been satisfying my Indian food quotient this year. Thinking about it now, I believe I haven't had a taste of the stuff ALL YEAR. I know! Horrible, right? Especially since I have such a love affair with curry. But today I finally got myself to an Indian restaurant and had some incredible naan and Aloo Gobi and lentil soup. It was just spicy enough that it left my mouth wanting more, but the complex combination of tomato and sauteed onion and turmeric, with the cauliflower and potatoes in the Aloo Gobi was heaven on my tongue. So... now I know what savory dish I'm trying to make next. ;-)

Back to the really good stuff, these cookies. Which are smelling up my kitchen. Right before dinner....Must...resist....sugary....smell.... Well. I tried. :)

(Who could resist?)

Oatmeal Chocolate Dried Apricot Cookies

(adapted from my friend Martha)
Yield 1 dozen

Ingredients:

• 6 tbsp whole wheat pastry flour
• 6 tbls old-fashioned oatmeal
• 1/8 teaspoon baking soda

• 2 ounces (1/2 stick) salted butter, softened

• 1 tbsp granulated sugar
• 4 tbsp packed light-brown sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 large egg
• 2 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
• 2 ounces dried apricots chopped

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix flour, oatmeal, and baking soda in a medium bowl. Cream butter and sugars with a mixer until light and fluffy. Reduce speed to low. Add salt, vanilla, and eggs, and beat until well combined, about 1 minute. Add flour mixture gradually, beating until just combined. Stir in chocolate and apricots. Cover, and refrigerate until cold, about 30 minutes.

2. Drop heaping tablespoons of dough onto parchment-lined baking sheets, spacing 2 inches apart. Bake until cookies are golden brown around the edges but still soft in the center, 14 to 16 minutes. Let cookies cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes. Transfer cookies to a wire rack; let cool. Cookies will keep, covered, for up to 1 week.

Happy Baking!

Jessica

I know, I'm just a little bit bad

So.... this is a little embarassing.

Here I was, sitting at home after baking those yummy brownie-cupcakes, just enjoying my missed but DVR-ed episodes of "The Next Food Network Star, and boredom struck.

My episode ended, and my fingers started itching for the mushy texture of flour and butter...... and yeast.

So I did a bad thing... I went on Photo Grazing.... and I saw a recipe for 1-hour bread. But not just bread: Whole Wheat Bread. Easy, quick, FAST whole wheat bread.

So I got my booty off the couch and glanced around sneakily, just to make sure no one was watching me prepare to bake for a SECOND time today, and since I'm home alone, I sort of justified my baking habit.

But really, can you blame me?

I had a whole unopened bag of flour AND I even had the yogurt I needed for this bread! So, yes.

I baked again.

But I'll share. ;-)

REALLY Fast Bread

(adapted from All Recipes)

1. In a large bowl, combine:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/4 cups whole wheat flour
2 1/4 tsp (one package) active dry yeast (I used active dry and it was fine)
1 large tsp salt

2. In a saucepan, combine and heat to melt together all ingredients (just boiling):
1 cup water
1/3 cup nonfat vanilla yogurt
30 grams unsalted butter

3. Add to dry ingredients in (my beautiful and adored) stand mixer, and beat until smooth. Add enough flour to form a soft dough, then exchange the paddle attachment for the dough hook and set to low speed to knead until smooth and elastic, about 4 minutes.

4. Shape into a ball and place on a nonstick or greased baking sheet. Cover and place in a warm spot. Let rise about 20 minutes.

5. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. When dough has risen, bake 25-30 minutes, until golden brown. Cool on a rack and enjoy!!

Happy Baking!

Jessica

Treat of the Week for Work: Healthy Zucchini-Walnut Bread

Yesterday, my amazing coworkers brought me a fresh zucchini from a neighbor's garden- it was organic and HUGE! I was so thrilled to have such a fabulous ingredient to bake with, and they suggested I use it for zucchini bread- yum! I scavenged around a bit to find a good recipe and discovered a wonderful and healthy bread, that ended up tasting amazing.

My favorite thing about this recipe is how healthy it tasted- not in a gross, bland way, but in a way that I knew I was eating something that wasn't stuffed with preservatives or sugar- perfect! :)

The only changes I made to the original recipe were to half the sugar and exclude the cinnamon (yuck!) since I knew the apple sauce would sweeten it on its own. And instead of lemon extract, I subbed in vanilla- I love me some vanilla extract! (It just always adds that homey and warm essence that I love)

Zucchini-Walnut Loaf

(adapted from Eating Well)

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup whole-wheat flour
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 2 large egg whites, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 2 tablespoons canola oil
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup grated zucchini, lightly packed (about 8 ounces)
• 1/4 cup chopped walnuts

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Coat 2 mini 6-by-3-inch loaf pans with cooking spray.
2. Whisk whole-wheat flour, all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg in a large bowl.
3. Whisk egg whites, sugar, applesauce, oil and lemon extract (if using) in a medium bowl. Stir in zucchini.
4. Make a well in the dry ingredients; slowly, mix in the zucchini mixture with a rubber spatula. Fold in walnuts. Do not overmix. Transfer the batter to the prepared pans.
5. Bake the loaves until a toothpick comes out almost clean, 40 to 45 minutes. Cool in the pan on a wire rack for about 5 minutes, then turn out onto the rack to cool completely.

Give it a try and I guarantee you will love this for a nice breakfast on the go!

Happy Baking!

Jessica

Treat of the week for work: Banana Bread

Last week, if you'll recall, I brought in Blueberry Oat Bars to work for my team mates. I also told them a little bit about this blog, adding that if they had any special requests for favorite home-baked goods I would be more than happy to oblige. And, after trying one of the bars, I overheard one of them sort of whisper "banana bread" as a suggestion, so given the shorter amount of time I had to bake today and my desire to please :-) I thought these would be fun to try out.

I'd had this recipe in my binder for a couple weeks now, but I had never been willing to surrender my daily bananas for oatmeal, for a banana bread. Now this recipe was fairly unassuming and I definitely had low expectations due to its simplicity, but that's what made it even more wonderful when it came out of the oven! It was buttery and sweet-smelling, with no added cinnamon to funk up the smell (Did I mention I'm not a huge fan of cinnamon? Like, at all? I always leave it out of recipes when called for, with the exception of oatmeal raisin cookies- and even then I half it!). So this bread was moist and just right, even when I only made half what the recipe called for.

Heavenly Healthy Banana Bread

(Adapted from King Arthur Flour's website)

Yields 1 loaf; 8-10 servings (depending how thickly you slice)

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3/8 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup mashed ripe bananas (2 small bananas will do)
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1 large egg
• 1 cup whole wheat pastry flour

Recipe:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a medium bowl, beat together the butter, sugar, vanilla, baking soda and salt.
2. Add the bananas, honey, and eggs, beating until smooth. Add the flour stirring until smooth.
3. Spoon the batter into a lightly greased loaf pan, smoothing the top. Let it rest at room temperature for 10 minutes.
4. Bake the bread for 33 minutes. (Check how the bread is baking after 25 by inserting a long toothpick and seeing when it comes out clean)
5. Allow the loaf to cool completely in the pan. (About an hour)

***As a side note, I'm proud to say this is my 20th recipe of the summer! 20 and still going strong- I can't wait to see all the baking I accomplish throughout the next few months!***

Happy Baking!

Jessica

Jessica's Chocolate Chip Cookies

Alas, being Friday, I was really needing a chocolatey pick-me-up after work. Even though I mostly tend to choose recipes for certain people in my life (S'Mores for Ka, Peach and Raspberry Galette for my parents, Ultimate Brownies for Zach...) which I LOVE, I needed chocolate in a bad way.

Since I'd already made chocolate chip cookies not long ago (aka 2 weeks haha) I knew these really needed to be different. So after a bit of research I knew I wanted to make Food Network star Alton Brown's "The Chewy," but with a few twists. :-)

After I mixed up the dough in the afternoon, I stuck them in the fridge while we went out to dinner (Olive Garden- yum!), so they ended up chilling for about 5 hours. When I got home, I hoped that they would succeed and as I scooped out BIG ice-cream scoop cookies, I knew the texture was just right. And on another note, I'm officially patting myself on the back for only having eaten ONE spoonful of cookie dough as I was making them!! A serious accomplishment for myself :-)

I honestly believe these are the best chocolate chip cookies I've ever made, and I'm so excited that they were actually healthier than the average CCC! Even my brother, who NEVER actually vocalizes his praise of my baked goods to ME agreed! So, I hope you will give these a try and that they'll give you that perfect Friday pick-me-up.

Jessica's Chocolate Chip Cookies - Yields 22 big cookies if you don't eat any dough ;-)

(originally adapted from Alton Brown's "The Chewy")

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) margarine
• 1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup whole wheat pastry flour (I used Bob's Red Mill)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 egg yolk
• 2 tablespoons nonfat milk
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Ingredients:

1. Melt the butter and margarine in a bowl in the microwave.
2. Sift together the flour, baking soda, salt and set aside.
3. Pour the melted butter in a large bowl and add sugars. Cream together on low speed.
4. Add the egg, egg yolk, milk and vanilla extract and mix until well combined. (Make sure butter isn't too hot or it will cook the egg)
5. Fold flour mixture into batter in thirds, using a spatula.
6. Stir in the chocolate chips.
7. Refrigerate the dough for 5 hours, overnight is even better.
8. When refrigeration time is done, preheat oven to 375 degrees F while you scoop out ice-cream scoop sized cookies onto a parchment-lined baking sheet.
9. Bake for 14 minutes, or until golden brown on top.
10. Cool for about an hour and store in an airtight container, but make sure you try at least ONE about 5 minutes after removing from the oven-YUM!

Happy Baking!

Jessica

Cranberry-Orange Scones and the Hike from Hell!!

What a day! This morning I made some yummy and light cranberry-orange scones, with whole wheat pastry flour that happen to be a perfect snack. BUT, right after baking them my mom and I decided to go on a hike. We really enjoy hiking and try to challenge ourselves a little more each time we go, so we were planning on a 4-5 mile hike. Sounds reasonable right?

Well, when we got there I took charge of the map and decided we should try to do the 5 mile hike... which started by going uphill. Fine right?

About an hour into our hike and a few twists and turns later, we realized we were NOT on the hike we had planned! We were actually on a 7.5 mile hike- and hour and a half, 4 miles if you will, going uphill nonstop!!!

So, we ended up doing a 3 hour long hike, in the middle of the day, with only 1 bottle of H2O each! But you know what? We did accomplish it! And I don't know how soon we'll be looking to repeat it.... but at least we made it through! :-)

And now, have a scone recipe!

Cranberry-Orange Scones

(adapted from King Arthur Flour)

Ingredients:

• 1 3/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled, cut into pieces
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries
• 1/3 cup nonfat milk
• 1 tablespoon orange juice (I used pulp-less)
• 1 large egg
• the grated peel of 1 medium-to-large orange

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. In a medium-sized mixing bowl, sift together the dry ingredients, then add the butter, rubbing it in till the mixture resembles coarse meal.
3. Stir in the cranberries.
4. In a separate bowl, whisk together the milk, orange juice, egg and orang peel. Add this mixture to the flour mixture and stir till the dough just comes together.
5. Scoop out globs of dough and drop onto the baking sheet. (Or you can use the authentic triangle scone technique, but I like the rustic look of the drop-scone)
6. Bake the scones for about 15 minutes or until they're golden-brown. Remove them from the oven and serve immediately.

Happy Baking!

Jessica