TWD: Blueberry Crumb Cake

Inspiration:
Sihan of Befuddlement chose this week's recipe!


I thought it was tasty and not too much of a production. It is definitely a step up from the Betty Crocker Blueberry Streusel Muffins I have so enjoyed over the years. :)


Tim's Rating: 8/10
Liz's Rating: 8/10


Next week on TWD: Coconut Butter Thins

TWD: Fresh Ginger and Chocolate Gingerbread

This week's TWD recipe was chosen by Heather of Sherry Trifle, who should post the recipe sometime today. You can also find it on page 212 of Dorie's book.

I had never made gingerbread before--I am not a huge fan of molasses, and I think that's why I didn't love this recipe. I must say the icing is amazing! I used an 8x11-inch pan, and the batter fit perfectly.


Liz's Rating: 7.5/10 (9.5/10 for the icing)
Tim's Rating: 8/10


Next week on TWD: World Peace Cookies

Strawberry Oat Muffins

Inspiration:
Strawberries from our CSA and this recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup rolled oats
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 cup chopped fresh strawberries

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease and flour a muffin pan, or use paper liners. In a small bowl, combine oats and buttermilk, and let stand 5 minutes. In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt; set aside.
2. In a large bowl, beat together the egg, oil, brown sugar and vanilla. Blend in the oat mixture. Stir in the flour mixture, just until moistened. Fold in strawberries. Fill muffin cups 2/3 to 3/4 full.
3. Bake in the preheated oven for 15 to 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Notes: I don't know if I would make these again. They taste good but don't have the "wow" factor of Katie's strawberry cupcakes. If you do try these, use paper liners as these muffins fell apart pretty easily.

Liz's Rating: 8/10

Lemon-Blueberry Muffins

Source:
Food and Wine

Ingredients:

• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup blueberries
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375°. Butter a standard 12-cup muffin pan. In a medium bowl, whisk the flour with the sugar, baking powder and salt. Stir in the blueberries. In another medium bowl, whisk the eggs with the milk, oil and lemon zest, then whisk in the lemon juice. Using a rubber spatula, fold the egg mixture into the flour mixture until blended; do not overmix.
2. Spoon the batter into the muffin cups and bake for about 20 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Let the muffins stand in the pan for 5 minutes, then carefully transfer them to a rack to cool slightly. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Recipe Notes:
"Using frozen berries makes the batter incredibly thick and keeps them from sinking to the bottom of the pan. Of course, the muffins are fantastic with fresh blueberries as well.
Once thoroughly cooled, the muffins can be kept overnight in an airtight container."

My Notes:
Next time I will sprinkle a little sugar on top before baking. These are very, very good.

Tim: 9/10
Liz's Rating: 9.5/10

Katie's Strawberry Hand Pies

Inspiration:
Fresh strawberries from our CSA and Katie's famous recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 c. unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1 Tbsp sugar
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 tsp lemon zest
• 1 stick (1/2 c.) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/4 in pieces
• 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
• 3-4 Tbsp cold buttermilk (whole milk with a dash of fresh lemon juice can be subbed)
• 1.5 c. fresh strawberries, hulled and quartered
  
• 1 Tbsp granulated sugar
  
• 1 tsp fresh lemon juice
  
• powdered sugar for dusting
  
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
  
• Turbinado sugar for sprinkling

Instructions:

1. In small bowl, combine vanilla and buttermilk, stir to combine and set aside.
2. In large bowl, add flour, sugar, salt, and lemon zest and whisk to combine.
3. Use pastry cutter or two knives to cut butter into flour mixture until resembles course meal or just until all pieces are less than pea-sized.
4. Add buttermilk mixture and stir in until dough comes together.
5. Transfer dough to powdered sugar-dusted work surface and shape into flat disk.
6. Wrap disk tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least one hour.
7. Preheat oven to 400 degrees and line baking sheets with parchment.
   
8. In medium bowl, combine strawberries, granulated sugar and lemon juice and set aside.
   
9. Turn dough out onto a powdered sugar-dusted work surface and cut pie dough in half (rewrap other half and place back in fridge to stay cold).
   
10. Roll one half of pie dough out about 1/8 in thickness. Using round pastry cutter (or trace knife around small plate), cut out about 5-6 inch rounds.
    
11. Place round onto baking sheet and place about 2-3 Tbsp strawberry mixture into center.
    
12. Using pastry brush dipped in a small amount of egg, brush the edge of half of the round.
    
13. Fold dry edge onto egg brushed half, forming semicircle shape, and press edges together to seal with the tines of a fork.
    
14. Brush the top of the pie with egg mixture and sprinkle with sugar.
    
15. Use a small knife to make a 1 inch slit in the top of the pie for steam to escape.
    
16. Repeat with remaining pastry dough.
    
17. Place in oven and bake until tops are beginning to turn golden brown, about 20 minutes.
    
18. Let cool on sheets for 7-10 mins and then transfer to wire rack to cool completely.

Katie's Recipe Notes:
"A distant, better looking cousin of the turnover, the hand pie houses it's own portion of delicious fruit filling and top and bottom crust all in handy compact size. Perfect for sharing. Perfect for casual entertaining.

You can also make the dough in the bowl of a food processor, just be careful not to over process (30 secs should be enough to bring it together.) Pie dough may be made ahead and frozen for up to 2 months if wrapped well."

My Notes: I halved Katie's recipe, and I got four from the half recipe. Katie, you've made another winner! This is my first time making pastry dough, and I had no idea what I was doing, so they aren't pretty, but they taste awesome!

Tim's Rating: 9/10
Liz's Rating: 9/10

Green Onion Biscuits

Inspiration:
Green onions from my CSA, leftover buttermilk, a need for something to serve with Citi's Chicken, and a recipe from Light & Tasty

Ingredients:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1/2 cup finely chopped green onions
• softened butter (just a few tablespoons)
• 1/4-1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar (optional)

Instructions:

1. In a large bowl, combine the first five ingredients. Combine the buttermilk, onions and oil; stir into dry ingredients just until moistened.
2. Drop by heaping teaspoonfuls 2 in. apart onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Lightly spread a small amount of softened butter on the top of each biscuit Sprinkle with a little cheddar cheese. Bake at 400° for 14-18 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm.

My Notes: I don't use any "cooking spray" type items, so I replaced the cooking sprays in the original recipe with some real butter. I also added a little cheddar since I love cheese!

Recipe Notes: Yields 16 biscuits.
Nutrition Facts for One Biscuit (original recipe):

• Calories: 85
• Fat: 3 g
• Saturated Fat: 0 g
• Cholesterol: 1 mg
• Sodium: 124 mg
• Carbohydrate: 12 g
• Fiber: 1 g
• Protein: 2 g

Liz's Rating: 8.5/10
Tim's Rating: 8.5/10

Cheddar-Olive Muffins

Inspiration:

The need for an "official snack" for book club and this recipe from Food and Wine

Ingredients:

• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup yellow cornmeal
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon each of baking soda and sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons chopped chives
• 2 tablespoons Spanish green olives, pitted and chopped
• 1 1/4 packed cups farmstead cheddar cheese, shredded
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400°. Line three 12-cup mini-muffin tins with paper or foil liners. Alternatively, lightly butter and flour the cups, tapping out any excess flour.


2. In a small bowl, whisk the buttermilk with the egg. In a medium bowl, whisk the flour with the cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, sugar and salt. Whisk in the chives and olives and 3/4 cup of the shredded cheddar. Add the buttermilk mixture and the melted butter; stir just until moistened.


3. Spoon the batter into the prepared tins and sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 cup of cheese.


4. Bake the muffins for about 16 minutes, or until golden.


5. Let cool in the tins for 10 minutes before serving.

Suggested beverage: Juicy, ripe Petite Sirah: 2001 Guenoc North Coast.

(Suggestion made by Food and Wine)

Notes from Food and Wine: "Perfect as a snack with red wine, these supremely cheesy and crusty little muffins have shredded cheddar folded into the rich batter and sprinkled on top. If miniature food is not your thing, you can also use this recipe to make 12 standard-size muffins and bake them for about 20 to 22 minutes."

My Notes: My book club is meeting at a lakeside cabin tonight, and I am so excited! Each member is to bring an "official snack" which is code for something in between a snack and a meal. This is more of a regular snack than an "official snack," but knowing my book club, they'll love them anyway. Especially because they will go well with the red wine we'll be drinking! The olive flavor is not overwhelming-- it's the perfect amount. Don't make them if you don't like cornbread.

Tim's Rating: n/a (Tim neither likes olives nor is in book club!)

Liz's Rating: 8.5/10

Pepperoni Mozzarella Bread

Inspiration:
Slightly modified from this recipe on Erin's blog, which was taken from The Bread Baker’s Apprentice by Peter Reinhart.

Ingredients:

Sponge

• ½ cup bread flour
• 4 teaspoons active dry yeast
• 1/4 cup warm water
  
• 3/4 cup buttermilk, lukewarm (or whole milk)

Dough

• 4 ounces pepperoni, cut in quarters
  
• 3 ½ cups (16 ounces) bread flour
• 1 teaspoon (5ml) Salt
• 1 tablespoon (15ml) Sugar
• 2 eggs, slightly beaten
• ¾ cup (6 ounces) unsalted butter, room temperature
• ¾ cup coarsely shredded or grated provolone or other cheese (I used mozzarella)

Instructions:

1. Proof yeast in 1/4 cup warm water.
   
2. To make the sponge, stir together the flour and yeast mixture to make a pancake-like batter. Cover with plastic wrap and ferment at room temperature for 1 hour.
   
3. While the sponge is fermenting, dice the salami into small cubes and saute it lightly in a frying pan to crisp it slightly.
4. Stir together the flour, salt, and sugar with a spoon. Add the eggs and the sponge until the ingredients form a coarse ball. If there is any loose flour, dribble in a small amount of water or milk to gather it into the dough. Mix for about 1 minute, then let rest for 10 minutes. Divide the butter in 4 pieces and work into dough, one piece at a time while mixing. After mixing about 4 minutes, the dough will change from sticky to tacky and eventually come off the sides of the bowl. If not, sprinkle in more flour to make it do so.
5. When the dough is smooth, add the meat pieces and mix until they are evenly distributed. Then gently mix in the cheese until it too is evenly distributed. Lightly oil a large bowl and transfer the dough to the bowl, rolling it around to coat it with oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap.
6. Ferment at room temperature for about 90 minutes, or until the dough increases in size by at least 1 1/2 times.
7. Remove the dough from the bowl and leave as 1 piece for 1 large loaf or divide into 2 pieces for smaller loaves. Bake in 1 large or 2 small loaf pans by misting the pans with spray oil, shaping the dough, and placing it in the pans. Mist the top of the dough with spray oil and cover.
8. Proof for 60-90 minutes, or until the dough just reaches the top of the pans.
9. Place pans in a 350′F oven and bake for 40-50 minutes until the center of the loaves registers 185-190′F. The dough will be golden brown on top and on the sides, and the cheese will ooze out into crisp little brown pockets.
10. When the bread is done, remove the bread from the oven and from the pans and cool for at least 1 hour before slicing or serving.

Notes: I really like this recipe. I don't think I had the best results, but this is only my second attempt at yeast bread... I will try it again!

Tim's Rating: 9/10
Liz's Rating: 8/10

Buttermilk Mashed Potatoes

Inspiration:
Ina Garten

Ingredients:

• Kosher salt
• 3 pounds boiling potatoes, such as Yukon gold, peeled
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/4 pound (1 stick) unsalted butter
• 3/4 to 1 cup buttermilk
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Instructions:

1. In a large pot, bring 4 quarts of water and 2 tablespoons of salt to a boil. Meanwhile, cut the potatoes into 1 1/2-inch cubes and add them to the boiling water. Bring the water to a boil again, lower the heat and simmer uncovered for 10 to 15 minutes, until the potatoes fall apart easily when pierced with a fork.
   
   
2. Meanwhile, heat the milk and butter in a small saucepan, making sure it doesn't boil. Set aside until the potatoes are done.
   
   
3. As soon as the potatoes are tender, drain them in a colander. Place a food mill fitted with a small disc/blade over a heatproof bowl. Process the potatoes through the food mill, turning the handle back and forth. As soon as the potatoes are mashed, stir in the hot milk-and-butter mixture with a whisk or rubber spatula. Add enough buttermilk to make the potatoes creamy. Add 2 teaspoons of salt and the pepper, to taste, and serve hot.

Tim's Rating: 8/10
Liz's Rating: 8/10

Strawberry Cupcakes

Inspiration:
This recipe on the cooking blog Annie's Eats (modified from a recipe on Good Things Catered).

Ingredients:

For the cupcakes:

• 2 ½ cups cake flour
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• ¼ tsp. salt
• ½ cup unsalted butter
• 1 ½ cups sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1/3 cup buttermilk
• ¼ cup oil
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 2 cups chopped strawberries

For the frosting:

• ½ c. strawberries
• 8 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
• 1 ½ sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 ¾ cups powdered sugar, sifted
• ½ tsp. lemon juice
• 1 tbsp. vanilla

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°. Line cupcake pans with paper liners.
   
   

2. Sift flour, salt and baking soda into a medium bowl. Set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time until combined. Add buttermilk, oil and vanilla and beat until combined. Add flour mixture and stir until just combined. Fold in chopped strawberries. Fill cupcake wells ¾ full with batter. Bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool completely on a wire rack.

3. For the frosting, puree strawberries in food processor. Strain through a mesh sieve to remove seeds, and set aside. Beat the cream cheese and butter in the bowl of an electric mixer until smooth and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add powdered sugar and mix until smooth. Add lemon juice, vanilla and strawberry puree. Adjust the amount of puree to achieve your desired consistency. Frost cupcakes when completely cool.

Tim's Rating: 10/10 ("Incredible")

Liz's Rating: 10/10