Blueberry & Meyer Lemon Breakfast Pastry

This beautiful breakfast pastry uses store-bought puff pastry as a shortcut. I loved the crushed dried blueberries sprinkled over the top.

I served this pastry as part of our Easter brunch along with my favorite brunch dish, Asparagus, Leek and Gruyere Quiche. We also had fruit and green salads, cheeses with crackers and warm bread, hummus with vegetables, nuts, and sliced kielbasa.

This recipe was adapted from Food and Wine, contributed by Anna Theoktisto. I modified the method and proportions. The combination of blueberries and lemon was bright and delicious.

The pastry is ideally served warm, but I made it a day in advance, refrigerated it overnight, and served it at room temperature. Still great. It could also be reheated prior to serving.

Yield: Two 5×12-inch Pastries (about 8 to 10 servings)

• 1 (18.3-ounce) package frozen puff pastry, thawed (I used Trader Joe’s)
• all-purpose flour, for dusting
• 5.2 ounces cream cheese (such as Philadelphia), at room temperature
• 5.2 ounces (about 1 1/3 cups) unsifted confectioners’ sugar
• freshly grated zest from one Meyer lemon
• 1 tablespoon plus 1 tsp freshly squeezed Meyer lemon juice
• 5 to 6 T blueberry preserves (I used Stonewall Kitchen)
• scant 3/4 teaspoon cornstarch
• 1 large egg
• 1 T water
• 2 T whole milk
• 2 T whole freeze-dried blueberries, crushed

1. Line two large rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. Beat cream cheese, powdered sugar, and lemon zest and juice with an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment on low speed, gradually increasing mixer speed to medium-high, until mixture is smooth, about 2 minutes, stopping to scrape down sides of bowl as needed.
3. Measure 1/3 cup cream cheese mixture into a separate medium bowl; set aside for icing.
4. Unroll thawed puff pastry on a lightly floured work surface. (I used a pastry mat instead.) Cut pastry in half lengthwise; place 1 pastry half on prepared baking sheet. Repeat with second roll of pastry on second baking sheet.
5. Divide remaining cream cheese mixture in half. Spoon one ration of the mixture in a 1 1/2-inch-wide strip lengthwise down the middle of each pastry half on the prepared baking sheets, leaving a 1-inch border along short pastry edges.
6. Stir together preserves and cornstarch in a small bowl. Divide the mixture into fourths.
7. Spoon each ration of the preserves mixture evenly along the long edges of both cream cheese strips (about 1 1/2 tablespoons per side), leaving a 1-inch border on each long side.
8. Beat together egg and 1 tablespoon water in a small bowl. Brush border of topped pastry lightly with egg mixture; reserve remaining egg mixture.
9. Place remaining pastry half on top of filled pastry, pressing edges firmly to seal.
10. Chill until firm, about 20 to 30 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350°F. (I set my oven to true convection.)
11. Brush chilled pastry lightly with reserved egg mixture. Using a paring knife, cut 5 small (about 1-inch) slits on top of pastry.
12. Bake in preheated oven until golden brown and evenly puffed, 40 minutes on convection or up to 45 minutes in a standard oven, rotating the pans halfway through the baking time.
13. Transfer baking sheet to a wire rack; let pastry cool 10 minutes.
14. Place freeze-dried blueberries in a zip-top bag and crush with a rolling pin.
15. Whisk milk into reserved 1/3 cup cream cheese mixture until smooth.
16. Drizzle icing over warm pastries, and sprinkle with crushed freeze-dried blueberries. Serve warm. (see Note)

Note: I waited for the pastries to cool to room temperature prior to drizzling with the icing. Once garnished, I wrapped them in plastic wrap and refrigerated them overnight. Pastry can be reheated or served at room temperature. It will keep in the refrigerator for up to one week.

One-Bowl Crispies

These cookies were simple and sensational. The original recipe named them “Brown-Edge Cookies” which didn’t seem fabulous enough! They were named for a similar crispy cookie sold by Nabisco prior to 1996 called Brown-Edge Wafers.

The recipe was adapted from The New York Times, contributed by Mille Shea and Liz Laskey, adapted by Margaux Laskey. Millie Shea learned this all-butter recipe from her mother in the 1930’s.

The authors described them as “buttery like the Danish cookies in blue tins, tender in the middle like snickerdoodles and snappy like Scottish shortbread.” The article also stated that they would be placed in the intersection of a Christmas sugar cookie, vanilla wafer, and French tuile. Wow. That is a combination of quite a few favorites!

I made half of the recipe below, yielding about 32 cookies. The recipe (even half of the recipe!) definitely makes enough to share.

Yield: about 5 dozen

• 1 pound/453 grams unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 pound/453 grams granulated sugar (2 1/4 cups)
• 1 large egg, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 3 cups/384 grams all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon fine salt

1. Arrange two racks around the middle of the oven and heat oven to 375 degrees, preferably on convection.
2. Using a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar on medium-high until light and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
3. Add egg and vanilla. Beat on medium until incorporated, about 1 minute. 
4. Add 1 cup flour and the salt and beat on low to just combine. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
5. Add the remaining 2 cups flour and beat on low until incorporated. Scrape down the bowl, then beat on medium for 30 seconds just until no flour streaks remain. 
6. Drop heaping tablespoons of dough onto 2 parchment-lined baking sheets, spacing them 3 inches apart as the cookies spread quite a bit while baking. (I used a 1 T cookie scoop, leveled, and placed 8 cookies per sheet.)
7. Bake 2 sheets at a time, rotating the pans halfway through, until the edges are lightly browned and the centers are slightly puffed, 8 to 9 minutes on convection or up to 10 to 12 minutes in a standard oven. Be careful not to overbake.
8. Repeat with the rest of the dough. 
9. Cool on the pans on wire racks for 10 minutes, then transfer cookies to the rack to cool completely.  Store in an airtight container at room temperature for 5 days, or in the freezer for up to 6 months.

Danish Pear-Apple Bars

My husband isn’t partial to summer fruit- with the exception of freshly picked strawberries. He loves bananas, Bartlett pears, and cantaloupe. 🙂 Before the summer berry and peach baking season, I made these pie bars to embrace sweet and juicy Bartlett pears.

The bars have a Danish-style pie crust which very tender because it incorporates milk and egg yolks instead of ice water. It was really delicious. I also loved the cream cheese glaze spread over the top.

This recipe was adapted from 100 Cookies: The Baking Book for Every Kitchen with Classic Cookies, Novel Treats, Brownies, Bars, and More by Sarah Kieffer. I weighed most of the dry ingredients as well as the peeled and cored fruit. I also used fine sea salt and omitted the brandy.

It was a wonderful springtime dessert but it would also be fabulous for Thanksgiving.

For the Crust:

• 1/2 cup (120 g) whole milk, plus 1 or 2 T if needed
• 2 large egg yolks
• 2 1/2 cups (355 g) all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
• 2 T granulated sugar
• 1 tsp fine sea salt
• 2 cup (2 sticks or 227 g) cold unsalted butter, cut into 20 pieces

For the Apple-Pear Filling:

• 8 cups (1100 g) Bartlett pears, peeled, cored and sliced 4mm thick (I used 6 organic pears)
• 1 cup (150 g) peeled and grated Gala apples (I used one large Gala apple)
• 1/3 cup (65 g) light brown sugar
• 1/4 cup (50 g) granulated sugar, plus 2 T for sprinkling
• 3 T cornstarch
• 1 tsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp fine sea salt
• 2 T unsalted butter, melted
• 1 T brandy (I omitted it)
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract

For the Egg Wash:

• 1 large egg
• pinch of fine sea salt
• 1 T (15 g) water

For the Cream Cheese Glaze:

• 2 oz (57 g) cream cheese, at room temperature
• 2 T whole milk
• 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• pinch fine sea salt
• 1 to 1 1/4 cups (120 to 145 g) confectioners’ sugar

To Make the Crust:

1. In a small bowl or liquid measuring cup, combine the milk and egg yolks. Place in the refrigerator.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle, mix the flour, granulated sugar, and salt on low speed until combined.
3. Add half of the chilled butter and mix on low speed until the butter is just starting to break down, about 1 minute.
4. Add the rest of the butter and continue mixing until the butter is broken down in various sizes. (most should be the size of small peas but some pieces may be larger) Make sure that all of the flour is moistened.
5. With the mixer running on low speed, slowly add the milk-egg mixture, and mix until the dough starts to come together. If the dough is having trouble coming together, add 1 or 2 more tablespoons of milk.
6. Divide the dough in half, place each piece on a separate piece of plastic wrap and flatten each slightly into a square.
7. Cover and refrigerate until cool but still soft, about 45 minutes.
8. On a lightly floured piece of parchment paper, roll one square of the dough into a 9×13-inch rectangle (22×33 cm). (I covered the top with plastic wrap and rolled the dough 1/8-inch thick, using a bench scraper to cut pieces and patch to form the proper shape.)
9. Transfer the dough to a 9×13-inch metal baking pan. Gently pat the dough into the bottom. Place the pan in the refrigerator while you make the filling.
10. Roll out the second square of dough into a 9×13-inch (22 by 33 cm) rectangle using the same method. Place on an inverted sheet pan in the refrigerator while you make the filling.

To Make the Filling:

1. Use a food processor to slice the pears 4mm thick and coarsely grate the apple(s).
2. Combine the sliced pears, grated apple, brown sugar, 1/4 cup (4 T or 50g) granulated sugar, cornstarch, lemon juice, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and salt in a large bowl.
3. In a small liquid measuring cup or bowl, combine the melted butter, brandy (if using), and vanilla. Pour over the pear-apple mixture and toss to combine.

To Make the Egg Wash:

1. Whisk the egg, salt, and water together in a small bowl; set aside.

To Assemble:

1. Fill the prepared pie shell with the pear-apple mixture and smooth the top.
2. Remove the top crust chilling on the inverted sheet pan from the refrigerator. Place the dough over the top of the filling. (It does not need to be sealed to the bottom layer.) Trim any excess with kitchen shears or a sharp knife.
3. Gently cut a few steam vents into the top layer of dough. (I cut 11 vents.)
4. Chill the pie in the pan in the freezer for 20 minutes while the oven preheats.
5. Adjust an oven rack to the lowest position. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
6. Place a sheet pan on the oven rack while the oven is preheating. (The preheated sheet pan helps crisp the bottom of the pie crust.)
7. When the pie is ready to bake, brush the top of the pie with the egg wash. Sprinkle the top with the 2 T reserved granulated sugar.
8. Transfer the pie to the preheated sheet pan and bake for 45 to 60 minutes, rotating halfway through, until the crust is golden brown and the juices are bubbling. (I baked mine for 50 minutes.)
9. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let cool while you make the icing.

To Make the Cream Cheese Glaze:

1. In a small bowl, use a hand mixer to mix the cream cheese, milk, vanilla, and salt until smooth.
2. Add 1 cup (120 g) of the confectioners’ sugar and mix again until smooth. If the mixture is too thin, add more confectioners’ sugar until the desired consistency is reached.
3. Once the bars are cool, top them with the glaze; spread to the edges.

Note: The pie bars are best eaten the same day they are made but can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 2 days.

Vanilla Bean Spritz Cookies

Classic butter cookies are my husband’s absolute favorite, so I had to try this vanilla bean version. He loved them! They are dangerously easy to make too.

This recipe was adapted from The New York Times, contributed by Melissa Clark. I used the ground cinnamon option, varied the shapes, and topped the cookies with festive colored sugars prior to baking.

Because the cookies are quite fragile, the original recipe suggests making them into sandwich cookies, filled with chocolate, Nutella, or thick jam, to increase their stability for shipping. We ate them as is!

Yield: about 4 dozen cookies

• 1 cup/225 grams unsalted butter (2 sticks), preferably cultured, softened
• 1/2 cup/100 grams granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup/55 grams light brown sugar
• 1 large egg, at room temperature
• 2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste (or use 1 tablespoon vanilla extract)
• 1 teaspoon grated lemon zest or orange zest, 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon or cardamom, OR 1/2 teaspoon almond extract, optional
• 2 1/4 cups/290 grams all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
• decorative sugar, for sprinkling, optional

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees, preferably on convection.
2. Using an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or a handheld electric mixer, beat butter and sugars on medium speed until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes.
3. Add the egg, vanilla and the zest, spices or almond extract (if using), and mix until well combined and smooth.
4. Reduce speed to low, and gradually add flour and salt until just incorporated.
5. Load dough into a cookie press. Following the directions that came with your cookie press (models can vary), push the dough onto ungreased baking sheets, leaving about 1/2 to 1 inch between cookies.
6. Sprinkle cookies with decorative sugar.
7. Bake until firm to touch and golden brown at edges, about 8 to 9 minutes, or longer (up to 17 minutes) depending upon the size of your cookie press.
8. Transfer cookies onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Our festive 2020 “Gingerbread Mansion” (photo above). 🙂

Danish Butter Cookies

Happy New Year! I have many recipes to share- beginning with the recipes for the holiday cookies that were new to my assortment this year.

My husband could eat Danish butter cookies on a daily basis. 😉 I decided to add them to my Christmas cookie assortment this year after seeing and episode about Scandinavian cookies on Martha Bakes.

This simple and pure version from Martha Stewart is most successful when using high-quality ingredients. I used King Arthur Flour and Plugra European-style butter. I adapted the recipe by weighing the flour and by using a cookie press to make the cookies instead of piping them. Nice.

Yield: about 40 cookies

• 1 cup (2 sticks) best-quality salted butter, room temperature (I used Plugra)
• 1 cup confectioners’ sugar
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 large egg, at room temperature
• 300 g (2 1/2 cups) unbleached all-purpose flour

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees, preferably on convection.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together butter and confectioners’ sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
3. Add vanilla and egg, and beat to combine.
4. Gradually add flour, 1 cup at a time, and beat until well incorporated.
5. Transfer dough to a cookie press, I used the wreath disc, or into a pastry bag fitted with a 7/16-inch star tip (such as Ateco #825 or Wilton #4B).
6. Spritz cookie shapes or pipe dough into 2 1/2-inch rings onto parchment-lined baking sheets, spaced 2 inches apart.
7. Bake, rotating halfway through, until lightly golden around edges but still light on top, about 12 to 14 minutes for spritz cookies or up to 20 minutes for piped cookies.
8. Transfer sheets to wire racks; let cool completely.