Summer Fruit Buckle

This very special breakfast treat was more clafoutis or bread pudding-like than coffee cake-like. It was eggy, moist, and loaded with fruit. Practically any combination of summer fruit could be used. I used blueberries, strawberries, and a yellow nectarine. Great.

The recipe was adapted from The New York Times, contributed by Melissa Clark. I incorporated whole wheat pastry flour. I also reduced the baking time for a convection oven. The original recipe notes that the sugar can be adjusted by one or two tablespoons, reduced or added, depending upon the sweetness and tartness of the fruit used.

Yield: one 9-inch cake

• 1/2 cup/114 grams (1 stick) butter, at room temperature, plus more for greasing pan
• 1/2 cup/100 grams granulated sugar, more for sprinkling
• 1/4 cup/55 grams light brown sugar
• 3 large eggs, at room temperature
• finely grated lemon zest from 1 large lemon
• 1 teaspoon/5 milliliters vanilla extract
• 1 1/4 cups/156 grams all-purpose flour (I used 100g all-purpose flour + 56g whole wheat pastry flour)
• 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
• 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon grated nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 4 1/2 cups summer berries and/or chopped fruit (a mix of blueberries, raspberries, blackberries or use any one kind)(peaches, nectarines, figs, or plums can also be incorporated)(I used 2 cups blueberries + 2 cups strawberries + 1 chopped yellow nectarine)
•  cinnamon, for dusting, optional
•  Confectioners’ sugar, for dusting

1. Heat oven to 375 degrees, preferably on convection.
2. Butter a 9-inch round cake pan. (or coat with cooking oil spray)
3. In the bowl of an electric mixer, add butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar and beat until light and fluffy.
4. Add eggs one at a time, then add lemon zest and vanilla and mix until combined.
5. In a separate bowl, combine flour, salt, nutmeg and baking powder, and whisk to combine.
6. Add dry ingredients to egg mixture and mix until just combined.
7. Gently fold fruit into the batter, then spread batter in pan and sprinkle lightly with more granulated sugar.
8. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes in a convection oven, or up to 50 minutes in a standard oven, or until top is golden and cake is cooked through.
9. Allow cake to cool, then sprinkle with cinnamon, if using, and confectioners’ sugar.

Soft Sugar Cookies with Raspberry Buttercream Frosting

My daughter is mildly obsessed with the grocery store version of these cookies. I was always hesitant to make them because I thought that they required shortening or margarine in order to keep their soft texture. This version uses a combination of butter and cream cheese to create the soft-baked, cakey texture.

I loved the color and taste from the freeze dried raspberries in the frosting. The resulting color was pretty and fun. 🙂

This recipe was adapted from The New York Times, contributed by Eric Kim. I used a stand mixer and reduced the size of the cookies. They would be very festive as a Valentine’s Day treat. ❤

Yield: about 26 cookies

For the Cookies:

• 1/2 cup/115 grams unsalted butter (1 stick), at room temperature
• 3 ounces/85 grams cream cheese, at room temperature
• 1 cup/200 grams granulated sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 2 1/4 cups/285 grams cake flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• sprinkles, for garnish

For the Frosting:

• 1 cup/30 grams freeze-dried raspberries, finely ground in a food processor or spice grinder (I used Trader Joe’s)
• 1 cup/225 grams unsalted butter (2 sticks), at room temperature
• 2 cups/245 grams confectioners’ sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Pinch of kosher salt

Make the Cookie Dough:

1. In a large bowl, using a spoon, cream the butter, cream cheese, sugar and salt until smooth and fluffy. (I used a stand mixer with the paddle attachment and mixed on low-speed.)
2. Add the eggs and vanilla extract, and whisk to incorporate some air and to dissolve the sugar crystals, about 1 minute. (I mixed the batter in a stand mixer with the paddle attachment on low-speed.)
3. Stir in the flour and baking powder until just incorporated.
4. Using two spoons or a cookie scoop, ration out 1 1/2-tablespoon/25 to 30-gram rounds onto a plastic wrap-lined baking sheet, tray, or container. Cover with another sheet of plastic wrap.
5. Place the rationed dough in the freezer for 15 to 20 minutes until the dough is no longer sticky and easier to handle.
6. Heat oven to 350 degrees, preferably on convection, and line two rimmed sheet pans with parchment paper.

While the dough chills, Make the Frosting:

1. Finely grind the freeze dried raspberries in a food processor or spice grinder.
2. In a fine-mesh sieve set over a medium bowl, sift the ground raspberries, using a spoon to help pass them through, until most of the ruby-red powder is in the bowl and most of the seeds are left behind in the sieve. (Discard the seeds.)
3. To the sifted dried raspberries, add the 1 cup butter, confectioners’ sugar, vanilla extract and salt and, with an electric hand mixer or stand mixer, mix on low-speed until the butter absorbs the sugar.
4. Turn the speed up to high and beat until the frosting doubles in size, about 2 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula to ensure all the ingredients are incorporated.
5. Transfer the frosting to a small container, cover tightly, and set aside. (You should have about 2 cups of frosting.)

To Bake the Cookies and Decorate:

1. Remove the dough from the freezer.
2. Line two rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper.
3. Roll the chilled dough into even balls and flatten them slightly with your fingers so they’re about 2 inches wide and 1 inch high. Place on the prepared baking sheets. (You should get about 12 to 13 cookies per sheet pan.)
4. Bake the cookies for 9 to 15 minutes, rotating the pans and switching racks halfway through, or until they no longer look wet on top, are still light in color and spring back to the touch. They will puff up and crack slightly.
5. Let cool completely on the sheet pan. (They will continue to cook as they sit.)
6. Using a butter knife or offset spatula, frost each cooled cookie with the raspberry frosting and adorn with the sprinkles.

Shortbread Jammers

Over the summer, I brought these fabulous cookies to the beach when we went to enjoy the sunset. They transported very well and everyone loved them. 🙂 Any type of thick fruit jam or marmalade can be spread over the top of the cookie base. By using raspberry jam, I thought that they could be renamed “Easy Linzer Cookies.”

The recipe was adapted from The King Arthur Flour Cookie Companion via The New York Times, contributed by Vanessa Vichit-Vadakan. I baked the cookies in a 9×13-inch pan, per the original recipe; The NYT recently modified the recipe to bake in an 8×8-inch pan. I thought that they were perfect as is, but may “have to” try the thicker version to compare. 😉

Rice flour is suggested to make the cookies more tender. I used all-purpose flour instead and was pleased with the results.

Yield: 24 cookies (9×13-inch pan) or 16 cookies (8×8-inch pan)

• 1/2 pound unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup rice flour (all-purpose flour may be substituted)
• 1 cup thick fruit jam, preserves or marmalade (I used raspberry preserves)

1. Heat oven to 325 degrees, preferably on convection.
2. Lightly butter a 9×13-inch or 8×8-inch baking dish. Line with parchment and butter the parchment. (I used a lined, metal 9×13-inch baking pan.)
3. In the bowl of a standing mixer (or in a large bowl if using a hand mixer), beat the butter and sugar at medium speed for about 3 minutes.
4. Add the salt and vanilla and continue to beat until well combined.
5. Add the flours and continue to beat until the dough comes together.
6. Press the dough evenly into the prepared pan, smoothing the surface. Prick it with a fork in about 20 places.
7. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through cooking, or until golden around the edges. Slide a dull knife along the edges. Cool for 5 minutes. (an 8×8-inch pan may require a longer baking time)
8. Using the parchment, lift the slab of shortbread out onto a clean surface.
9. With a knife, trim 1 inch from one of the sides. Crumble the trimmings into a bowl and cover with plastic wrap.
10. Cut the rest of the shortbread into 24 squares (9×13-inch pan) or 16 squares (8×8-inch pan) and allow to cool.
11. Spread a thick layer of jam on each square. (I kept the cut cookies together and spread the jam over the top of the entire surface.)
12. Sprinkle the reserved crumbs over the top.

Note: Layered between plastic wrap or wax paper in an airtight container, the cookies will keep for 3 to 4 days.

Raspberry Crumb Muffins

A couple of my friends thought that I was joking when I told them that I try not to bake that much! I am trying not to… 😉

That being said, I was dying to make these as soon as I saw them on Marisa’s Italian Kitchen.  She made them in the most darling muffin pan too. This recipe was adapted from New York City’s Clinton Street Baking Company Cookbook, via Marisa’s Italian Kitchen. I incorporated white whole wheat flour, modified the proportions, and reduced the baking time.

They were a very special breakfast. 🙂

Yield: 10 muffins

For the Crumb Topping:

• ¼ cup all-purpose flour
• ¼ cup granulated sugar
• ¼ teaspoon grated lemon zest
• 1/8 tsp cinnamon
• 2 T unsalted butter, cubed

For the Muffin Batter:

• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• ½ tsp vanilla extract
• 1 large egg
• a teaspoon grated lemon zest
• ½ cup all-purpose flour
• ½ cup white whole wheat flour
• ½ tsp baking powder
• ¼ tsp baking soda
• ½ cup sour cream
• 1 cup fresh or frozen raspberries or blueberries, plus 10 additional raspberries for topping (or 20+ blueberries)
• Crumb Topping (above)

1. In a small bowl, mix together all the Crumb Topping ingredients using a pastry blender, until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Refrigerate the crumb mixture until your ready to use it. (This can be prepared in advance.)
2. Preheat the oven to 350 F, preferably on convection.
3. Line a muffin pan with 10 paper muffin cups or coat with cooking oil spray.
4. Using an electric mixer, cream together the butter, sugar and vanilla until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
5. Add the egg and the lemon zest to the mixture and blend until combined.
6. Whisk the flour, baking powder and baking soda in a separate bowl.
7. Mix in ¼ cup of the sour cream into the butter mixture, then half of the flour mixture and repeat with the rest of the sour cream and flour mixture. Do not over mix!
8. Gently fold in the 1 cup of raspberries with a rubber spatula until evenly distributed.
9. Scoop the batter into the muffin cups and top each muffin with 1 tablespoon of the Crumb Mix and a raspberry.
10. Bake for 20 to 30 minutes, on a middle rack, until a toothpick inserted in the middle of a muffin comes out clean.
11. Allow to cool, then serve.

One Year Ago: Crisp Toffee Bars

Three Years Ago: Tate’s Shortbread and Gooey Cinnamon Squares

Four Years Ago:

• Vanilla Bean Macarons
• Warm Chocolate Puddings

Five Years Ago:

• Banana-Blueberry Buckwheat Pancakes
• Low-Fat Crumb Cake Muffins
• Blueberry Scones

Linzer Hearts

We drag out holidays in my house. One day just isn’t enough of a celebration. 😉

We were so busy eating leftover Mardi Gras King Cake on Valentine’s Day, I had to make a belated Valentine’s Day dessert! The truth is that I was procrastinating a little bit. As much as I wanted to make this special dessert for my husband, I really didn’t want to peel the hazelnuts. I was quite happy to find a method to remove the skin by blanching the nuts. This method is a little bit time-consuming but it completely removes the bitter skin. Yay!

These cookies were very special- completely worth every minute of work. My husband wants me to add them to our Christmas cookie assortment! (in a different shape, of course) The blanching method used to peel the hazelnuts was adapted from Rose Levy Beranbaum, via Fine Cooking.com. The cookie recipe was adapted from Martha Stewart’s Baking Handbook. Wonderful!

Yield: 9 3-inch sandwich cookies and 14 2-inch heart cookies

• 4 1/2 oz (1 cup) raw hazelnuts
• 4 T baking soda, for blanching the hazelnuts
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp coarse salt
• 2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large egg yolks
• 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp freshly grated lemon zest
• 1/2 cup raspberry jam, for filling
• 1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar, for dusting

To Blanch, Peel, and Roast the Hazelnuts:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees, preferably on convection roast.
2. Bring 3 cups of water to a boil. Add 4 T baking soda and the hazelnuts.
3. Boil for 3 minutes- expect the water to turn black. Run a nut under cold water and see if the skin slips off easily. If not, boil the nuts a little longer until the skins slip off.
4. Strain and then cool the nuts under cold running water, slip off the skins, blot dry with paper towels.
5. Place peeled nuts on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Roast in the preheated oven for 7 to 10 minutes, until fragrant.
6. Remove from the oven and let cool to room temperature.
7. Pulse the nuts in a food processor until finely ground.

To Make the Cookies:

1. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt.
2. Whisk the ground hazelnuts into the flour mixture; set aside.
3. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter and granulated sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes.
4. Add the egg yolks, vanilla, and lemon zest; beat to combine, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
5. With the mixer on low-speed, add hazelnut-flour mixture, and beat until just combined, about 10 to 15 seconds.
6. Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured work surface or onto plastic wrap. Divide in half and shape into flattened disks.
7. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate at least 1 hour or overnight. (I refrigerated overnight.)
8. Remove one disk of dough from the refrigerator, and let stand until softened slightly. (This will help keep the dough from cracking when rolled.)
9. Between layers of plastic wrap or on a large piece of parchment paper lightly dusted with flour, roll dough to 1/8-inch thickness. Wrap in plastic wrap and transfer to a baking sheet. Place in freezer and freeze until firm, about 20 minutes.
10. Repeat with second disk of dough. (You can stack the parchment and dough in the freezer.)
11. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees, preferably on convection. Line 3 baking sheets with parchment paper.
12. Remove one sheet of dough from the freezer. Working quickly, cut into heart shapes with a 3-inch cookie cutter. Cut out the center from half of the shapes with a 2-inch cutter. (If the dough begins to soften too much, return to the freezer for a few minutes.)
13. Transfer the cookies to the prepared baking sheets about 1 1/2 inches apart. (I kept the similar shaped cookies on separate sheets as they had the same baking time.) Freeze until firm, about 15 minutes.
14. Repeat with second sheet of dough.
15. Bake on the center rack, one cookie sheet at a time, rotating halfway through, until cookies are crisp and lightly golden all over, about 17 minutes for full 3-inch hearts and 15 minutes for the open hearts and full 2-inch hearts.
16. Let cool slightly on cookie sheet and then remove to a wire rack to cool completely. (Cooled cookies can be stored overnight in an airtight container at room temperature before filling.)
17. Spread the flat sides of the whole hearts with jam.
18. Sift confectioners’ sugar over the open hearts.
19. Just before serving, top open hearts with jam. Cookies should be eaten the day they’re filled.

Christmas 2020 Update: I made 2 1/4-inch rounds with Christmas tree cutouts. I put 12 cookies on each baking sheet. The whole cookies baked for 14 minutes, the cutouts for 12 minutes, and the reserved trees for 10 minutes. Wonderful!

Two Years Ago:

• Haselnussmakronen: Raspberry-Hazelnut Macaroons
• Momofuku Milk Bar’s Crack Pie

Three Years Ago:

• Perfect Spritz Butter Cookies

Four Years Ago:

• Valentine’s Day Whoopie Pies
• Vanilla Bean Milk Tart with Brown Sugar Crust

Five Years Ago:

• Mini Cheesecakes with Raspberry Hearts
• Tutu’s Super-Crispy Sugar Cookies

Haselnussmakronen: Raspberry-Hazelnut Macaroons

Oh my goodness… I hope it’s not too late to wish all of you a Happy New Year! 🙂

I am so behind on my posts- so please forgive me. I have to do a little catch-up with a couple of holiday cookie posts before I can move on! 😉

These Raspberry-Hazelnut Macaroons were a new addition to my Christmas cookie plates this year. I thought that they were special and tasty- but my biggest critics (read: my husband & my son) were skeptical. Well, let me tell you that TWO of my neighbors told me that they were their absolute favorite!! I was absolutely thrilled. 🙂

This recipe was adapted from Food and Wine, contributed by Luisa Weiss. I doubled the original recipe and reduced the baking time for a convection oven. These cookies are described as “extremely no-fuss”; they require minimal ingredients and no chilling time. Truly the hardest part of their preparation was roasting and peeling the hazelnuts!! I used a hand mixer (as instructed) but would use a stand mixer (with whisk attachment) next time to whip the whites to a little bit past soft peaks. My thought is that the cookies would be less flat as a result. I’ll keep you posted! 😉 They would also be wonderful for Valentine’s Day! ❤ ❤

Yield: approximately 30 cookies

• 1 1/2 cups whole hazelnuts
• 2 large egg whites
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup raspberry jam (I used Trader Joe’s)

1. Preheat the oven to 400° on convection. Line 2 large rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. Spread the hazelnuts in a pie plate and toast until the skins split and the nuts are fragrant, about 10 minutes. (Alternatively, peel and roast the hazelnuts using the method described here.)
3. Transfer to a clean kitchen towel and 
rub together to release the skins. Let 
the hazelnuts cool completely.
4. In a food processor, pulse the hazelnuts until finely chopped.
5. In a medium bowl, using a hand mixer (or stand mixer), beat the egg whites with the salt at medium speed until foamy, 2 minutes. Gradually add the sugar and continue beating until soft peaks form when the beaters are lifted, 
5 to 7 minutes.
6. Fold in the hazelnuts.
7. Using a 1-ounce ice cream scoop 
or a soup spoon, scoop 1 1/2-inch rounds 
of the batter onto the prepared baking sheets, about 1 inch apart.
8. Bake the cookies for 10 minutes on convection, or up to 11 to 13 minutes in a standard oven, or until fragrant and lightly browned; rotate the baking sheets from top to bottom and front to back halfway through baking.
9. Remove the cookies from the oven and, while they’re still hot, carefully make an indentation in the center of each with 
the back of a teaspoon.
10. In a small saucepan, boil the raspberry jam for 30 seconds, until slightly thickened. Carefully spoon about 1 teaspoon of the hot jam into the center 
of each cookie. Let the jam set and the cookies cool completely before serving.

Note: The cookies can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container between wax paper for up to 4 days.

One Year Ago:

• Spritz Butter Cookies

Two Years Ago:

• Flourless Chocolate Cookies

Three Years Ago:

• Shortbread Snowflakes
• My Dad’s Breakfast Crepes