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Peach Lavender Cobbler

2/22/2021

This recipe was an unexpected hit as not just a fruit cobbler, but potentially as a standalone scone - two for the price of one! While I couldn't tell it had lavender in it at all by the time everything was cooked (perhaps if I had made the topping alone as a scone or lived dangerously and upped the amount of lavender in it?), everything about it was scrumptious. My one adjustment? Too much salt in the topping portion. So I've toned that part down quite a bit.

Filling

4_1/2 pounds freestone peaches — peeled, pitted and diced (10 cups)
2_1/2 tbsp instant tapioca or corn starch
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp fresh lemon juice

Topping

1 tsp dried lavender blossoms
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons rolled oats
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp kosher salt
Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
5 tbsp unsalted butter, diced
1/2 cup heavy cream, plus more for brushing
1/4 cup buttermilk
2 tablespoons turbinado sugar

Preheat the oven to 400°. In a bowl, mix the peaches, tapioca, sugar, salt and lemon juice. Transfer the filling to a 9-by-13-inch baking dish.
Using a spice grinder or a mortar and pestle, grind the lavender to a powder. In a bowl, combine the lavender, flour, oats, granulated sugar, baking powder, salt and lemon zest. Cut in the butter using a pastry blender or two knives, until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Add the 1/2 cup of cream and the buttermilk; stir until the dough is just moistened.
Using two spoons, form 3-tablespoon mounds of the topping and arrange them evenly over the peaches. Brush with cream and sprinkle with the turbinado sugar. Bake the cobbler for 50 minutes, until the topping is golden brown and the fruit is bubbling. Let cool slightly before serving.

Shortbread Crust

2/1/2021

This was originally a part of the super-lemony lemon tart, but I broke it out into its own recipe because I ended up using it for several other things, such as the other tart-tasting sweet, the cranberry tart. This ended up such a simple, reliable recipe that it's now my go-to substitution for quite a lot of things!

8" square pan or 9" round pan
½ cup butter
¼ cup sugar
¼ tsp salt
1 cup flour

Preheat oven to 350F. If the pan does NOT have a removable bottom, line it with foil (it will help you lift the finished dessert out). If the pan DOES have a removable bottom, butter the bottom and sides.
Melt the butter and whisk in sugar and salt. Sift and mix in the flour.
Press into a ¼” thick layer at the bottom of the prepared pan (you can make it curl slightly up the sides to help keep the filling/topping from sticking too much to the sides) and bake for about 25 minutes, until golden brown (this is a little crispier than normal shortbread cookies). Take out and set on a cooling rack. Prick the surface lightly all over with a fork - only halfway through the shortbread, not all the way through. This will help the filling to “stick”.

Cranberry Tart

2/1/2021

If you love tart desserts but are tired of always defaulting to lemon-based sweets, this cranberry tart is perfect. While the original recipe called for a nut-based crust, it seemed too finicky and the reviews seemed to indicate a bit of trouble getting it just right ... so I just subbed in the shortbread crust from the extremely lemony lemon bars which worked absolutely beautifully.

one portion of shortbread crust
12 ounces (340 grams) cranberries
1 cup (225 grams) sugar
Peel (orange part only) and juice of 1 orange (about 1/2 cup)
1 tsp corn starch
8 tbsp (113 grams) room temperature butter, cubed
2 eggs + 2 egg yolks (or 3 whole eggs)

Make the shortbread crust.
While the crust bakes and cools, make the cranberry curd: Put cranberries, sugar and orange juice and peel in a saucepan over medium heat. Simmer until cranberries have popped and softened, about 10 minutes (do not let the mixture cook down - you will want enough to cover the entire surface of the crust).
For the most vibrant color, purée the cooked cranberry and orange mixture with an immersion blender or in a food processor or blender. Press the resultant puree through a fine-mesh sieve. (This should yield 1 - 1.5 cups of liquid if it wasn't cooked down too much.)
Put eggs and egg yolks into a bowl and beat lightly. Slowly whisk a cup of warm cranberry liquid into the eggs to temper, then combine both and whisk together. Add corn starch and whisk well. Wipe out pot if necessary, return liquid to pot and cook over low heat until nearly bubbling and thickened, about 10 minutes. Whisk the butter into the warm liquid one cube at a time, making sure each cube combines completely before adding the next one.
If using immediately, let cool to room temperature. If working ahead, cool to room temperature, cover with plastic wrap (press wrap against curd) and refrigerate. (Curd may be cooked up to 1 day ahead.)
Pour cooled cranberry curd into the cooled prebaked tart shell and smooth top with a spatula. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes to set curd. Cool on a rack. Store at room temperature for up to 2 days.

Notes: It's recommended that you do not pour the curd into the crust until the day of serving. Otherwise, the curd might make the crust soggy. For a 12" tart, you may double the filling amount.

Homemade Artisan Bread

12/27/2020

This bread was so popular I ended up making a new batch every single day for nearly a week! It delivered on everything that Sally's Baking Addiction promised. I'm copying the recipe here for my own easy reference when I bake at home, but I suggest checking out her page for all the tips and tricks if you're trying this out for the first time. The recipe really is as easy as it looks, but you may want to know how you can customize and adapt it to your taste - it's incredibly versatile and worth trying all the variations of!

3 and 1/4 cups (460g) bread flour (see notes on substitutions), plus more for hands and pan
2 teaspoons instant yeast
2 teaspoons coarse salt (if only fine table salt available, reduce to 1.5 tsp)
1 and 1/2 cups (360ml) cool water
optional: cornmeal for dusting pan

In large un-greased mixing bowl, whisk flour, yeast, and salt together. Pour in cool water and gently mix together with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon. The dough will seem dry and shaggy, but keep working till all the flour is moistened and becomes sticky. If needed, use your hands. Shape into a ball in the bowl as best you can.
Cover dough tightly with plastic wrap or aluminum foil and set on counter at room temperature. Allow to rise for 2-3 hours. The dough will just about double in size, stick to the sides of the bowl, and have a lot of air bubbles.
You can continue with step 4 immediately, but for absolute best flavor and texture, let covered dough rest in refrigerator for at least 12 hours and up to 3 days. The dough will puff up, but may begin to deflate after 2 days. That’s fine and normal.
Lightly dust a large nonstick baking sheet (with or without rims and make sure it’s nonstick) with flour and/or cornmeal. Turn cold dough out onto a floured work surface. Using a sharp knife or bench scraper, cut dough in half. Place dough halves on prepared baking sheet. Using floured hands, shape into 2 long loaves about 9×3 inches each (doesn’t have to be exact) about 3 inches apart. Loosely cover and allow to rest for 45 minutes.
Preheat oven to 475°F (246°C).
When ready to bake, using very sharp knife or bread lame (or even kitchen shears), score bread loaves with 3 slashes, about 1/2 inch deep. If shaped loaves flattened out during the 45 minutes rest, use floured hands to narrow them out along the sides again.
Optional for a slightly crispier crust: After oven is preheated and bread is scored, place a shallow metal or cast iron baking pan or skillet (such as a metal 9×13 baking pan) on the bottom oven rack. Carefully and quickly pour 3-4 cups of boiling water into it. Place the scored dough/baking pan on a higher rack and quickly shut the oven, trapping the steam inside. The steam helps create a crispier crust.
Place the pan with the shaped and scored dough in preheated oven on center rack. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until crust is golden brown. Gently tap loaves – if they sound hollow, the bread is done.
Remove bread from oven and allow to cool for at least 5 minutes before slicing and serving. Store leftovers loosely covered at room temperature for up to 5 days or in refrigerator for up to 10 days.

Notes:
Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: Dough can sit in refrigerator for up to 3 days. You can also bake the bread, allow it to cool, and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in refrigerator and allow to come to room temperature before serving. You can also freeze the dough. Complete the recipe through step 3. Wrap in plastic wrap and place in a freezer-friendly container. To bake, allow dough to thaw overnight in the refrigerator, or for 2-3 hours at room temperature. Continue with step 4 and the rest of the recipe instructions.
Flour: For absolute best flavor and chewy texture, I strongly recommend using bread flour. You can use a 1:1 substitution of all-purpose flour in a pinch with no other changes to the recipe. I recommend avoiding whole wheat flour in this dough. If necessary, use half bread flour and half whole wheat flour. The bread will taste a bit dense.
Round Loaf: If you want to shape the dough into a boule (round loaf) simply shape into a round ball instead of 2 loaves in step 4. Baking instructions are the same, but the loaf will take a few extra minutes in the oven.
Using a pizza stone: If you want to bake your bread loaves on a pizza stone, place pizza stone in the preheating oven. Transfer shaped and scored loaves to hot pizza stone and bake as directed.
No Nonstick Pan: If you don’t have a nonstick baking sheet, line it with parchment paper instead. Coat with a dusting of flour and/or cornmeal before placing the dough on top. Parchment paper can burn, so it’s best to check the box to see how much heat yours can tolerate. Lower your oven heat if necessary and bake the bread for longer until golden brown and when gently tapped, sound hollow.
Flavor ideas: Before pouring in the water in step 1, add any of the following ingredients/combination of ingredients to the dry ingredients in the bowl: 4 cloves minced garlic + 3 Tablespoons chopped rosemary, 3 Tablespoons your favorite fresh herb (chopped), 1 cup your favorite shredded cheese, a diced jalapeño, 3/4 – 1 cup dried cranberries and/or chopped nuts, 2 teaspoons garlic powder, etc.

Marshmallow

12/23/2020

Homemade marshmallows! What more needs to be said?! Except that they seem to keep VERY well - longer than the recipe's recommended time. They are beautifully silky and soft and toast up fabulously.

1/4 cup (30 g) cornstarch
1/4 cup (40 g) confectioners' sugar
3 packets (7_1/2 tsp) unflavored powdered gelatin
1 cup (237 ml) cold water, divided
1_1/2 cups (340 g) granulated sugar
1 cup (237 ml) light corn syrup
1/4 tsp fine salt
2 tsp vanilla extract

Whisk together cornstarch and confectioners' sugar.
Lightly oil a 13"x9"x2" pan and dust with some of the cornstarch mixture, reserving the remainder.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, sprinkle gelatin over 1/2 cup cold water and leave it to soften while you make the syrup.
In a medium saucepan, whisk together remaining 1/2 cup of cold water, sugar, and corn syrup. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat without stirring and continue cooking undisturbed until syrup registers 240F (115C) on a candy thermometer, about 7-10 minutes.
Fit stand mixer with whisk attachment and turn the machine on to low speed. Slowly add hot syrup to the gelatin mixture, pouring syrup in a thin stream. Beat mixture on medium-high until it is marshmallowy and cool to the touch and has nearly tripled in volume. Add the salt and vanilla, mixing on low speed until fully incorporated.
Use a rubber spatula lightly coated with vegetabl oil or cooking spray to spread the marshmallow evenly in the prepared pan. Dust the top with cornstarch mixture and make sure it's completely coated and doesn't have any sticky spots. (Reserve remaining cornstarch mixture.) Let the marshmallow set overnight before cutting.
Invert pan onto large cutting board. Lift up one corner of the inverted pan and use fingers to ease marshmallow out of pan onto cutting board. Use a large knife to trim marshmallow edges straight and cut into roughly 1" cubes. (An oiled pizza cutter can work too.)
Sift remaining cornstarch mixture into now-empty baking pan and roll marshmallows through it, coating all sides and shaking off excess. Transfer to airtight container and keep at room temperature up to 1 week or freeze for 1 month.

Lemon Bars

11/27/2020

This started out as an experiment as I had read a Cook's Illustrated article on how to make an intensely lemon-y lemon bar without the fillers starting to get in the way. It's a balance between the liquid - the lemon juice - and the setting dry ingredients - the flour - and you can't really increase one without increasing the other, except adding more flour simply cuts into the lemony taste, but without more flour, it would just become a runny mess.

Unfortunately, I've since lost the link to the Cook's Illustrated article, but it talked about a secret ingredient - cream of tartar. And from its detailed descriptions, I worked backwards from a standard lemon bar recipe and reconstructed the following for a crisp, crunchy shortbread topped with a truly lemony curd.

one portion of shortbread crust
⅔ cup lemon juice (about 3-4 lemons)
3 eggs + 3 egg yolks
1 cup sugar
¼ tsp salt
2 tsp cream of tartar
2 tsp zest
2 tbsp flour
4 tbsp butter, cut into four 1 tbsp chunks

Make one portion of the shortbread crust.
While the shortbread is cooling, combine all filling ingredients except the butter in a double boiler over medium heat. Continuously whisk while the double boiler is simmering, until the mixture has thickened to about a pudding consistency, with faint trails left behind by the whisk.
Remove the mixture from the heat and whisk in the butter one tbsp at a time, mixing until all the butter has been incorporated. Strain through a sieve into a clean bowl.
Pour over the shortbread crust in about a ½” thick layer and return to the oven for about 10 minutes. The filling should have only the slightest wobble to it when you shake it.
Let cool completely, remove from pan, then cut into rectangular pieces.

Macaron filling: Raspberry Buttercream

11/16/2020

The raspberry buttercream is one of my favorites as a macaron filling - a little tartness to take off that edge of berry sweetness.

1/4 cup soft butter
1/2 to 1_1/2 cups confectioners sugar, divided
4 tablespoons raspberry jam
1 tablespoon cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Blend together the butter and 1/2 cup of sugar. Add in jam, cream, and vanilla extract.
Gradually continue adding sugar to taste or until the mixture is soft enough to sandwich two macarons gently together.

Macaron

11/16/2020

One of the iconic tests of a baker's skill, the macaron, was something I had never had an inclination to try. Not only because of their storied fussiness, but quite simply, I hadn't liked to eat them. But! I was introduced to an episode or two of the Great British Baking Show in which featured a showstopper piece that used tiny, adorable maroon macarons ... and I was hooked. I absolutely had to try making them because they were just so cute and tidy-looking.

Well, as happy endings go, this won the slam dunk, as in the process of having to taste-test my own work, I started learning an appreciation for the taste and texture of the macaron as I tried to figure what the heck made them so special to other consumers. And now, I love both playing around with these little bakery sandwiches and consuming the results! Win-win!

100 g egg whites, room temperature (about 3 large eggs)
90 g granulated sugar
1/4 tsp cream of tartar (800mg)
130 g almond flour
130 g powdered sugar

Note: If you would like more details about the process (along with why you should or should not do certain things), this website was an excellent resource during my research. It helped me make proper macarons right out of the gate, no failures at all!

1-3 days before making: Separate egg whites and keep them in a container in the fridge. You may cover them with a sheet of plastic wrap and poke several holes into the top. When ready to make the macarons, take the egg whites out of the fridge an hour beforehand and let them come up to room temperature.
(optional) Prepare a guide for the macarons by printing out rows of one-inch circles on 4 sheets of paper and lining them on the bottoms of two baking sheets.
Lay parchment paper over two baking sheets, cutting them down to the size of the sheet tray. It's important not to fold over/overlap the parchment paper on itself, otherwise the macarons won't bake evenly.
Gently sift the confectioners sugar and almond flour into a bowl (don't try to force it through the sieve), throwing away the large bits that are left behind (don't be afraid to toss as much as a teaspoon's worth if necessary). Transfer to a food processor and pulse a few times for several seconds at a time. Then sift back into a bowl, once again throwing away the large pieces.
Add the room temperature egg whites into a very clean bowl.
Using an electric mixer, whisk egg whites. Once they begin to foam add the cream of tartar and then SLOWLY start to add the granulated sugar while you whip to the soft peak stage.
(optional) You can add food coloring if desired at any point between now and just before step 10. However, if you're planning on making more than one color of macaron from a single batch of batter, I would suggest you add it toward the end of step 9, just as the batter is coming together into its "lava" form. The last few folds of the spatula to mix the color thoroughly will also help the batter achieve this final state. It may take a little practice to recognize when the batter is about to achieve this ideal phase, so I would suggest making it using a single color a few times first until you learn the timing of each phase the batter goes through.
Add the vanilla. Continue to beat until stiff peaks form.
Begin folding in 1/3 of the dry ingredients. Once incorporated, carefully add the remaining dry ingredients and fold gently. It will go through a stage in which the batter looks granular, but keep folding and it will slowly start to incorporate and smooth out.
The final mixture should look like flowing lava, and be able to form a figure eight in the bowl without breaking the stream of falling batter. Spoon into a piping bag with a medium round piping tip and you’re ready to start piping.
If you want, you can glue down the parchment paper onto the baking sheet with dabs of batter under the corners. Pipe dollops onto the parchment paper by holding the bag straight up and down, squeezing, and then lifting with a circular motion of the tip. Once all the macarons are piped, lift up the baking sheet and let it drop on the counter several times to release air bubbles. Allow to sit for at least 40 minutes, or until a tacky "skin" forms on top that won't stick to your finger enough to break away if you tap it gently.
Bake at 300F for 7 minutes, rotate tray, then bake for another 5-8 minutes. The macarons are done when nudging them does not feel like you'll displace the top shell of the macaron from its foot. Allow to cool completely before removing from baking sheet, or else the foot might stick.

Note: Macarons are best made 1-3 days before being consumed. Even if you misjudge and overbake the macaron, they will soften over time. Pipe filling into their centers, then keep them in a covered container, and they will gradually absorb moisture and become more chewy.

Satin Buttercream Frosting

11/16/2020

What gives pipe-able frosting its structure and stability is usually sugar. Lots, and lots, and lots of sugar. Which I can't stand. So during one of my many long searches for various flavors of icing that don't need so much sugar, I stumbled across this recipe ... and it set beautifully. While I sometimes wish it had a more neutral sweet taste than the honey, obviously honey itself pairs well with tons of baked goods, so this will be a good go-to for decorations and piping.

1 cup butter softened to room temperature
1/2 cup room-temperature water
1/4 cup raw honey or favorite Keto liquid sweetener
1 tsp. sustainably-sourced gelatin
1/8 tsp. cinnamon
teeny pinch sea salt
(optional) 1/16 tsp. powdered stevia

Place water in small microwavable bowl and sprinkle gelatin over its surface. Allow gelatin to dissolve for 1 minute. Heat in microwave for 10 seconds at a time, stirring between each heating, until gelatin dissolves completely.
Stir in honey to dissolve. Also stir in the cinnamon, stevia and sea salt. Allow to cool to room temperature.
Place butter in large metal bowl and beat until creamy with hand beaters; then add honey-gelatin water in a slow stream. Beat until frosting is smooth and all honey water is incorporated evenly.
Frost your cooled baked good at this point. (If you refrigerate frosting before using, melt it down slightly again, beat and refrigerate until you have reached the right temperature and texture. Or bring it to room temperature slowly.)

Notes (taken directly from the author's website):

Room temperature Satin Buttercream is ready to eat. Frost any cake, the middle, top and sides and serve!
If you refrigerate this frosting it firms up and will not stick to the cake as well.
This Satin frosting will hold the shape of fancy, curvy frosting at room temperature, no wilting, no problem. But if you make cakes ahead of time and refrigerate them until the event, pull out the cake 1 hour or more before serving.
The only thing not to do with this buttercream is to frost the middle, top and sides, chill and serve. Nope! It will break off in slabs and pieces. If you refrigerate a fully frosted cake, let it first come to room temperature before serving. It’s best to serve the cake right after it’s made; or do like in the photos: pipe pretty shapes on top, fill the middle, but don’t frost the sides and all over, if you plan to chill it.

(Magical) Cream Cheese Frosting

11/16/2020

I love cream cheese frosting but hate the amount of sugar that's needed to stiffen it up if you're planning on doing anything more than slapping fat dollops onto a cupcake with a butter knife. So on one of my quests to find a less-sugared pipe-able cream cheese frosting, I stumbled across this - which I was skeptical of at first! But wonder of wonders, it actually held up beautifully as promised; even the tiny ridges in the examples below held up for hours at a time at room temperature! AND it preserved the tangy taste of the cream cheese. This was definitely worth the extra effort!

1 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups milk
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 ounces cream cheese softened but still cool
1/2 cup unsalted butter softened but still cool

Sift sugar, flour, cornstarch and salt into a small bowl and whisk to combine.
Pour milk into a small pot. Gradually whisk in the dry ingredients, ensuring there are no lumps.
Place over medium-low heat and cook, stirring often, until thickened. Pass mixture through a fine mesh strainer and into a heat-safe container.
Refrigerate for 2 hours.
Place the cooled mixture in a large mixing bowl, along with the lemon juice and vanilla, and whip on medium-high speed.
Whip in cream cheese, a tablespoon at a time, allowing each addition to fully incorporate before adding the next.
Whip in butter, a tablespoon at a time, allowing each addition to fully incorporate before adding the next.
Turn the mixer up to high speed, and continue to whip until very fluffy.