Black and Blue Berry Crisp

Well, it's over.

Graduation weekend came and went in a flurry of activity and far too much food. We had multiple BBQs some with family some without and I'm pretty sure I haven't cooked a proper meal in almost two weeks. I also can't remember the last time I ate anything leafy, healthy or salad-like. Instead I seem to have replaced my usual vegetable intake with large quantities of dessert. 

At least this one has fruit in it.

This crisp actually started out as strawberry-rhubarb pie, but it seems as though rhubarb is everywhere except Binghamton right now. That's okay because this was a lot less work and turned out to be quite popular at the BBQ I brought it to. In fact, I also made mini cannolis and a raspberry custard tart but the recipe most people asked for was this crisp. It's funny how different people can have such different opinions; personally I thought this was just okay, if not a bit boring, but I received so many compliments that eventually I promised to post the recipe. 

The top is similar to granola in flavor but I think part of my issue with it was the lack of crunch. I wanted crisp and flaky but instead it was softer and crumbly. Don't get me wrong it's good the way it is, but if you are after a crunchier result like I am, try replacing half of the flour with more oats. I can't promise that will solve it but that would be my next step. It probably wouldn't hurt to bake it a bit longer as well.

Black and Blue Berry Crisp

Taste your berries, if they are particularly tart toss them with a tablespoon of sugar. Mine were pretty sweet and I like them on the tart side anyway so I didn't bother.

You could easily leave the nuts out if you don't like them but I highly recommend keeping them. I used sucanat because it's what I had at home but I think dark muscovado sugar would work the best. If you don't have either of those you could easily replace it with dark brown sugar. I served it with fresh whipped cream because there was no freezer to store ice  cream. Either is delicious but we all know I prefer ice cream any day. If you serve it warm, you could also serve a pitcher of cold cream along side to drizzle over the top. 

If you plan to add the coconut, as I suggested in the body of this post, toss it together with all the dry ingredients - I would suggest about a 1/2 cup. Serves 12.

9 cups blackberries

5 cups blueberries

scant 2 tablespoons whole wheat pastry flour

2/3 cup chopped toasted pecans

2/3 cups slice almonds

1 1/4 cup old fashioned rolled oats

1 1/4 cups whole wheat pastry flour

3/4 cup sucanat or muscovado sugar

3 tablespoons raw sugar

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.

Toast the nuts for 6 minutes, let cool and then chop course.

Mix the chopped nuts, oats, flour, both sugars, cinnamon, and salt.

Using a pastry blender, your fingers or a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, work the butter in just until the mixture comes together in a crumbly texture. Keep chilled until ready to use. You could even make it ahead and store it in the fridge (up to a week) or freezer (up to 2 months).

When ready to bake the crisp, butter  (or spray with olive oil) a 9x13x2in baking dish and set aside. Toss the berries with 2 tablespoons flour and 1 tablespoon sugar if using. Pour into baking dish and spread out evenly. Cover with crumb topping and bake 50-60 minutes or until crisp is golden and fruit is bubbling. Best if served warm but still delicious at room temperature. You could also make the whole thing the morning you wish to serve it and reheat it in the oven right before serving. 

Of course, being the rowing obsessed bunch that we are; the BBQ took place at our boathouse, where we taught our families to row. To see more pictures from the weekend click here.

In the meantime

I know I've been a little absent lately, you'll have to excuse me it's graduation week and I'm overwhelmingly busy. I have been baking my butt off though, and I'll have plenty of delicious things to share when I return. In the meantime I'll leave you with this almond cake from 17 and baking. I made it a few weeks ago for Jason's birthday and I have to say, the frosting was really the star of the show - it's mostly mascarpone and it tastes like a cannoli. (Have I told you about my obsession with mascarpone? It's getting a little out of control).

This cake is exactly everything I could ever want in an everyday cake; simple yet impressive, downright elegant with a generous layer of wonderfully light mascarpone frosting on top and a sprinkling of soft blueberries nestled inside. It's similar to a coffee cake in that it's a little dense and definitely needs a good cup of coffee to go with it, but it's perfect for a quick everyday breakfast cake. Best of all, it takes about 40 minutes from the time I roll out my mixer to the moment I pull it out of the oven.

Blueberry Almond Mascarpone Cake

From 17 and Baking

If you don't have buttermilk you can replace it with a 1/2 cup of milk and 1/2 tablespoon the white vinegar or lemon juice. Just combine the milk and lemon juice or vinegar and let sit 5 minutes until a bit foamy. If you use frozen blueberries, do not defrost them first or they will dye the whole cake cake bluish-purple.
Makes one 9" cake. 

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/3 cup almond meal (click here to read about almond meal)

1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 stick unsalted butter, softened
1/3 cup + 1/4 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/8 tsp almond extract
1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
1 large egg
1/2 cup buttermilk

3/4 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
2 tsp whole wheat pastry flour

Preheat oven to 400°F.
Butter a 9″ round pan, and then flour the pan.
In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a mixer, cream the butter and sugar at medium-high speed for about 2 minutes until light and fluffy. Mix in the extracts and lemon zest, then beat in the egg. Working on low speed, add 1/3 of the flour mixture, then 1/2 the buttermilk mixture, then another 1/3 of the flour, the last of the buttermilk, then the last of the flour. Mix until just combined.
Toss the blueberries with the remaining 2 tsp flour and stir them gently into the batter.
Scrape the batter into the pan and smooth the top. Bake 20-25 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then finish cooling on a rack. Cool to room temperature before frosting. If frosting the cake with mascarpone frosting, store the cake in the refrigerator.

Lemon Mascarpone Frosting
From 17 and Baking
Makes enough to frost one 9″ round cake

3/4 cup mascarpone cheese
1/3 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup powdered sugar
Zest of half a lemon
1/4 tsp vanilla

Beat cheese and cream together until smooth and creamy and slight peaks begin to form. Sift in the powdered sugar and zest and beat until smooth. Mix in the vanilla extract and spread on cooled cake.

In Under 5 Minutes

I love hot yoga. Nothing makes you feel better than an hour and a half of stretching, bending, twisting, and contorting yourself into seemingly unnatural-pretzel like shapes in a 111 degree room. It can make bad day seem insignificant, a good day seem better and easily detox the excess sugar from too much cookie dough (Me, eat too much cookie dough?? Never.) The only downfall is that I don’t make it to as many classes as I would like. The schedule tends to interfere with my classes and my dinnertime. Most of the classes are 5:30 to 6:30 or 7 and by the time I get home I'm cold, ready for a shower, and starving. On a night like this there is no overlooking the value of a meal that can come together in under 5 minutes. Especially a warm, healthy one like this. Feel free to increase the vegetables and leave out the pasta for less carbs. Spinach would also make a great addition here.

Parmesan Butter Bean Bow-Ties

It helped that I already had cooked pasta in my fridge but even if you have to boil some this still comes together in no time. Serves 1

½-¾ cup cooked butter beans

1 cup cooked whole wheat bow-tie pasta

½ cup frozen green peas

1 cup broccoli (I used frozen)

½ cup chicken stock (I used homemade)

A pinch of red pepper flakes

A pinch of dried rosemary

Parmesan cheese to taste (grated coarsely)

Salt and pepper to taste

Ready? This is really complicated. Put everything except the parmesan, salt and pepper in a pot. Cooked until heated through and most of the broth is absorbed. Add salt and pepper to taste, pour into a bowl and garnish with a generous amount of coarsely grated parmesan cheese. Enjoy with a piece of fresh crusty bread.

Gluten-Free Almond Chocolate Chip Cookies

I think I need to take a computer course. Isn’t that ridiculous? Isn’t my generation supposed to be naturally computer savvy?

Unfortunately I seem to have missed out on the “computer genius” gene and I’ve been struggling with uploading pictures off my camera (among other things). The program just shuts down every time I plug in the camera. I feel like I spend at least 75% of my day troubleshooting cursing at my computer and it makes me want to unplug it, toss it out the window, and move to the country. 

Am I crazy or are there other people out there who feel like technology is sometimes frequently more trouble than it's worth? I feel really old and crabby saying that but it's true, I hate computers.

I'm very frustrated because I had this great post planned for you guys; with some pictures from my race on Saturday (my boat placed second), a few scenes from opening day at the farmer’s market (I bought 5lbs of honey), and these delicious cookies I made for my rowers. I've been putting off posting about these things since Saturday because I can't seem to get the pictures off my camera. At this point I didn't want to wait any longer to share these cookies with you, so I've decided to post without pictures and update when I'm finally able to load them.
Edit: I was able to get pictures of the cookies off my camera but now I'm having trouble again so no market pictures.

Gluten-Free Almond Chocolate Chip Cookies

Adapted from Elana's Pantry. Yields about 24 Cookies.

I'm not allergic to gluten, nor are any of the guys who I made these cookies for but I’ve been wanting to try baking almond meal for a while. Unfortunately, the only company available in Binghamton is Bob’s Red Mill and I’ve read only bad reviews about it (dry, crumbly etc) – plus it’s about  $10 a pound. The Trader Joe’s* brand, however, is significantly cheaper and has a much better texture. It is a meal and not a flour so its not very finely ground but it adds great texture to cookies or a sturdier cake – just don’t try to make angel food cake with it.

These have a softer chewier texture, more like an oatmeal cookie. I received nothing but positive feedback on them but I want to cut down on the fat content - 10g per cookie is a bit high for me but that's due to the almonds. Since I'm not concerned with keeping them gluten-free, I'm going to try replacing a small portion of the almond meal with whole wheat flour. If you want to maintain the gluten-free properties but still want to cut down on fat, I suspect oat flour would do the trick nicely. However, If you want to replace more than 1 cup of the almond meal, you'll also need to increase the oil to replace the fat lost from the almonds.

These cookies are only slightly sweet so if you prefer yours sweeter I would suggest using maple syrup instead of honey or even half syrup, half honey. The syrup will add a slightly different almost caramelized flavor.

2 ½ cups almond meal**

1/2 teaspoon baking soda


1/2 teaspoon salt


1/2 cup honey (see headnotes)

1/2 cup light olive oil

1 tablespoon vanilla extract


1/2 cup extra dark chocolate chips***

Preheat oven to 350F

Combine all ingredients, except the chocolate chips, in a medium bowl. Mix well. Mix in chocolate chips and refrigerate for 20 minutes. On parchment-lined baking sheet, drop round (generous) tablespoonfuls of dough, spacing 2 inches apart. If dough seems dry and rigid, flatten a bit. If you like ultra chewy cookies, flatten dough into discs before baking.

Bake for 7-9 minutes, until lightly golden (If you like crisper cookies, bake 9-10 minutes.). It's important to let them cool on baking sheet for a full 10-20 minutes to set, otherwise they will just fall apart.

Notes

*The last time I was on Long Island I got a little carried away at Trader Joe's since we don't have one in Binghamton - I think I bought something like 9 pounds of almond meal. Oops.

**Be sure to store an opened bag of almond meal in the fridge or even the freezer so that it does not go rancid from the fat.

***I've been hearing a lot of good reviews on Guittard chocolate so I bought a bag of their extra dark chocolate chips. The result? They were good, but i prefer the larger size and flatter shape of my usual Ghirardelli 60% Dark chips.

Drunken Kirsch Brownies

There are three kinds of people in this world; those that like fudge-y brownies, those that like cake-y brownies, and those who would rather just have the ice cream that the brownies are usually served with - I fall into the third. It's not that I don't like brownies, I just find them boring. To make matters worse, one small brownie is like a caloric bomb laden with saturated fat. I'd so much rather have a bowl of berries with a fluffy mountain of fresh whipped cream and call it a day.

For all the ways I talk myself out of making brownies; Not worth it, I don't like them that much, just eat a piece of fruit, this other super sophisticated, impressive-looking dessert sounds so much more exciting - I always come back to my desire to have a good recipe for everything. That way when someone requests a batch of brownies, as they inevitably will, I'll have no problem throwing together the best brownies they've ever eaten. Then I'll serve them directly out of the oven with vanilla ice cream because, if you're going to eat a brownie, you might as well do it right.

In case you are wondering why there are no pictures in this post you can chalk it up to the fact that I'm an idiot and dropped my camera in the middle of taking them - and by dropped I really mean it went crashing down onto the tile floor in the most horrific thud I've ever heard leaving me standing there for the better part of 30 seconds afraid to pick it up or acknowledge what had transpired. When I finally picked it up and assessed the damage (small crack in the lower left corner of the body) I decided it was time to put it away even though I had yet to take a picture that I was happy with.

 

Drunken Kirsch Brownies

Brownies have but a few ingredients and they will only taste as good as the ingredients you use. Basically this is not the place to use cheap chocolate. In fact if there is ever an argument to use chocolate that cost a dollar an ounce, this is it. Over the past three weeks I've been playing around with recipes and different chocolates and ultimately I like Scharffen-Berger 99% Cacao Unsweetened Chocolate the best. It lends a deep, complex flavor to the final product and is worth every penny.

Over the past few weeks I've played with different recipes and variations. The base of this brownie is my favorite basic brownie so far. They're cake-y but not too thick with a crackly top. I've made them plain, with walnuts and with a cheesecake swirl (so good). I also tried a different brownie base the first time I made these but I wasn't as happy with the taste or texture - not to mention they fell apart no matter how long I froze them before cutting.

The next time I used my basic brownie recipe but added dried unsweetened, unsulphured cherries that I first soaked in Kirschwasser for the day. If you prefer more traditional brownies just leave out the cherries and kirsh or replace them with chocolate chips or nuts. Adapted loosely from Smitten Kitchen and 101 Cookbooks.

8 tablespoons Unsalted butter

3oz. Good Quality Unsweetened chocolate

1 cup Turbinado sugar

2 Eggs

1 tsp Vanilla

2/3 cup Whole Wheat Pastry Flour

6oz Dried Unsweetened, Unsulphured Cherries

100ml Kirschwasser

About 1 day in advance, pour the Kirsch and the cherries into a bowl or jar and leave at room temperature until the liquid is absorbed. Shake it up every once in a while especially during the first few hours - just to make sure all the cherries get a fair chance to drink up the alcohol. 

Preheat the oven to 350

Drain any remaining liquid from the cherries and set aside

Heat butter and chocolate in a metal mixing bowl (I like using the one from my stand mixer) and place bowl in simmering water over moderately low heat, to create a double boiler. Stir it occasionally just until melted. Remove from heat and whisk in sugar, eggs, vanilla, and a pinch of salt until well combined. Whisk in flour until just combined, add cherries and spread in an 8x8 baking dish (I used pyrex). Bake until edges are slightly puffed and center is just set, about 25-35 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature. I like them best straight out of the oven with a generous amount of vanilla ice cream. 

Note: If you have trouble cutting them, throw the pan in the freezer until very very cold, this will make it easier to get a clean slice.

Side note: I love that these only make one dirty bowl.

Getting used to the idea.

Everywhere I turn someone likes to point out that I only have 11 days of classes and 3 weeks until I graduate. Whoa.  

Put another way that's 38 hours at my internship, 11 days of class, 3 weeks, 3 short assignments, 1 take home final, 1 online final, 3 regattas, 1 banquet, 2 excessively long ceremonies, 1 BBQ, and 1 camping trip until I'm done with this city. Whoa. 

I guess I'm ready for it. When all is said and done I actually do like Binghamton, but I'm kind of done here.  A new city would be nice, one on the west coast maybe, or Boston or of course good old New York City. Preferably Manhattan but I'll settle for Brooklyn. I don't actually have a job so I guess I'm headed back to Long Island, back to my Dad's house. Sigh. At least it's free...and I don't have to clean it.

Actually, I've been getting used to the idea - just for the summer. It won't be so bad, there is a backyard where I can plant tomatoes, herbs, lettuces, spinach, cucumbers and whatever else I can fit into the dirt; and I'll have time, lot's of time. Time to row, time to run, time to apply for jobs that I actually want, and of course time to write.

Oh writing, I haven't felt like doing very much of it lately. I've been cooking, sometimes even taking pictures of what I make but it hasn't been the same. I haven't been motivated to create an attractive plate or set up a shot. I haven't been in the mood to carry my camera with me; In fact I haven't really felt like taking pictures of anything at all. Mostly, I've just been tired. 

Cooking and baking is like stress relief for me, but sometimes blogging takes away that release. When I know I have term papers and presentations to write, when I'm on the computer all day, that's when I want to focus on the soothing noises of a skillet sizzling, the whir of my KitchenAid or the feeling of warm water rushing over my hands. That's when I don't want to be distracted by having to stop for photographs or write about a recipe when I'm done. I probably don't want to spend any extra time on the computer, I don't want to sort through pictures and I most definitely don't want to organize my thoughts. Instead I want to go outside, I want to ride my bike, I want to do yoga and I want to read in the grass. I want to let other people do the talking, the writing. I want to just listen, read - take in someone else's thoughts.

With that finally out in the open, there are things I have made that I haven't told you about; like this delicious un-photographed cheesecake that I made at 1am Saturday morning, as a last minute dessert for Saturday night. There were also various salads and a new favourite yogurt mixed with poppy seeds and blueberries (on multiple occasions). There were more nights out than I really wanted, and more five minute meals than I generally like, but then there was also a BBQ at my house. A BBQ for which I made turkey burgers.

Turkey Burgers with Feta and Parsley

I came up with this recipe a few summers ago and I've been making them frequently ever since.

Makes 4 Burgers.

For Burgers:

1lb 99% lean ground turkey

1/2 of a small white onion, chopped fine

2 oz Feta

1 handful fresh parsely, chopped

garlic powder, salt, and pepper to taste

For Serving:

whole wheat hamburger buns (I like Martin's Whole Wheat Potato Buns or make you're own Brioche Buns)

1/2 of a small white onion sliced in rings

arugula

mustard

sour pickles

In a large bowl, mix all of the burger ingredients  until combined. Shape into 4 burgers and grill until cooked through. Serve on a bun with arugula, onion and mustard or over a salad. 

Burgers can be frozen raw to be grilled at a later date, no need to defrost first just leave on the grill a few minutes extra. Cooked burgers are also good cold the next day over salad.

Grilled Grouper

I finally cooked fish. Finally.


Remember way back in January when I said I wanted to try it? Well, I've been putting it off and putting it off but no more. Last night, Colin and I grilled a giant red grouper filet and now I'm addicted. It was so easy and didn't taste even a little bit fishy. We ate it with grilled asparagus and big bowls of salad. I feel healthy just writing about it.

Grilled Grouper and Asparagus
I really don't need to write out a recipe for this, it's that simple, but I'm so excited about it that I will anyway. Serves 2 

3/4 lb. fresh red grouper filet

2 tsp olive oil

Paul Prudhomme Seafood Magic to coat

1 Bunch Asparagus

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

2 tablespoons olive oil

garlic powder

salt and pepper

Break the woody ends off and place in a glass or tupperware container. Add the vinegar, oil, garlic poweder, salt and pepper. Cover, shake to coat, and let marinate 1 hour or up to 1 day.

Prepare a charcoal grill, add a metal fish/vegetable grate, and while it's heating up; brush fish with the olive oil and season generously with Seafood Magic. When the grill is ready, spread the asparagus on the grate and close the cover. After about 3-5 minutes flip the asparagus and add the fish. In another 3-5 minutes flip the fish and roll the asparagus off the direct heat. Cook fish until it's cooked through and the asparagus until they are crunchy with blackened bits but not mushy. Serve immediately with big green salads.