Tag Archives: sweet

Chocolate Chip Meringues

26 Tuesday Jun 2012

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It’s a happy thing when practicality and yumminess overlap in the kitchen. That’s the case with this recipe, born of the need to make a gluten-free dessert for dear friends, and helped along by the glut of egg whites in my freezer as a result of making pastry cream the week before. These homemade meringues are sweet, chewy little clouds, flavored with vanilla bean and mini-chocolate chips. They are simple, low-fat, and delicious, and that’s always a winning combo in my book.

I shaped mine with the help of an ice-cream scoop because I love the look of rows of brilliant white puffs, dotted with chocolate chips and sprinkles. However, if you’re feeling fancy, these can also be piped out of a large decorating tip into star shapes or little peaked mounds. They go beautifully with the tartness of summer berries, or served alongside coffee. They’re so easy to make, they almost qualify as an Easy-Peasy Friday recipe, and they are certainly a wonderful friend to have along for the weekend.

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Chocolate Chip Meringues
makes twenty-four 2″-wide meringues

4 large egg whites
1/2 tsp. cream of tartar
1/4 tsp. salt
1 c. granulated sugar
2 tsp. vanilla bean paste or real vanilla extract
2 c. semisweet mini-chocolate chips
chocolate sprinkles (optional)

Oven 200F. In a large mixing bowl, combine the egg whites, cream of tartar, and salt. Beat until soft peaks begin to form, then gradually add the sugar. Beat several minutes more, until mixture is thick and glossy, adding the vanilla at the end. Stir in the mini-chocolate chips with a silicone spatula.

Using a an ice cream/cookie dough scoop that holds 2-1/2 tablespoons, scoop out mounds of meringue about two inches apart on to parchment-lined baking sheet. Add sprinkles to the tops as desired. Bake for two hours at 200F, until outside of cookies is firm and centers are chewy marshmallow-like consistency. Alternately, pipe meringues into 1-1/2″-wide stars or mounds and bake at 200F for 1-1/2 hours.

Cool completely on baking sheets, then transfer to airtight container and store at room temperature.

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Pear and Marzipan Pastries

23 Thursday Feb 2012

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I am a little bit obsessed with brunch lately. Brunch has a lot going for it, to my mind. As a confirmed night owl, I am all for breakfast at noon, and inviting people over for brunch feels so much more do-able than homemade waffles for a crowd at 8 AM. Brunch is casual enough to remove the pressure associated with such portentous words as “dinner party,” yet it is still event enough to merit a few new recipes.

For me, brunch is about balance: breakfast and lunch, savory and sweet. This recipe is the perfect brunch candidate in the sweet category. The combination of buttery pastry, tender pears, and the richness of almond paste was inspired by a recipe from Gale Gand’s cookbook Brunch!. If you are joining me on the brunch bandwagon, her recipes are a good companion to have along for the ride. The one caveat might be that she has been an acclaimed pastry chef for so long, she’s a teensy bit out of touch with how things operate in a regular kitchen. (God bless her, it’s not her fault she hasn’t purchased puff pastry from a store in twenty years.)

I have no problem changing ingredients and ratios as I see fit, though; hence the recipe below, which I adjusted in several ways to tame the cloying sweetness of the original. Although a natural for breakfast, these charming little pastry parcels also make an indulgent dessert for a weeknight supper. They take very little time to put together, the most arduous task being peeling and coring a couple of pears. You can use marzipan and almond paste interchangeably here, depending on your preference and pantry. (See the Chewy Almond Macaroon recipe notes for more about both.) I also wouldn’t be opposed to finishing with a drizzle of creme fraiche — but then, would I ever? :)

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Pear and Marzipan Pastries
makes six

14 oz. all-butter puff pastry (one sheet, thawed overnight in refrigerator if frozen)
4 oz. marzipan or almond paste (I use Odense)
1/4 c. cream cheese, softened
2 Tbsp. sour cream (preferably all-natural)
1/4 c. cinnamon sugar (I make mine in batches of 1/2 c. granulated sugar + 1 Tbsp. ground cinnamon)
1 tsp. fresh lemon juice
1/4 tsp. salt
2 ripe pears, peeled, cored, and sliced into about 18 wedges
a dash of freshly grated nutmeg
1 egg
coarse sugar (optional)

Oven 425F. Cut the puff pastry sheet into six squares of about equal size and arrange on parchment-lined baking sheet. Slice the marzipan into six equal portions, then shape each portion into a disc about 2″ wide and 1/2″ thick, and place one disc in the center of each pastry square. In a small mixing bowl, thoroughly whisk together cream cheese, sour cream, lemon juice, salt, and 3 tablespoons of the cinnamon sugar. Place a generous dollop on top of each marzipan round. Top the cream on each pastry with three overlapping wedges of pear, then sprinkle the tops of the pears with the remaining 1 tablespoon of cinnamon sugar and a sprinkling of freshly grated nutmeg.

Carefully gather the four corners of each pastry together at the top and twist them together to form a little parcel with a pastry topknot in the center. (Be sure to press the corners together well enough that they won’t come apart during baking.) Beat the egg in a small bowl, then brush the tops of each pastry lightly with the egg wash. Sprinkle on coarse sugar if desired, then bake for 25-30 minutes, until pastries are puffed and golden. Transfer immediately to cooling rack and allow to cool before eating.

These are fantastic warm from the oven or room temperature. They don’t reheat well, however, so eat them within a day of baking. (That’s not meant as a challenge. ;)

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Mini Oatmeal Cream Pies

13 Friday Jan 2012

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In the southern United States, Little Debbie Oatmeal Creme Pies are an institution. Growing up overseas, they were one of the foods I craved most during our return visits to Nashville. There was no one happier than little 10-year-old me, smooshed in the back seat of a wood-grain station wagon between suitcases and my little sister, with an Oatmeal Creme Pie in one hand and a glass bottle of Orange Crush in the other.

But when I developed severe preservative allergies in 2007, all things Little Debbie were instantly off-limits. The ingredients in Oatmeal Creme Pies and their other baked goods have sadly grown less natural in the years since the Tennessee bakery started selling desserts out of the back of a car in the midst of the Depression. Turns out they have to spell the filling “creme” because it doesn’t actually contain any real dairy products.

Anyone who knows me knows I don’t give up easily, and I resolved to re-create my childhood treat in a homemade, all-natural, sulfite-free form. This recipe is the result: moist, chewy oatmeal cookies with a hint of cinnamon and the subtle toffee flavor of molasses and turbinado sugar, sandwiched around lightly sweetened, gooey cream cheese filling that makes you want to check whether there’s any left in the bowl. And in a satisfying bit of traveling full-circle, these have turned out to be one of my kids’ very favorite desserts, so much so that my daughter asked for them instead of birthday cake this year. :)

Mini Oatmeal Cream Pies
makes 24 sweet little food memories

For cookies:
1 3/4 c. all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp. kosher or coarse sea salt
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 c. unsalted butter, softened (2 sticks)
3/4 c. turbinado sugar (see these Recipe Notes for more info)
1/2 c. granulated sugar
2 Tbsp. unsulphured molasses
1 tsp. vanilla bean paste or real vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1 1/4 c. rolled oats (not instant)
1/4 c. shredded, unsweetened coconut (preferably unsulphured)

For filling:
8 oz. cream cheese (preferably all-natural)
1/2 c. confectioner’s sugar, sifted
3 Tbsp. golden syrup (see these Recipe Notes for more info, can substitute light corn syrup or marshmallow fluff)
1/4 tsp. salt (not coarse)

Oven 350F. In medium mixing bowl, whisk together flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon. In another large mixing bowl, use electric mixer to cream together butter, both types of sugar, molasses, and vanilla until light and fluffy, 4-5 minutes. Beat in eggs one at a time until well-mixed. Stir in flour mixture with a silicone spatula, then stir in oats and coconut. Mix thoroughly until dough is uniform and slightly sticky.

Scoop tablespoons of dough on to lightly greased or parchment-lined baking sheets. Bake about 12 minutes, until edges are set and lightly golden but centers are still a little soft, being careful not to over-bake. Let cookies cool on sheets five minutes, then transfer to racks to cool completely.

For filling, mix all ingredients with electric mixer until creamy and smooth, at least five minutes. Spread a heaping teaspoon of filling on the flat side of one cookie, and then sandwich another on top. (Be generous, there’s plenty.) Refrigerate cookie sandwiches until filling is set before serving, then store in air-tight container in refrigerator for up to five days. They’re even better the second day.

This recipe doubles easily, but you may want to refrigerate the dough between putting batches in the oven because it takes a little while. If you’re feeling extra industrious or are making these for a special occasion, they are especially charming individually wrapped in cellophane.

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Sweet Orange Scones

24 Monday Oct 2011

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Scone purists, avert your eyes. :) This glazed scone recipe is more shortcake-pastry hybrid than anything traditionally found at a British cream tea. That said, it is also one of my favorites and a moist, delicious way to celebrate the entrance of winter citrus. I made up this recipe after I got a craving for Panera’s orange scones (off limits for me now because of food allergies), and I couldn’t be happier with the result. They’re like sunshine in your mouth.

Sweet Orange Scones
Makes 12 scones

For scones:
3 1/4 c. all-purpose flour (I prefer King Arthur Flour)
4 tsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. fine salt
1/2 c. granulated sugar
zest of 1 orange, finely chopped
1/2 c. unsalted butter (one stick), softened
1 egg
1 tsp. real vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste (I am a vanilla bean paste devotee)
1 tsp. almond extract
1 c. buttermilk (or for quick sour milk replacement, see below)

Oven 400F (375F for dark-coated pan)
In medium mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, and zest. Rub in butter with your fingers until mixture is soft and crumbly. I love the buttery orange scent at this stage.

In small mixing bowl, whisk together egg, vanilla and almond extracts, and buttermilk/sour milk. Add to dry mixture and mix well until combined into a sticky dough. (You may need to add an extra 1/4 c. flour if it’s very humid.) Spread dough into a lightly greased 9″-round cake pan. Bake 30-33 minutes, until golden brown and tester in center comes out clean. Cool five minutes, then turn out on to rack and flip again so it’s right-side up. While cooling, make glaze.

For glaze:
juice of 1/2 lemon
juice of 1 orange
zest of 1/2 orange, finely chopped
1/2 tsp. real vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
1/4 tsp. almond extract
2 c. powdered sugar, sifted

Whisk together juices, zest, and extracts, then add powdered sugar. Whisk until smooth. Place cooled scone round on plate and cut into twelve wedges. Pour over glaze and refrigerate at least 1/2 hour before serving — this gives the glaze time to thicken and soak in to the edges of the scones… yum. If you use all the glaze, there will be a puddle on the plate that will sweeten the bottoms of the scones as well. I don’t see that as a problem, but to each her own. :) These just cry out for a glass of cold milk or a cup of hot Earl Gray tea.

*Quick sour milk: if you don’t have buttermilk on hand, as is often the case for me, you can substitute homemade sour milk. Just put the juice of a lemon or 1 tbsp. vinegar in a liquid measuring cup and add milk until it totals one cup. Stir briefly and let sit 1-2 minutes before using.

Recipe Notes + Tips:
It’s a little extra work to make fresh zest and juice, but it’s worth it. No matter the quality of your favorite commercial orange juice, it cannot compare to fresh-squeezed. Full disclosure: I never squeeze a dozen oranges before I have a glass of OJ with breakfast, I pour it out of a plastic container just like everyone else. But this recipe wouldn’t be the same without the fresh juice.

There is also no replacement for fresh citrus zest. Be sure to zest only the peel, not the bitter white pith. If you don’t have a citrus zester, you can use the smallest holes on your cheese grater; just scrape the inside of the grater with a silicone spatula when you’re done to get all of it.

I am an unashamed citrus zest hoarder — my family thinks nothing of finding naked fruit in the fridge, pre-zested and clothed only in plastic wrap. It makes me happy to know there are little bags of chopped lemon and orange peel in my freezer, waiting to be added to compound butter, roast chicken, soup, and stock. I say take comfort wherever you can get it. :)