Archives for 2012
Blueberry-Strawberry Tart for my 2nd Blogiversary
I can’t believe I started this blog 2 years ago. I started it on a whim, because I wanted to share recipes and techniques, was interested in food photography, and to continue learning, exploring, photographing and tasting all things baking and pastry. Over my two years of blogging, I have had ups and downs in life and in the blog world, but as Walt Disney said, “Keep moving forward,” and that is just what I have done.
I am trying to blog on a more regular basis and continually striving to improve my photography skills. I have been fortunate enough to have family and friends let me use their dslrs whenever they can, as opposed to my point-and-shoot that I use on a regular basis – thank you Aunt W & Susan! I am also experimenting in the kitchen more – hoping to bring you lots of original recipes in the coming year.
I thought a tart would be a nice blogiversary treat, instead of the normal birthday cake. Whatever dough and frangipane you do not use, can be frozen for later use. Just remember to wrap the dough very well. The frangipane can be put in a freezer ziploc. Let it freeze flat, then you can move it on its side, or wherever else you need to put it in the freezer. Remember to label them properly – name and date – so you always know what you have. Whenever you’re ready to use them again, just thaw for a day in the refrigerator.
Blueberry-Strawberry Tart
Love & Confections original recipe
Tart Dough Ingredients:
– 280 grams Pastry Flour
– 280 grams All Purpose Flour
– 225 grams Butter, cold and cut in small cubes
– 225 grams Confectioner’s Sugar
– 5 grams Salt
– 158 grams Eggs (roughly 3 large eggs)
Tart Dough Directions:
– Preheat oven to 350F
– Combine first 5 ingredients into the bowl of a stand mixer. Using the paddle attachment, on a low speed, mix the ingredients until the Butter becomes pea-sized and the mixture feels somewhat like sand.
– Add the Eggs, half at a time, and mix until combined. This is a very sticky dough.
– Once mixed, enclose the dough on plastic wrap, shaping it into a rough circle, and let it rest in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours.
– After the dough has chilled and rested, roll the dough out on a floured work surface. Gently place the dough in the tart pan without stretching it. Press it to the bottom, in the corners, and up the sides. Dock the dough, line it with a piece of parchment on it and pie weights or beans, and par bake it for 10 minutes. Remove the parchment and beans and let cool. The tart shell can me made ahead and frozen.
Frangipane Ingredients:
– 16 ounces Almond Paste
– 100 grams Sugar
– 195 grams Butter, room temperature
– 30 grams Almond Meal/Flour
– 250 grams Eggs (5 large eggs)
– 115 grams Flour, sifted
Frangipane Directions:
– This can be made while the dough is resting.
– Combine Almond Paste, Sugar, Butter and Almond Flour in the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment. Mix the ingredients on medium, stopping and scraping down the sides of the bowl every few minutes.
– While on low, add in the Eggs one at a time, making sure the Egg is thoroughly mixed in before adding the next. Scrape the sides of the bowl to ensure that everything is mixed properly
– Add in the Flour and mix on low until incorporated.
– Refrigerate mixture until ready to use, or divide into freezer bags as stated above.
Other Ingredients:
– 1 pint Strawberries, hulled and halved
– 6 ounces Blueberries
– Apricot Jelly
Tart Assembly:
– Measure 300 grams of the Frangipane into the tart shell. Using an offset spatula, spread and level the Frangipane. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the top is golden brown and springs back slightly when you tough it. Let it cool completely in the tart pan before going to the next step.
– Remove the tart from the pan and place on a cardboard cake round. Arrange the Strawberries around the edge of the tart. Place the Blueberries in the center of the tart.
– Warm the Apricot Jelly in a saucepan until liquid. You will need to add a few tablespoons of water, one at a time, to the jelly, so it doesn’t burn or darken too much.
– Using a pastry brush, brush the tops of the strawberries and blueberries with the Apricot glaze. This is best done right before serving. Keep refrigerated.
– Enjoy!
Until next time,
LOVE & CONFECTIONS!
Banana Nutella Bread
This isn’t an average banana bread. This banana bread contains the most delicious filling possible – Nutella!
Nutella® (pronounced “new-tell-uh”) is a spread made from roasted hazelnuts, skim milk and a hint of cocoa. It was created by a pastry maker, Pietro Ferraro, who founded the Ferraro Company in Italy. Nutella has no artificial colors or preservatives, is kosher, and gluten-free (does not contain any ingredients derived from gluten containing cereals: wheat, barley, rye, oats or triticale.) More information can be found at the Nutella website.
The banana bread recipe I used, is from a cookbook that is almost as old as I am. In 1988, my great-aunt, Anne, was the editor-in-chief volunteer for the A Taste of South Florida cookbook, in which the proceeds benefited the American Cancer Society. The forward says it best…
From the golden skyline of the Palm Beaches…the balmy breezes of Broward County… the magic of Miami… the tropical temptations and harvests of fresh produce of the Homestead/South Dade areas… through the dazzling Florida Keys where playful porpoises are on parade… this is the panorama of South Florida. Our cooking heritage has included the most intriguing combinations of traditions and the cosmopolitan. Our South Florida past with the scent of Spanish senoritas in mantillas… a trace of the Caribs… and spice from the Seminoles… make our cooking distinctive and different. The abundance of fresh fruits, vegetables, fish and game… the unusual flavor combinations… blending the old and the new… makes our South Florida cooking colorful and exciting.
This cookbook belonged to Booboop. I’m not sure our family has used any other banana bread recipe, since both she and my Mom each received this book, . The cover is fading, the pages are thumbed through and stained. The paper clip she used to bookmark the recipe is still in its place, after all these years. Her handwriting is in the margins, making notations about this recipe.
I was fortunate enough to inherit her copy of the book. The work my great-aunt put toward the cookbook, gathering and creating recipes to help the American Cancer Society, makes it even more special.
adapted from A Taste of South Florida
Nutella Banana Bread Ingredients:
– 1/2 cup Shortening
– 1 & 1/4 cups Brown Sugar
– 2 Eggs
– 2 cups Flour
– 1 teaspoon Baking Soda
– 1/4 cup Buttermilk or Sour Milk*
– 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
– 3 extra ripe Bananas, mashed
– 1/3 cup Nutella
*to make Sour Milk, add 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice to regular milk, stir, and let sit for a few minutes
Nutella Banana Bread Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350F. Grease and flour (or whichever method you prefer) 1 loaf pan or 4 individual-size loaf pans
2. Sift together Flour, and Baking Soda and set aside
3. Cream Shortening and Brown Sugar.
4. Add Eggs, one at a time, making sure it is fully incorporated before the next one is added. Scrape down the sides of the bowl to ensure everything is mixed properly.
5. Add sifted Flour to the mixture.
6. Add in Sour Milk, Bananas, and the Vanilla Extract. Scrape down the sides of the bowl to ensure everything is mixed properly.
7. Pour half of the batter into your loaf pan. Spoon the Nutella over the batter. You can leave the Nutella in the center, or with a knife, swirl the Nutella into the batter. My Nutella pretty much sank to the center, so I would recommend swirling it in… live and learn.
8. Pour the remaining batter into the loaf pan.
9. Bake for 1 hour, or until a tester inserted into the cake comes out clean (remembering that you have Nutella in the center)
Meyer Lemon Whipping Cream Cake
Before a couple of months ago, I had never had a Meyer Lemon. I knew what they were, I just never had one. A lot of people don’t know what they are – go out and get some, if this is you! Meyer Lemons are citrus fruit that is thought to be a cross between a lemon and an orange, or mandarin orange.
Meyer Lemons are “chubbier” than regular lemons. They have a bright yellow-orange skin, and are sweeter (less acidic) than the lemons found in the grocery store. My Publix and Whole Foods don’t carry them, but I was lucky and found some great Meyer Lemons at The Fresh Market. I seriously want to get myself a Meyer Lemon tree – but living in an apartment with no patio kind of makes it difficult.
I decided to do a cake for my first batch of Meyer Lemons. This cake is Delicious, with a capital “D”! It is insanely moist from the whipping cream, and easy to make. I have been wanting to make this cake for a while, and I’m so glad I did. Everyone loved it.
Meyer Lemon Whipping Cream Cake
adapted from Swan’s Down Cake Flour
Meyer Lemon Whipping Cream Cake Ingredients:
– 3 sticks unsalted Butter, room temperature
– 3 cups of Sugar
– 6 Eggs
– 3 cups Cake Flour, sifted
– Pinch of Salt
– 1 cup Heavy Whipping Cream
– 2 Meyer Lemons, zested and juiced
Meyer Lemon Whipping Cream Cake Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 325F.
2. Butter and flour (or you can use your favorite baking spray) a 10 inch tube pan
3. Sift Cake Flour and reserve.
4. Cream Sugar and Butter together until light in color, in bowl of stand mixer or with hand mixer.
5. Add Eggs, one at a time, remembering to beat well after each addition.
6. Add in Lemon Zest and Juice.
7. Add in Flour and Whipping Cream, alternating both, and beginning and ending with the Flour.
8. Pour into prepared pan and bake for 75-90 minutes – depending on how your oven heats – until a tester inserted into the cake comes out clean.
Meyer Lemon Cake Glaze Ingredients:
– 1 Meyer Lemon, zested and juiced
– 2-3 cups Confectioner’s Sugar, sifted
Meyer Lemon Cake Glaze Directions:
1. Whisk Lemon Juice, Lemon Zest and Confectioner’s Sugar together
2. Pour over cooled cake
3. Enjoy!
Until next time,
LOVE & CONFECTIONS!