Apple Muffins

These muffins are a great fall treat. Eat 'em for breakfast on-the-go, as an after school snack, or serve them drizzled with warm caramel sauce for dessert.














Apple Muffins
makes 12

1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 t. baking powder
1 t. baking soda
1/4 t. salt
1 T cinnamon
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, room temperature
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 cup vanilla yogurt, stirred well (buttermilk is great too)
2 large apples, coarsely chopped

• Preheat oven to 450 and either grease or line a 12 cup muffin tin.
• In a medium bowl, combine the flours, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.
• In a mixing bowl, cream the butter until it has lightened in color and become slightly fluffy. Add the sugar, mix until combined, then add the egg. Slowly add the yogurt; mix well.
• Stir the dry ingredients into the wet and, while there are thick streaks of flour, add the apple. Mixture will be very thick.
• Using an ice cream scoop, divide the batter into the muffin cups.
• Bake for 10 minutes, turn the temperature down to 400 and bake for 18-20 minutes.
• Cool in tin for five minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
• Enjoy!

Peanut butter and Concord grape tart

Luscious Concord grapes beckon to me at the farmers market. Let their musky magnetism draw you in too! Pick up enough to make this crumbly, cookie-like tart (great for adults and kids alike) AND to munch on some straight-up. Go now, before it's too late!

Just-sweet-enough Concords are amazingly juicy and refreshing, and the super healthy seed adds a nice bitter bite. They make a great palette cleanser. Serve a couple of the gorgeous globes alongside the tart. Top it all off with a nice dollop of whipped cream or serve with a tall glass of ice cold milk. Either way, this is a happy treat!




























Peanut butter and Concord grape tart
serves 8

For the crust:
adapted from Martha Stewart

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for fingers and measuring cup
1/2 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt

• In the bowl of the food processor, pulse flour, butter, sugar, and salt until moist crumbs form. Alternatively, use your fingers or a pastry cutter to combine.
  
• Transfer dough to a 9-inch round tart pan with a removable bottom. With floured fingers, press evenly into bottom and up side of pan. With a floured dry-measuring cup, press edge of dough firmly against side of pan, pushing down with opposite thumb to level top of crust flush with rim.
• Freeze until firm, 10 to 15 minutes; prick all over with a fork. Bake at 350 degrees, until golden, 25 to 30 minutes. Half way through cooking time, use the floured measuring cup to press down the puffed up crust. Check the crust again about five minutes before it's finished and press down again, if necessary. Cool crust completely.

Filling:

2 1/2 cups Concord grapes
1/8 cup sugar
1/2 t. apple cider vinegar
pinch salt
1 T tapioca starch

1/4 cup butter, softened
1 cup smooth peanut butter
1/8 cup sugar
1/4 t. salt

• Preheat oven to 400.
• Using your fingers, pinch the pulp out of grape skins into a small saucepan. Reserve skins.
• Bring pulp to a boil over medium heat and cook 5-6 minutes, or until grapes have softened. Pour hot pulp through a medium mesh sieve over the reserved skins. Discard seeds. Stir pulp and skins until combined. Add sugar, vinegar, salt and starch; mix well. Set aside
• Beat together butter, peanut butter, sugar and salt until smooth.
• Spoon peanut butter mixture into tart shell and spread evenly.
• Pour grape jelly over peanut butter and spread gently until it barely reaches the edges (I like to be able to see that there's a layer of peanut butter underneath).
• Bake for about 15 minutes, or until the grape jelly has just set. Allow to cool completely.
• Enjoy!

peach jalapeno "salsa"

This really isn't salsa at all. It's basically sliced peaches, sliced jalapeno and a squeeze of lime. Savor the last-of-the-season peaches with a little bit of bite. (If you don't like it hot, dice the pepper and use sparingly.) Serve alongside turkey burgers or grilled chicken. Dinner is served.














peach jalapeno salsa

2 ripe peaches, sliced
1 jalapeno, ribs and seeds discarded; thinly sliced
juice of 1 lime
pinch sugar

• Combine all ingredients and allow to rest for 20 minutes-ish so the flavas meld.
• Enjoy!

Plum Torte

According to Florence Fabricant, the editor of The New York Times Dessert Cookbook, "This is the most frequently requested recipe that has been published in the Times." And how! This cake is super super (super) easy to make, and it really showcases the stone fruit of the season. Get thee you a farmers market and MAKE IT using whatever's ripe and raring to go; plums, peaches, nectarines, apricots or pluots... And visions of tortes will dance in your head.














Plum Torte
a Marian Burros recipe

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar, plus more for topping
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 t. baking powder
pinch salt
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
12 Italian prune plums, halved and pitted
1 t. ground cinnamon

• Preheat oven to 350
• Sift together flour, baking powder and salt.
• In a separate bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add dry ingredients to creamed butter. Add eggs, and beat well.
• Spoon the batter into an 8, 9 or 10-inch springform pan and smooth evenly. Place plum halves skin side up on top of batter. Sprinkle lightly with sugar, depending on the sweetness of the fruit. Sprinkle with cinnamon.
• Bake for 40-50 minutes, or until golden brown. Cool cake in the pan until room temperature. Remove sides of pan and serve. Cake may be refrigerated or frozen at this point. If frozen, defrost and reheat briefly for at 300.
• Enjoy!

peach + blueberry crostatas

We got just over a cup of blueberries in our CSA share this week and this didn't seem like quite enough for me to play with in a way I deemed fit. So, rather than gobbling them down on the spot, I decided to pair them with some of the uber-fragrant peaches from the green market. And what a combination they made! All wrapped up in a ridiculously tender (and simple, I might add) crust; I encourage you to make these babies soon. If, though, the thought of turning your oven on in the dog days of summer makes your skin crawl, wait until the fall and use apples, pears and cranberries. But really, you should make them NOW!














Individual peach + blueberry crostatas
makes 6

dough
2 sticks cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup cold water
filling
4 large peaches, halved, pitted and sliced 1/4 inch thick
1/2 cup plus more for dusting
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon cinnamon
salt
1 cup blueberries
flour, for rolling dough
1 large egg, lightly beaten

• Make the crust. In a food processor, pulse the butter with the flour and salt until it resembles coarse meal. Add the water and pulse just until a dough forms. Alternatively, combine the butter and flour in a large work bowl and use your fingers to work the flour into the butter until it resembles meal. Add the water and mix until just combined. Divide the dough into 6 pieces and flatten each into a disk. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile, make the filling. In a medium bowl, toss the peaches with 1/2 cup of the granulated sugar, the cornstarch, cinnamon and a pinch of salt. Fold in the berries.
• Preheat oven to 375, place racks in upper and lower thirds of the oven and lightly grease 2 baking sheets.
• Roll the dough. On a lightly floured work surface, roll out each disk of dough until it's about 1/8-inch thick. Transfer 3 to each baking sheet. Spread the fruit on the rounds and fold about 1-inch of dough over the fruit to form a rim. Refrigerate filled crostatas for 30 minutes.
• Brush the crusts with the beaten egg and sprinkle with sugar. Bake for about 50 minutes, rotating the baking sheets (top to bottom and front to back) halfway through baking, until the crusts are golden. Transfer to racks to cool for about 20 minutes.
• Enjoy!

Chill out w cantaloupe soup

The farm stands in Stone Harbor, NJ are brimming with the season's bounty. Melons, berries and corn beg to be eaten now, while the nectarines and peaches, still a little bit hard, will be perfect in a few weeks.

The earthy fragrance of the cantaloupe overwhelmed our car on the short drive to the homestead and, as it turned out, was already passed its prime. Luckily, family run Conovers was happy to give us a new one! Initially, I thought we'd have cantaloupe and bacon for breakfast (a spin on Prosciutto and melon), but because our first try was thwarted, we ended up bringing the new melon back to NYC and, by that time, I was craving something different...

Having indulged in more than a happy amount of summertime "junk" food, enter cantaloupe soup. Obviously, my version of a cleanse doesn't compare to the aggressive Master Cleanse (even remotely), but frankly, I don't want to spend 10 days in the bathroom. Two days of fruit soup and some poached chicken broth with greens, and my stomach is already grumbling again. That's all I needed; to feel hungry again. Hungry for some damn good melon soup! Serve it for breakfast, brunch and dessert. Or, if you get over-heated in your air conditioner-less apartment.





Cantaloupe Soup

1 cantaloupe
2 cups orange juice, divided
juice of half a lime
juice of half a lemon
1 t honey
1/8 t vanilla
1/4 t salt
1/4 t five-spice powder
garnish with a dollop of plain yogurt

• Prepare cantaloupe: cut in half crosswise and scoop out seeds, cut in half again, place on flat side and cut rind from the flesh from top to bottom (see below). Cut melon into chunks and place in the bowl of a food processor or blender. Add 1/2 cup orange juice and blend until smooth.
• Transfer to a bowl or large Tupperware and add the remaining ingredients. Mix well and refrigerate for a least an hour. Serve chilled.
• Enjoy!

Blueberry Crumb Cake

I love crumb cake and this one's a winner! Though the pictures here don't do it justice, I highly recommend this recipe. It comes together in about 15 minutes active time (it's baked and ready-to-eat in 45 minutes total) and it requires no fancy tools or tricks. The cake is moist with a soft crumb and the lemony zest nicely compliments the juicy blueberries resting on top. The topping is sugary and nutty and gives the cake great texture. All of these parts add up to a happy combination that utilizes the berries that are in abundance at farmers markets right now. If blueberries don't do it for you, go ahead and use any soft fruit you like, just cut into bite size pieces if necessary. Skip that bowl of boring old cereal or the semi-stale muffin from the corner bodega and make this crumb cake. Your morning cup of coffee will be that much more enjoyable. Seriously.





























Blueberry Crumb Cake

Cake
1/4 cup canola oil
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1/2 cup milk
zest of 1 lemon
1 1/2 cups flour
3/4 cup sugar
2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. salt

Topping
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 T flour
1 t. cinnamon
1/2 cup walnuts, broken
1 T melted butter
1 cup blueberries

• Preheat oven to 375 and place rack in middle position. Butter an 8 x 2 inch pan, set aside.
• In a medium bowl, combine the oil, egg, milk and zest and whisk well.
• Using any thing with fine-ish whole, sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt and add mixture to liquid ingredients. Mix well.
• Combine all of the ingredients for the topping except for the blueberries.
• Pour batter into prepared baking pan and spread evenly. Top batter with blueberries and then sprinkle brown sugar mixture over berries.
• Bake, turn once halfway through cooking time, for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
• Enjoy!

Strawberry Honey Butter

OMG, this is tasty. When I dip my spoon in for yet another big honkin' bite, I have to remind myself that it's butter. Why then do I feel less guilty smearing it on a piece of cornbread that's also largely butter? Anyhow, this is a keeper. Make sure to use super fresh strawberries for best results. Spread it on toast, biscuits, croissants...any vehicle will do. Just eat it!

Strawberry honey butter

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1 pint strawberries, cut into a small "dice"
1 T + water
1 t fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 T honey

• Heat the strawberries and 1 T water in a small saucepan over low heat. Cook until the strawberries have broken down and they are a jammy consistency, adding small amounts of water as necessary. (At this point, feel free to strain the strawberries through a fine mesh sieve to eliminate seeds.)
• Add lemon juice and honey and bring mixture to a boil. Remove from heat and cool slightly.
• In a medium bowl or Tupperware container with a top, combine butter and strawberry mixture until fully combined. Cool in refrigerator for at least an hour. Take out of the fridge 20ish minutes before serving to get the chill off.
  
• Enjoy!

Buttermilk Pancakes with Strawberries

Last week I used buttermilk to make chive biscuits to go alongside pork chops. As usual, there was leftover buttermilk. Motivated by the buttermilk's expiration date (it was the day after, but I seem to be okay...just livin' on the edge) and the dearth of any good breakfast fare, I made pancakes. The pancakes, loaded with gorgeous strawberries, needed no butter and were perfect with a good glug of New York State maple syrup. Yes please!

Stay tuned...I also made ridiculously yummy strawberry honey butter.

Buttermilk pancakes with strawberries
makes 12

1 1/3 cups all purpose flour
3 T sugar
2 1/2 t baking powder
3/4 t salt
1 1/4 cups buttermilk
2 eggs
2 T (1/4 stick) unsalted butter, melted, plus more for cooking
2 cups fresh strawberries, cut to medium "dice"
2 T butter for pan
maple syrup (bring to room temp if you think of it in time)

• Preheat oven to 250
  
• In a medium bowl, combine dry ingredients.
• Measure buttermilk into a 2 cup capacity measuring cup and add eggs. Whisk until incorporated.
• Pour buttermilk into dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Fold in strawberries.
• Heat a large nonstick pan or griddle (I wish) over medium heat and add about a quarter of the butter. Add batter using a 1/4 measuring cup and cook for about 3 minutes per side. Transfer pancakes to a baking sheet and keep warm in oven. Wipe out any dark bits from the pan, add more butter and continue until all batter is used.
  
• Enjoy!
  

Rhubarb strawberry puddin' cake

This is just plain freakin' YUM! And it's easy to make. I had a bee in my bonnet to make a tart, but by the time I got home this evening I didn't have the patience nor stamina. Enter this no-beating-or-chilling-necessary cake. I wanted a fair bit of the tart rhubarb to stand out, so I used more rhubarb than strawberries and kept the sugar to a minimum. I did, however, use candied ginger which lends a touch of sweetness. Anyhow, it turned out great. I just might have to whip up another one for mother's day. Susie, my mom, asked for a hula hoop! Sweet and tart all around...

Rhubarb strawberry pudding cake

1/4 cup water
1 1/2 t. cornstarch
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
4 cups trimmed rhubarb, chopped
2 cups strawberries, halved or quartered depending on size (they don't have to be tiny)
2 T candied ginger, minced
1 cup flour
1 3/4 t. baking powder
1/2 t. salt
1 large egg
1/2 cup whole milk
1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled *
1 t. vanilla

• Preheat oven to 400 and place rack in middle position. Butter an 8 inch square ceramic or glass baking dish.
• In a small to medium sauce pan stir together water, cornstarch and brown sugar. Bring to a simmer stirring constantly. Once at a simmer, turn down heat and stir occasionally, 3 minutes. You want the rhubarb to be soft with some integrity, not mushy. The change happens quickly, so watch closely in the last minute of cooking. Remove from heat. Stir in strawberries and ginger.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, salt and granulated sugar.
• In a large bowl, whisk together egg, milk, butter and vanilla until smooth. Add dry ingredients and whisk until just combined (batter should be smooth).
• Reserve 1/2 cup fruit mixture and add remaining to prepared baking dish. Pour batter over fruit, spreading evenly. Drizzle reserved fruit over top. Bake, rotating once, for 25-30 minutes, until golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean.
• Enjoy!

* So, I melted the butter and left it to cool while I measured out and prepared the rest of my ingredients. And, then I watched 30 Rock. By the time I got back to baking, the butter had started to solidify. To try to contain the enormous PILE of dishes that so frequently overtakes my kitchen, I melted the butter, poured it into the large stainless steel work bowl a la step 4 and proceeded to use the same sauce pan to cook down the rhubarb. All this to say, I had chunky butter that needed to loosen up a bit and I sure didn't want to create MORE dishes. Finally to the point...I ran hot water down the edges of the bowl, turning completely, until the butter warmed up and whisked smooth. (Placing the work bowl over hot water, in a water bath, would work too, but that would not harness the aforementioned pile.)

Banana Bread

I am a quick bread fanatic constantly looking for the one recipe that will allow me to throw all others away. The closest I've tasted is my mother's, but for some reason I am stuck on using butter instead of vegetable oil. This one's good, not great, and will do in a pinch. It certainly wins convenience and cost effective points. The amount of sugar is minimal, which I like, but I think next time I will add raisins to up the sweetness a bit naturally. I will also increase the amount of ginger and cloves considerably...maybe 1 t ginger and 1/2 t cloves, but that's just my taste. Alas, I am still looking for the definitive banana bread recipe. Let me know if you have it!!

Banana Bread

1 cup walnuts, toasted and coarsely chopped
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cups sugar
1 t baking powder
1/4 t baking soda
1/4 t salt
1 t ground cinnamon
1/2 t ground ginger
1/4 t ground cloves
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted and cool
3 large very RIPE bananas, mashed well
1 t vanilla

• Preheat oven to 350,put the oven rack in the middle position and grease a 9x5x3 loaf pan.
• On a baking sheet, toast nuts for 8-10 minutes. Cool, chop coarsely and set aside.
• In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, spices and nuts.
• In a medium bowl, combine mashed bananas, eggs, butter and vanilla.
• Lightly fold wet ingredients into the dry until JUST combined. Like muffin batter, you don't want to over mix or your bread will be rubbery.
• Pour batter into prepared loaf pan. Bake 55-60 minutes, rotating half way through, until a toothpick comes out clean.

So much more than a muffin

I NEVER pop out of bed in the morning, but this morning I sure did...in anticipation of coffee and, more realistically, a blackberry muffin! What a day! The constant drilling from my neighbors backyard (I live in an apartment and we are very close) isn't even bothering me. And the stack of dishes from last night's corn souffle and quinoa salad? Bring it on. Ahh life, it is the small things isn't it!

I adapted this recipe from Yvonne Ruperti's "Best Blueberry Muffins" in the June issue of Cooks Illustrated. I used half fresh blackberries and half frozen mixed berries because that was what I had on hand. Likewise, I substituted 3/4 cup vanilla yogurt and 1/4 cup milk for 1 cup buttermilk. The muffins are very moist and have a tender crumb. The sweetness factor is right on and there is a nice richness to the muffins, but they're light enough for breakfast. Make some and see how they surprise you...

Blackberry Muffins
yields 12 muffins

1 cup frozen berries and 1 cup fresh blackberries, or any combination of the two
1 1/8 cups plus 1 t. sugar
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/2 t. baking powder
1 t. salt
2 large eggs
4 T (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
1/4 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cup yogurt thinned with 1/4 cup milk (or buttermilk)
1 1/2 t. vanilla extract

• Preheat oven to 425 and adjust oven rack to upper middle position
• Liberally spray muffin tin with nonstick cooking spray or line with wrappers
• In small saucepan, bring 1 cup frozen berries and 1 t. sugar to simmer over medium heat. Cook, mashing berries with the back of a wooden spoon and stirring frequently, until reduced to 1/3 cup, about 8 minutes. Transfer to a small bowl and cool to room temperature.
• In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt.
  
• In a medium bowl, whisk remaining 1 1/8 cups sugar and eggs until they are thick and pale yellow, 50 seconds. Slowly whisk in butter and oil and, once fully incorporated, whisk in the yogurt mixture.
• Using a rubber spatula, fold egg mixture and 1 cup fresh berries into flour mixture until JUST MOISTENED. (The batter will be lumpy with a few streaks of flour.)
• Use and ice cream scoop or large spoon to equally divide batter into prepared muffin cups. Using a melon baller or a teaspoon spoon the cooked 'jam' into the middle of the batter trying to get (somewhat) beneath the surface. Use a chopstick to swirl the jam. If you like, sprinkle a bit of sugar on top of prepared muffins.
• Bake 17-19 minutes, until just golden and slightly firm. Rotate half way through baking time. Cool muffins in tins for 5 minutes and then transfer to wire rack.
• Enjoy!