Monthly Archives: July 2009

Whisk It Wednesday: Never too many cooks

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Good Food, Good Fun

 

  • 5 brothers
  • 5 wives of the brothers
  • 5 hours at a lake cabin
  • Great food and good fun (too much to quantify)

 

My husband’s four brothers are scattered here and there across the country, but once each summer they make it a point to get together.

One brother volunteers to be the host, and along with his wife, they make a plan.

This year we all met at a lake cabin owned by one brother and his wife. This brother would make the grilled steaks that he is famous for. The wife would make a salad and twice-baked potatoes. The rest of us each recieved a food assignment.

I brought Rosy Radish Dip and fresh vegetables to snack on before the meal.

L made a wonderful fresh green salad with strawberries, oranges, green onions and caramelized almond slices. She offered two dressings that she had made — one was poppyseed dressing, the other, lemon grass vinaigrette. See that bottle with the white cap on the table? That’s the lemon grass dressing. It’s the one I chose. So light and fresh tasting, with just a hint of lemon. L got the recipe from a friend who got the recipe from a restaurant in Arizona. The restaurant recipe was enough to feed hundreds with a gallon of oil and 10 pounds of lemon grass. L has learned to blend the ingredients together (in much smaller amounts), tasting as she goes, until it tastes just right.

 

 Lemon Grass Vinaigrette

(inspired by a vinaigrette served at Tonto Verde in Arizona)

  • 2 1/2 pounds chopped lemon grass (My sister-in-law buys frozen chopped lemon grass at an Asian market)
  • 4 cups sugar
  • 1 cup unseasoned rice vinegar
  • 2 cups apple cider
  • 2 cups lemon juice
  • 4 cups canola oil

Blend extremely well. Let stand for 24 hours, then strain twice. Shake well before using.

Host brother, J, grilled steaks that had been marinating overnight in the refrigerator. He seared the meat, sealing in the juices and giving the meat some great grill marks. And then he did his magic, making sure each steak was cooked just the way each person had ordered.

Marinade for Steak

  • 1/2 cup oil
  • 1/2 cup soy sauce
  • 2 tablespoons lemon juice
  • Garlic powder or fresh garlic
  • 1/4 cup brown sugar

Blend ingredients together. Pour over tenderloins. Marinate in refrigerator overnight.

My steak was so tender, it melted in my mouth. The flavor was incredible. Twice-baked potatoes were the perfect accompaniment for the steaks. My sister-in-law, J, made a wonderful salad with peas, green beans and white corn kernels. I’m waiting for the recipe.

And, of course, no family meal is complete without dessert. My sister-in-law, S, was assigned to bring a dessert. She said she went to her recipe box and found a recipe that came from our mother-in-law, Mary. I’ve shared some of her delicious creations with you at other times. Mary was a great cook and was always willing to share her recipes.

With full tummies and tired from an afternoon of sunshine and lake air, we said our good-byes and all headed home. Until next summer. Then, we’ll do it again.

 Mary’s Raspberry Dessert

  • 2 (10 oz.) packages frozen raspberries in syrup
  • 1 cup water
  • ½ cup sugar
  • 2 teaspoons lemon juice
  • 4 tablespoons cornstarch
  • ¼ cup cold water
  • 50 large marshmallows
  • 1 cup milk
  • 2 cups heavy whipping cream
  • 1 ¾ cups graham cracker crumbs
  • ¼ cup melted butter
  • ¼ cup chopped nuts

 

Heat raspberries with water, sugar and lemon juice. Dissolve cornstarch in ¼ C cold water. Stir into raspberries and cook until thickened, then cool. Melt marshmallows in milk over boiling water, cool thoroughly – stir occasionally as it cools. Whip heavy cream and fold into marshmallows. Mix graham cracker crumbs, nuts and melted butter. Pat into 9 X 13 pan. Spread marshmallow cream mixture over crumbs. Spread raspberry mixture over top. Refrigerate until firm. Serve with whipped cream. Can be frozen.

 

No bologna — this sandwich rules!

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As you can see by the picture, I’ve come a long way since my days of eating bologna between two slices of mayo-slathered white bread. I do still crave an occasional peanut butter and jelly sandwich, though.

When I made some Rosy Radish Dip, fashioned after the delicious radish dip I tasted recently at Food and Farm Day at Common Roots Cafe in Minneapolis, I thought it would be great spread on a bagel, eaten along with a fresh green salad for lunch. And it was.

The bagel spread with radish dip led to the creation of a sandwich. I’m sure you would have plenty of ideas of your own — sandwich ingredients that would be delicious with the zesty pink radish dip.

This is my creation and I absolutely love it. Such a great way to eat radishes.

Sunny Sprouted Turkey Sandwich on a Bagel

For each sandwish:

  • 1 bagel, cut in half
  • Rosy Radish Dip (click here to get my recipe)
  • Fresh alfalfa sprouts
  • Sunflower seeds
  • Thinly sliced turkey from the deli
  • Thin slices of cucumber

Lightly toast the bagel. Spread cut sides with Rosy Radish Dip. Start building the sandwich. Sprouts, sunflower seeds, turkey, cucumber slices, top half of bagel.

 

Whisk-It Wednesday: Cooked, Smooshed and Baked Potatoes with Eggs

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Not too long ago, I saw some potatoes on a food blog that I visit often. Palachinka shared a recipe for Squashed New Potatoes that sounded like an amazingly easy way to prepare and enjoy creamy little red new potatoes. Just boil the potatoes in their skins until fork tender, smoosh them and then give them a good douse of olive oil, a generous sprinkling of salt and pepper and bake them.

I’ve found the potatoes are wonderful served with grilled steaks. I’ve served them with slices of Grilled Cherry-Soaked Pork Loin, a recipe I shared in one of my recent newspaper columns. It’s a match made in heaven.

Any leftover potatoes can be slipped into a plastic zip-top bag and refrigerated for up to three days. When it’s time to prepare the next meal, I simply rebake them with more olive oil drizzled over the top of each. I guess that would make them twice-baked potatoes.

One of my favorite ways to eat the second-time-around potatoes is to top them with a cooked egg and any vegetables I happen to have. I saute peppers, onions and garlic before spooning them over a poached or fried egg perched atop the smooshed potato. It makes for a delicious breakfast. A little sprinkling of cheese is good, too.

Wouldn’t creamed fresh-from-the-garden peas be so good on these potatoes? Or chicken a la king? Or how about setting a Cooked, Smooshed and Baked Potato in the bottom of a shallow soup bowl and scooping some creamy homemade tomato soup over it? Or maybe a grilled polish sausage, split lengthwise, placed atop the potato, smothered with sauerkraut? Oh, yeh.

Any other ideas? Just leave a comment and let us know.

Cooked, Smooshed and Baked Potatoes

Cooked, Smooshed and Baked Potatoes

  • New potatoes, about 2 per person
  • Olive oil
  • Coarse salt
  • Freshly ground black pepper

Put potatoes in a large pot and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat, cover pot and simmer potatoes until just tender.

Drain the water away. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place hot cooked potatoes on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Using a clean kitchen towel to protect your hand, give each potato a smoosh to flatten. Drizzle each potato with lots of olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Bake at 400 degrees for 30 minutes. Serve hot.

Once potatoes are smooshed, they can be kept in refrigerator, covered, for a few hours before baking.

 

We’ll All Scream for Crunchy Ice Cream Sandwiches

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Start with oatmeal cookies (the homemade variety, of course), add ice cream, make sandwiches, then sit back and watch the enjoyment as happy people eat them.

Kids love ice cream sandwiches, and adults feel like kids as they eat them.

Raisins are always a great addition to oatmeal cookies, but when they are frozen, they can get hard and difficult to chew. It seems the perfect way to get their sweet flavor in an ice cream sandwich is to puree them before incorporating them into the dough.

I discovered, too, that giving raisins the puree treatment fools those who dont’ care for those little dried grapes. My husband is a good example. He won’t eat anything that involves raisins. I offered him one of these cookies, still warm from the oven. After he ate about three of them, he asked, "What is that flavor that I can’t quite pinpoint? Dates?" (He likes dates — hates raisins). I thought it safe to share the secret with him. How could he say he didn’t like them after already wolfing down three with great gusto? He gave me a sheepish little grin and grabbed another cookie.

The sandwiches keep well in the freezer, of course. I don’t know for sure how many days, though. The sandwiches I made disappeared from the freezer in no time.

Your family and friends will scream out loud for these frozen treats.

Crunchy Ice Cream Sandwiches

  • 1/2 cup raisins
  • 1/2 cup butter, room temperature
  • 1/2 cup light brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 3/4 cup wheat germ, plain
  • 1/2 cup quick or old-fashioned oats
  • 1 cup flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • Vanilla ice cream

Place raisins and 2 tablespoons of the sugar in a blender or food processor. Whirl, stop and go fashion, until pureed.

Beat 1/2 cup butter with remaining 2 tablespoons sugar and brown sugar. Beat in eggs, vanilla and raisins. Add wheat germ, oats, flour, salt and cinnamon. Blend well. Chill dough about 1/2 hour.

From dough into 24 balls. Place 4 inches apart on lightly greased or parchment-lined baking sheets. Flatten to 3-inch rounds with bottom of moistened glass dipped in some sugar. Bake in preheated 350-degree oven for 10 to 12 minutes, or until done. Remove from baking sheets and cool on wire racks.

Place generous scoop of ice cream on bottom side of 12 cookies. Top with remaining cookies. Press together, sandwich fashion. Place on tray. Freeze until firm. Wrap each separately and store in freezer. Makes 12 sandwiches.

If you’d like, make some chocolate glaze and dip each frozen sandwich halfway into the glaze. Return to freezer to set chocolate.

Chocolate Glaze

  • 1 (6-ounce) package semisweet chocolate morsels
  • 6 tablespoons butter

Combine chocolate pieces and butter in small saucepan. Stir over medium heat until melted and blended.

Whisk It Wednesday: Picnic Pasta Salad

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On this Whisk-It Wednesday, I whisk a recipe out of my email inbox.

Every once in a while I find a recipe in my inbox, sent to me from someone who reads my weekly newspaper column. It doesn’t happen often, but when it does, I know that the recipe is a favorite of the person who sent it to me.

Before the 4th of July, a reader who lives in Arizona sent me a recipe for pasta salad. She explained it was her favorite dish to serve at a 4th of July picnic.

As soon as I read through the recipe, I knew I would try it soon. Pasta tossed together with lots of good, crunchy vegetables, some meat and a dressing that has no mayonnaise, making the salad a perfect summer traveler.

My eight-year-old granddaughter was here for a sleepover right before the 4th of July. She asked me to make some fettuccine alfredo, her favorite dish when she goes to Olive Garden or Johnny Carino’s Italian Restaurant. I cooked a whole box of penne. Some went into a couple of bowls and was topped with rich homemade alfredo sauce that we made together. The rest of the cooked pasta got scooped into a zip-top plastic bag and into the refrigerator it went.

A couple of days later, I remembered the pasta salad recipe that was in my office. it would be just the right way to use that refrigerated penne.

I went out to my little garden and snipped enough basil and Italian parsley for the dressing. That alone was exciting for me. You know what kind of gardener I am — anything I can get to grow makes me happy.

The dressing can be prepared in a food processor or blender up to a few days before actually making the salad. Store it in a large jar in the refrigerator.

The recipe calls for rotini. I’m sure the little spirals would catch all the lovely dressing with its speckles of basil and parsley. I used the leftovoer penne, all the little ridged tubes stuck tight together in the bag. It wasn’t exactly the makings of a picturesque salad, but it worked.

The one red pepper I had in the refrigerator displayed a moldy middle when I cut it open. I used some bits of yellow pepper that I had, instead. And, I just couldn’t stop myself from tripling the amount of garlic. I used 3 cloves instead of just one.

And all the delicious ingredients worked together to create a magnificent pasta salad. It’s a keeper, for sure. I’ll be making it often.

And now you can, too. How nice it is that people are willing to share recipes.

Pasta Salad

Dressing:

  • 1 cup fresh basil leaves
  • 3/4 cup fresh parsley leaves
  • 3 chubby cloves garlic
  • 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
  • 2/3 cup red wine vinegar
  • 1 1/2 cups extra-virgin olive oil
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Pulse basil leaves, parsley and garlic in food processor until chopped. Add mustard and vinegar and process. With processor running, add olive in a slow, steady stream. Process until dressing is well blended. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Store in refrigerator until ready to make salad.

Salad:

  • 10 ounces rotini pasta, cooked al dente
  • 1 red pepper, diced
  • 1/2 cup red onion, diced
  • 1 green pepper, diced
  • 1 small jicama, peeled, diced
  • 2 cups cooked, chopped chicken (from 2 good-sized bone-in chicken breasts)
  • 2 cups diced salami (It takes about 1/2 pound)
  • 1 cup pine nuts, toasted
  • 2 cups freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Toss warm pasta with some of the dressing and set aside. Prepare remaining ingredients and toss everything together, except pine nuts and cheese. Add those ingredients just before serving.

 

My notes:

  • Be careful when toasting the pine nuts. They are expensive. It is terrible when they burn. I stir them in a skillet on the stove, never leaving them, until they are golden. Immediately transfer them to a glass plate to cool.

This is how I prepare chicken for salads:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Measure 1 teaspoon kosher salt and 1 tablespoon chopped fresh herbs of choice onto cutting board. Add 2 chubby cloves of garlic and mince all together.

Loosen skin on 2 bone-in chicken breasts. Spread garlic mixture under the skin, using all of the seasoning mixture.

Tuck 2 slices of fresh lemon under skin of each breast. Place breasts on foil-lined rimmed baking pan or dish. Generously drizzle each breast with olive oil. Season with black pepper. Roast for about 1/2 hour, or until chicken is done. Remove from oven and allow to rest. (I take it out of the oven when my instant read thermometer reads 155 degrees when stuck into the thickest part without hitting a bone. It will continue to cook as it rests.)

 

Italian Peppered Strawberry Pavlova — Wow!

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My friend, Liz, who lives in Arizona, not only shared her pavlova recipe with me, she also gave me a recipe for Italian Peppered Strawberries. She serves the drunken berries spooned over vanilla ice cream in big goblets for an elegant dessert.

I fell in love with her pavlova that I made for my column this week. Its thin layer of crunch on the outside with soft chewiness on the inside is quite heavenly.

I decided to try making some smaller individual-sized pavlovas, spread them with mascarpone cream and top them with Liz’s Peppered Strawberries.

Oh, yes. Decadent. Delicious. Perfect way  to use some of the local fresh strawberries that are available now.

I was shooting this photo one morning before I’d eaten breakfast. It became my breakfast. Eat with caution if it’s your first meal of the day. The strawberries are soaked in sambuca (anise-flavored liqueur) and Grand Marnier.

Use a slotted spoon to topple the berries onto the pavlovas. Sip the reserved juice in pretty little shot glasses. What a desssert! What a breakfast!

Mini-Pavlovas with Mascarpone Cream and Italian Peppered Strawberries

  • 4 egg whites, room temperature
  • 1 cup superfine sugar
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch, sifted
  • 1 teaspoon white vinegar
  • Mascarpone Cream (recipe below)
  • Italian Peppered Strawberries (recipe below)

Preheat oven to 250 degrees.
Place a sheet of parchment paper on a baking sheet with no sides. Draw 6 4-inch circles on the parchment, using a 28-ounce cans as your guide. Turn the paper over so the drawing is on the bottom. It will show through the parchment.
Place the egg whites in a large mixing bowl. If you are using a stand mixer, use the whisk attachment. Beat the egg whites at low speed until they are very foamy. With the mixer on high speed, gradually add superfine sugar, beating until the sugar is dissolved after each addition. Beat the mixture 5 to 10 minutes, until it is very shiny and thick. Fold in cornstarch and vinegar.
Spread meringue mixture into the marked circles on parchment paper. Use the back of a spoon to shape evenly, spreading meringue to the sides and leaving a slight depression in the middle, similar to a nest.
Bake the meringues in preheated 250-degree oven for 1 hour. They will be very crisp on the outside and pale in color. Turn off the oven. Leave pavlovas to cool in the oven with door slightly ajar. It will take at least 2 hours for the pavlovas to cool completely.
Use a wide metal spatula to carefully loosen the baked meringue shells from the parchment paper. Slide the meringues onto dessert plates.

Fill the meringues with Mascarpone Cream. Use slotted spoon to scoop Italian Peppered Strawberries over the Mascarpone Cream. Serve immediately. Makes 6 desserts.
 

Mascarpone Cream

  • 1 (8-ounce) container mascarpone cheese, softened
  • 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream (not whipped)
  • 1 tablespoon sour cream
  • 1 tablespoon powdered sugar

Place all ingredients in a deep mixing bowl. Beat with electric mixer until thick.

Italian Peppered Strawberries

  • 3 cups sliced fresh strawberries
  • 2/3 cup sugar (this is a good way to use up some of the superfine sugar you purchased for the pavlova)
  • 1/2 cup sambuca
  • 1/4 cup Grand Marnier
  • Whole black peppercorns, in a peppermill
  • 1/3 cup whipping cream

Place strawberries in large glass bowl. Sprinkle sugar over and toss to mix well. Pour liqueurs over and toss again to mix. Hold pepper grinder over berries and grind 12 complete turns. Pour whipping cream over and mix well. Spoon strawberries over each pavlova.

 

Mmmmmm…millet (for a happy birthday)

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My husband called me from the golf course. "We’re headed to the 18th hole. Just checking in to find out if you’re planning anything for dinner."

Me: "Yep. I’m making millet salad."

He: "Okay. You go ahead and have the salad. I’ll stay here and eat with the guys."

Me: I finished making the millet salad, chopping green pepper, some grape tomatoes, and Italian parsley that I snipped from my herb garden. Drained a can of "extra crunchy" corn. Made an oil and lemon juice dressing. Stirred it all together with the millet mixture that I had prepared earlier in the day. I dipped a fork into the salad. Fork to mouth. Oh, my gosh. I could not believe how delicious it was.

It was my first taste of millet. And it’s quite possible I wouldn’t have chosen to make the salad at this time, but I had bought some of this high-protein grain when my daughter-in-law was here. She was planning to cook some up for her nine-month-old daughter, using a recipe from "Cooking for Baby," by Lisa Barnes. If my granddaughter is eating it, I should at least try it.

I set up my camera on the tripod. I packed some of the salad into a ramekin and turned it out onto a plate. Parlsey leaves for garnish. One birthday candle stuck into the middle of the molded salad. Birthday candle, you ask?

African Millet Salad wih Corn and Peppers is a recipe from "The New Whole Grains Cookbook," by Twin Citian, Robin Asbell. And today is Robin’s birthday. So it’s MMMMM…Millet birthday salad.

My husband came home after a meal at the country club.

He: "Hmm. It smells good in here."

I dipped a fork in the millet salad. I put it to his mouth. He ate it. He loved it.

He: "This is amazing. I’m impressed."

Me: "See. You should have come home for dinner."

I had no roasted peanuts to add to the salad. I can’t say it needed them. But, I am taking the salad to share with girlfriends at the lake this weekend. I’ll stop to pick up some peanuts. I know they are going to love this salad.

Happy Birthday, Robin. Thanks for your wonderful cookbook with recipes that make whole grains taste delicious.

Maybe one of your future writing projects could be: The New Whole Grains Cookbook for Baby: Recipes even adults will love!

African Millet Salad with Corn and Peppers

  • 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
  • 1 medium onion, julienned (about 1 1/2 cups)
  • 2 tablespoons chopped garlic
  • 2 tablespoons minced ginger
  • 1 tablespoon paprika
  • 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 1/8 teaspoon ground allspice
  • 1/8 teaspoon cayenne, or to taste
  • 1 cup millet
  • 1 1/2 cups water
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 cup lemon juice
  • 1 tablespoon brown sugar
  • 1  (8-ounce) can "extra crunchy" corn, drained
  • 1 small green pepper, chopped
  • 1 whole Roma tomato, chopped
  • 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
  • 1/4 cup roasted peanuts, chopped

In 2-quart saucepan, with a tight-fittin lid, heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, then sauté the onion over medium heat until very golden and soft. Add the garlic and ginger and cook for a minute, then add paprika, black pepper, allspice and cayenne and cook for a minute more. Wash the millet quickly and drain. Add the millet to the pan and stir, coating the grains and cooking until hot to the touch. Add the water and salt and bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and cover. Simmer on low for 20 minutes before checking for doneness. When all the liquid is absorbed and the grain is tender, cover and take the pan off the heat for 10 minutes to steam. Scrape the cooked millet into a bowl and cover, then let cool.

Whisk the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil with the lemon juice and brown sugar in a small bowl. Stir the corn, bell pepper, tomato and parsley into the cooled millet mixture, then drizzle the dressing over it and stir to coat. Serve topped with the peanuts. Serves 8.

From "The New Whole Grains Cookbook," by Robin Asbell.

 

Whisk It Wednesday: Cherries, Berries and Cream Cheese

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After using some of the Cherry Puree (find the recipe in my previous post) to make a shortbread tart, I still had enough to make another cherry something. I decided on another tart. I know — it seems like I’m stuck on tarts these days. They don’t take much time to make and they’re scrumptious, so why not?

Blueberry, Cherry and Cream Cheese Tart is baked in a pat-in-the-pan thin crust that has ground almonds and some lemon thyme mixed into it. The remaining Cherry Puree is baked between the crust and a cheesecake-like layer of smooth and creamy goodness. The cream cheese filling is one I use for a rhubarb pie that I make each year. The topping is from one of my favorite cheesecake desserts. And the blueberries on top? Just because I like them and they’ve been available in the local grocery stores for such a reasonable price. The tart would be delicious with fresh strawberries, too. Cherries, berries and cream cheese — perfect.

If you don’t have lemon thyme, use regular thyme and find some lemon thyme to plant in your garden next year. You will love it. It is so versatile. Its lemony fresh flavor pairs well with fish, chicken and potatoes. I like to add the little leaves to sugar cookie dough. And, as you can see, I love adding it to buttery shortbread and any kind of tart crust.

I’ve used up the cherry puree. Maybe I’ll make blueberry puree next.

Blueberry, Cherry and Cream Cheese Tart in Lemon-Thyme Crust

  • 1/4 cup butter, softened
  • 1/2 cup plus 3 tablespoons sugar, divided
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract, divided
  • 1 egg yolk
  • 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup ground almonds
  • 3 tablespoons chopped lemon thyme leaves
  • 1/2 cup Cherry Puree
  • 12 ounces cream cheese, softened
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 cup sour cream
  • 1 pint fresh blueberries, rinsed

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a medium bowl, combine butter, 2 tablespoons sugar and salt. Beat with hand-held electric mixer until fluffy. Add 1 teaspoon vanilla and egg yolk and beat until well-blended. Stir in flour and lemon thyme leaves. Press the mixture into the bottom and sides of a 10-inch tart pan with removable bottom. Bake at 375 degrees for 10 minutes.

While crust is cooling, beat cream cheese and 1/2 cup sugar until fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time.

Spread Cherry Puree over warm crust. Pour cream cheese mixture over the Cherry Puree. Bake at 375 degrees for about 20 minutes, or until filling is set in the middle. Remove from oven and place on wire rack.

In a small bowl, combine sour cream, remaining 1 tablespoon of sugar and remaining 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract. Carefully spread over the hot tart. Arrange blueberries on the sour cream mixture. When tart is completely cooled, cover with plastic wrap and chill in refrigerator until serving time.

 

 

Chocolate and Cherries — Double Trouble

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Two desserts — one plate — all for me. Double trouble. Not for may taste buds, mind you. It’s a problem for my waistline. But, when the desserts are so delicious…

I don’t usually eat two desserts at one time. But, let me tell you how this all came about.

First, my son and daugther-in-law were here for a few days with their nine-month-old daughter. They brought a cookbook with them, Cooking for Baby, by Lisa Barnes. As I paged through the book, I noticed recipes for some fruit purees. With at least a couple of pounds of fresh sweet cherries in my refrigerator, I decided to make cherry puree.

I jazzed up the baby-style puree with a vanilla bean, some sprigs of lemon thyme snipped from my garden, and just a little bit of agave syrup to sweeten it up a tish.

On Sunday evening, with friends coming for dinner, I made a tart with a shortbread crust, adding chopped lemon thyme leaves. I spread some cherry puree over the shortbread before I baked it. As soon as it came out of the oven, I slathered more cherry puree over the top and then arranged fresh blueberries over the puree. As the puree cooled, it held the blueberries tightly in place.

And then, guess what? Our dinner guests arrived with a decadent-looking chocolate dessert in hand. And that is how two desserts with a dollop of slightly sweetened whipped cream wound up on each plate that evening.

The rich chocolate cake was a perfect match for the tart with its shorbread crust, cherry puree and fresh blueberries.

I could see this cherry puree swirled through homemade vanilla ice cream, baked into coffee cakes, spooned into dainty little thumbprint cookies and layered into yogurt parfaits. It keeps well in the refrigerator for a few days.

This rich chocolate cake is the same one you see pictured in my last post to this blog, arranged into a 4th of July star. You can click right here to go quickly over to a chocolate cake recipe in Saveur magazine that is very similar to the cake my friend brought over to my houe. And, lucky you if there is a copy of "The Cook’s Encyclopedia of Chocolate" on your book shelf, where the original recipe appears.

Serve the tart alone. Serve the rich chocolate cake alone. Or make them both and serve them together. It’s really not trouble preparing either one. But watch out — eating both of them together could be double trouble.

Cherry Puree

  • 1 pound fresh sweet cherries
  • 1 vanilla bean
  • 2 (4- to 5-inch-long) sprigs of fresh thyme
  • 1 teaspoon agave syrup

Remove pits from cherries. Place them in a food processor and puree, stopping once or twice to scrape down the sides of the workbowl.

Transfer puree to a saucepan. Split vanilla bean lengthwise and use the tip of a knife to scrape the seeds from the bean. The seeds will seem like a paste when scraped away from the bean. Add the bean and the seeds to the puree, along with the thyme sprigs. Heat over medium-low and simmer until the mixture thickens, stirring often. Remove saucepan from heat and stir in agave syrup. Let cool completely. Refrigerate cooled puree in an airtight container for up to 3 days. It can be stored in the freezer for 3 months. Makes about 1 cup.

Shortbread Cherry and Blueberry Tart

  • 3/4 cup butter (1 1/2 sticks) butter, cold, cut into small cubes
  • 3/4 cup powdered sugar
  • 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 3 tablespoons chopped lemon thyme leaves
  • 1/2 cup Cherry Puree, divided
  • 1 pint fresh blueberries
  • Whipped cream, for garnish

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine butter, powdered sugar, flour and salt with a wooden spoon or a hand-held electric mixer until dough forms a ball. Add chopped thyme and blend well. Spread dough evenly into the bottom and sides of a 10-inch tart pan. Spread 1/4 cup Cherry Puree over the bottom of the tart. Bake until light brown, 15 to 20 minutes. Place tart on wire rack. Allow to cool in pan for 10 minutes. Spread remaining 1/4 cup Cherry Puree over baked tart. Arrange blueberries, in a single layer, over the Cherry Puree. Allow tart to cool completely before serving. Cut into wedges. Garnish each piece with whipped cream and a cherry. Store in refrigerator.

Star-Spangled 4th of July Chocolate Cake

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Some people are so creative, aren’t they? A friend of mine made a rich, decadent chocolate dessert last weekend. She turned it into a perfect 4th of July cake by arranging the wedges into the shape of  a star.  It is French Chocolate Cake from “The Cook’s Encyclopedia of Chocolate” by Christine McFadden & Christine France. I looked all over the internet trying to find the recipe so I could give you a link, but just couldn’t find it.

There is a recipe over on the Saveur magazine web site that is very similar to the one pictured. The texture is similar to fudge. Each bite melts in your mouth. A few tablespoons of the flour in the recipe keep it off the list of flourless chocolate cakes.

I had my first taste of flourless chocolate cake when I took a cooking class in Fargo in the early to mid 1980′s. Chocolateir magazine had just started publishing. I think it was the second issue that had a recipe for flourless chocolate cake. My cooking teacher made it for us in class. It was divine. I’m pretty sure I remember her referring to the decadent dessert as " Chocolate O." That was her name for it, not the magazine’s. I’ve made it a few times since that long-ago introduction. It’s rich with butter, lots of chocolate and a little sugar. And no crust.

You can click right here to go quickly over to the chocolate cake recipe in Saveur. And, lucky you if there is a copy of "The Cook’s Encyclopedia of Chocolate" on your book shelf.

May your 4th of July be filled with fun and good food.