For the Love of Bread

Peanut Butter Pie

2012-02-12T10:49:00.000+02:00

Things have getting busy in my army life (in the best way!) and that's why posting has not been happening. I have somewhat of a day off and one of my goals is to get this post posted! A couple of weeks ago, more like a month ago, I was invited out for Friday night dinner and was asked to bring dessert. Her criteria were gooey, cinnamoney and fruity. Well, I took gooey and ran with it! I did some research and came across this recipe for Peanut Butter Pie in Patty Pinner's Sweety Pies. After confirming that no one was allergic to peanuts and that peanut butter was an acceptable choice, I made my shopping list. This pie comes together really easily, you just stir a bunch of things together. I decided to add some chocolate to the bottom to cut the sweetness. Next time, I need to use chocolate chips or chop the chocolate because the blocks didnt melt. I must say, this pie is GOOEY. And decadent and delicious. Cut small wedges to prevent from sugar-shock. Whipped cream is also necessary to cut the sweetness a bit. I didn't flavor it at all. As far as the gooey factor, I guess I must not have baked it long enough. Be sure to bake for the full length of time- covering with foil as necessary to prevent over browning.

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White Texas Sheet Cake

2012-01-21T21:59:00.001+02:00

Don't let the fact that you're not from Texas stop you from making this white sheet cake-it's delicious! Last week, I wanted to bring in a cake for my fellow hard working soldiers, and so Saturday night, I whipped this up. This cake is a one bowl adaptation of the southern classic that is all over the internet. It comes courtesy of A Piece of Cake! which is slowly earning back its favor in my eyes, and it really can be whipped up in no time. To be honest, it was gobbled up in no time, too. Everyone kept cutting off small pieces and then going back for more. Nothing makes me happier :) The texture was nice and moist and the frosting was delicious- the sour cream gives the frosting really good flavor-it reminded me of Duncan Hines, but better. I love the way the sprinkles make the cake look-- youthful and fun while adding some crunch and color. As you can see, I baked the cake in a jelly roll instead of the called for 9x13 both because a jelly roll is more traditional and who needs such thick pieces of cake? I also cut the amount of almond extract in half, but it was still strong. I think I would omit it next time and just use vanilla, which is what I did for the frosting. Up next? Chocolate Texas Sheet Cake! Oh- and Happy birthday, Ma! This one's for you!
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Chocolate Cream Pie

2012-01-17T10:12:00.000+02:00

I was asked to make dessert for dinner this past Shabbat and after shooting down a request for chocolate chip cookies (too typical!) I immediately decided to make chocolate cream pie. (The decision for what to make for dessert has never been easier!) I flipped through some books and settled on the recipe from Martha Stewart's latest on pies and tarts. (My love affair for pies has returned... stay tuned!) I've long been wanting to try out cream pies and brush up on some custard making skills and it seemed there was no better time to make one than for that Friday night. I must say, the pie was a big hit; almost all of it was devoured as dessert, and the last piece was breakfast for one of the guys. Watching the custard thicken on the stove was fun and I'm really glad my first try was a success- here's to more cream pies! I used soy milk, to keep it parve, and I was really happy to finally find out that soy milk works for these pies. I used chocolate biscuits here because chocolate wafers are non-existent on Israeli supermarket shelves and I didnt have time to make my own.They need slightly more butter than regular chocolate wafers, but otherwise, they make a fine substitute. I also didnt use sweetener to sweeten the cream; I find that non-dairy whipping cream is flavored enough already. Do as you please, but if you've never before made a cream pie, make one this weekend!

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Basic Hearth Bread

2012-01-14T22:52:00.000+02:00

Last week, we observed a fast day and as tradition holds, I decided to bake a loaf of bread to break it on. I had just bought a brand new round baking crock and thought it would be the perfect time to break it in. After alot of internal debate (what was I thinking making a last minute baking decision?!) I decided to go with Rose's Basic Hearth Bread. I kind of sped up the process a bit so that my bread would be ready somewhat on time, and the result was really delicious. My bread came out singing a bit, which made me so happy. It would have sang more had I sufficiently heated the crock, but a little crackling is better than none! The bit of whole wheat flour in the dough gave the final loaf a nice creamy crumb. All in all, a basic but delicious loaf of bread at its peak when piping hot. Accompaniments? None necessary, take my word for it. I made this dough in the mixer and used all purpose flour, instead of bread flour. I also skipped the second rise because I just didnt have time for it.

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Easy Chocolate-Vanilla Mousse Cake

2012-01-04T14:38:00.000+02:00

This past Shabbat was nice and low key. Shabbat day, I cooked for myself, my roommate and a friend of ours. Although it was just the three of us, I made dessert, because no meal is ever complete without it. (I think that's a function of my childhood- we rarely, if ever, had dessert growing up, so I'm making up for it now!) I wanted something quick and easy but delicious. I remembered this recipe from the Israeli book More Chocolate and thinking that I'd never make it because it's technically semi-homemade and I hate those. But, I changed my tune and put together my shopping list. I picked up the ingredients late Thursday night and put it together quite easily the next day. The base is made of whipped eggs and sugar with chocolate pudding mix folded in. It's then baked and when it cools forms a sort of cakey crust. Whipping cream is then beaten with vanilla pudding mix and then poured in. A simple glaze of chocolate, margarine and milk is made and spread on top. Done, done and done. Seeing as it was a huge cake, we barely made a dent in it. I sent it to my army base with friends and when I myself got there, I was pleased to see not a crumb left. Success.

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Sambusek

2011-12-31T20:41:00.000+02:00

This is a For the Love of Bread first--- ready for it? A savory recipe! Usually I leave the savory cooking to my sister, caterer and author of the terrific blog The Gush Gourmet but this recipe does require a yeasted dough, which is right up my alley. And so these Sambusek, the Israeli version of samosas filled with onions and chickpeas, are both the first savory post on this blog and the last for 2011. Needing something to bring to a vegetarian dinner, I gave this recipe a try last week and really liked them, although they were baked. This weekend, I made them again for Shabbat lunch and in the spirit of Chanuka, decided to fry them. Needless to say, they were much better :) This recipe comes from an Israeli cookbook on baked goods. The recipe calls for raw chickpeas to be soaked and then chopped in the food processor to be added to fried onions. I think next time I make them, I'd use canned chickpeas so that the chickpea flavor really comes through. I made the dough the night before and stashed it away to rise in the fridge. It's a simple dough and really kneads and rolls beautifully. These also reheat and freeze well. Try making them with an accompanying sauce for Shabbat dinner or as finger foods for a party. Here's to another year of blogging! This post is off to Yeastspotting!

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Buttermilk Pound Cake

2011-12-29T16:16:00.000+02:00

I bought buttermilk with the intention of making cola cake. I had some left over and decided to put it to use in another dessert for Shabbat lunch (yay for dairy meals!). I wound up baking the pound cake recipe from Alton Brown's baking book. It called for one cup of buttermilk, which made a significant dent in the container, which in turn, made me quite happy. It turned out that the cola cake was quite underwhelming (you know it's not great when the frosting is the only redeeming factor- unless you eat cake just for the frosting) but this simple cake served with homemade chunky plum sauce was delicious. Fine crumbed and dense but moist, just like a good pound cake should be. There was quite a bit of it leftover so I froze it for use in later applications. Trifle, pound cake croutons or pound cake toast all sound promising. Topping toasted pound cake with some ice cream and chocolate sauce makes for a humble but delicious dessert any day of the week.

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S'mores Granola Bars

2011-12-24T20:52:00.000+02:00

I know this is the second Smores themed recipe this month and that it looks exactly the same, but it is a different recipe, I promise! and better than the first, I think! I've wanted to make this for ages but never had all of the ingredients under one roof. I made it for dessert when I hosted lunch a while back and they were really well received. This recipe from the KAF Baker's Companion uses both oats and graham cracker crumbs and both of those flavors really come through in this chewy (from the syrup) yet slightly crunchy cookie. You also can't beat these for ease of preparation. If you're looking for (another!) nostalgic treat, try this one this holiday season. They would be totally welcome with a mug of hot cocoa, under a blanket, in front of a fire....

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Marcy Goldman's Honey Whole Wheat Challah

2011-12-18T17:57:00.000+02:00

My challah trials continue! And with the purchase of Marcy Goldman's Jewish holiday baking book, there are many new recipes to try. The last two weeks I made her whole wheat recipe. It is sweeter than the one from ITJB and in my opinion has better texture. The dough kneads and braids beautifully. My sweet tooth would definitely choose this over the ITJB and as long as I have whole wheat flour around don't see why it wouldn't enter my rotation. If you're serving challot shabbat day don't forget to underbake them slightly so they didnt dry out by the next day!

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Caramel Cinnamon Cake

2011-12-15T23:13:00.000+02:00

After two underwhelming cakes from Piece of Cake!, I finally made a cake that was a success! This past Shabbat, I hosted lunch and whipped up the very easy Caramel Cinnamon Roll Bundt Cake. Except that I omitted the raisins and nuts to make it simply, Caramel Cinnamon Cake. Like all of the cakes in this book, this one comes together in one bowl. The cake calls for 4 tsp of cinnamon which may seem like a lot but actually gets muted in the baking. The caramel frosting really puts it over the top, though. I kept swiping at all the drippings that collected under the cake plate, and I wasn't the only one. It definitely deserves to be made over and over and poured over everything, or eaten by the spoonful. ;) My guests left over a nice bit of cake (there was other dessert, too!) so I brought the leftovers to base where it was happily gobbled. The white spots you see are powdered sugar clumps which while not as gross as flour pellets, are still unappealing to look at. I should have strained the glaze, but that was just too much work for such an easy cake. Next time, I suppose. I baked the cake in a tube pan as opposed to a bundt pan to insure release. I also halved the frosting recipe- even half the recipe is plenty.

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Two New Challot

2011-12-08T15:18:00.000+02:00

A couple of weeks ago, I tried out two new challah recipes from Inside the Jewish Bakery. First up, the Honey Whole Wheat Challah. I made these for a hostess who specifically requested whole wheat and little sugar. These challot fit the bill as they are half whole wheat and barely sweetened. You wouldn't even know the recipe contained sugar. Still they were very good. I took care to underbake the breads alittle bit so they wouldnt be all dried out by Shabbat morning. The exact recipe can be found here.

My breads came out nice and high due to the balance of flours.

I used sesame seeds, though, instead of poppy.

I also tried the Rich Egg Challah which was also very well received. It's not as high a riser because it is heavy in egg and sugar. All in all, more winners from this great book!

The Show Must Go On Concord Cake

2011-12-02T12:54:00.000+02:00

Last Friday night, my dear friend Abby hosted a Thanksgiving dinner and she asked me to make dessert. I researched and researched and had settled on the All in One Holiday Bundt cake when she called me. I asked her if she had any last minute requests and she shyly copped to be craving chocolate mousse. Being that she's pregnant, I of course wanted to accommodate this craving but with mousse, raw eggs tends to be a problem. Back to the books I went! I found a recipe for this classic Concord Cake in one of my newer books by Israeli baker and patissier Ben Ami. The cake is made of two discs of chocolate meringue layered with chocolate mousse and then decorated with pieces of meringue. I bought all the ingredients Thursday night and quickly put together the mousse component that had to chill overnight. The next day I got to making the meringue. And there's where things started going awry. Some parts of the baked meringue tasted fine and some, oddly, tasted off. I refused to use them. So why do I call this The Show Must Go On Concord Cake? Because instead of chucking the entire cake, I used the good meringue to make a meringue crust and then I poured all of the mousse on top. I then topped it with the meringue pieces. Dessert saved! It got rave reviews and no one was the wiser. Obviously, next time I'd like to make this cake the way it was meant to be made. Additionally, I would top the cake with the meringue pieces just before serving because they got a bit soggy. Make sure that this is thoroughly chilled before serving, my mousse was a bit soft because it sat through shul. Still delicious, just soft. Below is the the recipe for the original. Should something go wrong though, improvise!

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S'mores Squares

2011-12-01T20:30:00.001+02:00

This is going to sound strange, but whenever I take a trip back home, I always feel the need to reacquaint myself with the baking books and recipe collections that I left behind (they'll make it here, eventually!). Searching for inspiration for my sister's Shabbat kallah was even more incentive to lovingly (alright, a bit exaggerated) go through it all. While I was looking, I came upon a pad of paper that had a bunch of recipes from I don't know where written down on it. Among them was a simple and fast recipe for Smores squares. I don't know where it came from, but I decided to make it for that weekend. I sent my mom out for the ingredients and whipped up a double batch. I thought they were delicious! I brought back the leftover ingredients to Israel (obviously! graham crackers and marshmallows are precious!) and made them for dessert last weekend. In America they were more bar cookie like and in Israel they were more shortbread-like but still delicious. It could be because I used a larger pan here and baked it a tad longer but still, these were yummy. I would prefer the softer option but any way you bake 'em these are a winning treat.

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Challah Rolls

2011-11-26T22:03:00.000+02:00

These rolls were baked in America (last catch-up post!) for the Seuda Shlishit of my sister's Shabbat Sheva Brachot. Hosting seuda shlishit was a bit last minute and we had no bread in the freezer for which to wash on. I immediately jumped on the opportunity to bake rolls and wasted no time choosing a recipe from Inside the Jewish Bakery (it was a real heimishe Shabbat- I made potatonik, too!). The picture below the formula for Sweet Egg Dough was quite enticing and reminded me of the bilkelach that we used to have growing up. I whipped out the scale and got to baking. I doubled the recipe to yield about twenty four rolls. It turns out that we didnt need nearly that many and I sent the rest of the rolls home with the newlyweds- finally gifted them with bread for their new apartment! I loved these rolls, they were soft and fluffy but not too sweet and the sesame seeds were a great counter-balance. Definitely going to make these again should a similar situation arise. These rolls are off to Yeastspotting!

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Sugar Kichel

2011-11-25T12:27:00.001+02:00

Lichvod Shabbat kodesh, I am finally posting this shul classic, sugar kichel. Upon receiving my copy of Inside the Jewish Bakery, I immediately wanted to put it to work. I chose the sugar kichel because I knew one of my sisters adores it and I thought it would be a nice throwback to the the times we actually went to the bakery and brought them home to enjoy (instead of me baking). This recipe hit the nail on the head, an exact replica of the cookies we used to munch on- eggy, crunchy and sweet. My father was extremely impressed. The cookies aren't hard to make, but between rolling, shaping and baking, it is a bit of a long process-I was up very late putting them together and baking them off, but just for that bit of nostalgia, the result was well worth it.

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Golden Vanilla Wacky Cake

2011-11-17T13:29:00.001+02:00

Every time I take a trip to America, I treat myself to a couple of new cookbooks. Making the decision of which ones to buy always takes me a while and a lot of research. One of the new cookbooks I got was Piece of Cake! by Camilla V. Saulsbury, a book about one bowl, easy cakes. I discovered Miss Saulsbury when I was looking for recipes for homemade energy bars and stumbled on her blog Enlightened Cooking. Her name sounded familiar to me and so I searched on Amazon and sure enough, I saw she wrote a muffin cookbook, for which I had read a review on a blog I often read. I discovered that she had just published this cake cookbook and eagerly read all the reviews. In short, they were all glowing. So I pushed this book to the top of my wish list and when the time came, happily ordered it. It came with just enough time to read through it and put it to use for Rachael's Shabbat Sheva Brachot. It took a while to decide what to make first, because the cakes all sound delicious, but also because many, most I should say, are made with buttermilk or sour cream for which there is no parve substitution. (The other issue I have with this book is that her weight measurements are totally off an unreliable. There's no reason for them to be there.) Anyway, I decided to go with one of the original wacky cakes that were the inspiration for this book. A wacky cake is a cake that is usually mixed up in the pan that is baked in and is said to be a creation from the era of rationed foods. I have previously made Chocolate Wacky Cake, so I thought the vanilla version to be appropriate. The cake came together very fast and I popped it in the oven. I was quite nervous about how it would come out, but I really needn't have worried. I cut off a tiny corner and found it to be really moist, if a bit dense, full of vanilla flavor and redolent of a certain box mix, but homemade and better! (I will admit, I find this to be complimentary!) I frosted it with her recipe for cocoa icing, which was also delicious but top it as you wish.Vanilla cake is a blank canvas. I finished it with chocolate sprinkles, just for the sake of being festive. The cake was a big hit with the sister in whose honor I made it, and I even sent off all the leftovers with her and her new husband. Here's too many more cakes being baked from this wonderful cookbook!

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Meringues

2011-11-15T23:57:00.001+02:00

I have fond memories of meringues. I remember my mother whipping (ha) them up around Pesach time as a kid, biting, for the very first time, into a crispy cloud and discovering centers of chewy, melt-in-your-mouth sugariness. Fast forward to now-I owe the making of these cookies to my sister, Leiat. I had a surplus of egg whites after making sugar kichel (for another post!) and she asked me to make them. Now, I've made these simple cookies before and never felt the need to blog about them, but I used a technique for them that I've never used before so I decided to share it. This basic recipe comes from Al HaShulchan's first Chocolate book (which has finally returned with me to Israel!). The egg whites and sugar are first heated and then beaten. This step is no stranger to people who make buttercreams all the time, but I am not one of those people. This makes THE glossiest and most luscious meringue I have ever worked with. Pain in the neck or not, I will be making them this way from now on! Now, if you think there's too much sugar and the mixture will never form stiff peaks, fear not and beat on. It works! The original calls for grated milk chocolate, but keeping things parve, I decided to fold in some mini dark chocolate chips instead. Be sure to leave these in the oven to dry out fully. I took them out after 45 minutes but they were still wet inside. I returned them to the oven and let them cook a bit more and then turned the oven off to allow them to dry. And just so you know: the oven makes a great hiding spot for these if you need. No one ever thinks to look there!

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Potato Bread

2011-11-14T21:26:00.001+02:00

I know this has been a pathetically slow month for blogging, but now that the wedding is over (it was beautiful!) and I'm safely home in Israel, I have a bit of time to pick it back up again. The wedding I flew in for was that of my lovely sister Rachael. I thought it would be nice to bake her some loaves of fresh bread for her new apartment (although these loaves were devoured by the people in my house before they made it to hers!). I had been wanting to try out a recipe for potato bread for a really long time, having heard that mashed potatoes give bread a wonderful, moist, texture. So I pulled out my copy of Bernard Clayton's Complete Book of Breads (one of the only bread books I had left in America!) and decided to make his Potato Bread. I'm happy to have one thing checked off my list! This bread was more time consuming than others in its preparation due to the cooking of the potatoes. I also found that because of the moisture, the dough took a LOT more flour than called for before becoming a firm-ish dough. Once the dough was kneaded, it rose fast and baked beautifully. I brushed one of the loaves with some margarine after it came out and I like the gloss it gave it. Everyone loved this bread (even without knowing the secret ingredient!). My father (the toughest to please declared it spot on and my siblings enjoyed it in sandwiches. I'm just sorry it never made it over to the new apartment. These loaves are off to Yeastspotting which is being hosted this week by Tartine Bread Experiment!

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ANZAC Biscuits

2011-10-21T10:21:00.000+02:00

ANZAC biscuits. The name is totally off-putting but to call them oatmeal cookies wouldn't be accurate either. These cookies are thusly named because house wives would mail these egg-less (and therefore good keeping) cookies to their spouses serving in the Australia and New Zealand Army Corps during World War I. (Being someone who loooves to bake for soldiers, I love this back story!) These cookies contain coconut which most people arent really a fan of. That might explain why these weren't successful both times I made them and brought them to hosts. So why am I posting it anyway? Because I LOVED these cookies. I thought the coconut was subtle and that these cookies tasted like oatmeal cookies I remember as a kid only better! So what if no one else is on the coconut bandwagon? These are easy cookies to whip up and are delicious. The little bit of golden syrup adds a subtle but present caramelly, buttery goodness. It took me two times to get the cookie right. The first time I made them using rolled oats, my batter was too wet and my cookies spread like crazy. I suspected that it was because my rolled oats weren't absorbing moisture properly so I made them again using quick oats and just as I thought, perfect batter and cookies. I used Martha's recipe but added a bit more than a pinch of salt to the recipe. If you feel like it, add some chocolate chips to the dough. It won't be traditional, but it will still be delicious. Shabbat shalom!

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Many Seed Bread

2011-10-14T12:10:00.000+02:00

Moadim lisimcha! Sukkot is upon us! I spent the first day by my sister and because it was just going to be us, I decided to forgo making challah and try a new bread recipe. Of course you can imagine how long it took to settle on the recipe.... After flipping through many cookbooks, I landed on the Many Seed Bread from Peter Reinhart's Artisan Breads Every Day and it seemed to be the perfect choice as I had everything on hand. The name of the bread comes from the addition of flax, pumpkin, sesame and sunflower seeds. Easy to make, this dough came together in my mixer in ten minutes before settling in for its overnight chill.I opted to make two pans of pull away loaves, topping one of them with garlic powder and any dried herbs I had around. The texture was soft and chewy, a good all around sandwich loaf. The garlic-herbed topping turned out to be quite successful-- I'm going to have to try it again on my next batch of white bread. To keep the breads parve, I used soy milk, but any milk can be used. Feel free to switch up the combination of seeds. Reinhart mentions that because the seeds absorb moisture during the overnight rise, it's important that the dough be soft and a bit sticky. These rolls are off to Yeastspotting!
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World Peace Cookies

2011-10-10T18:24:00.000+02:00

So obviously I'm the last person in the world to get around to making these now famous World Peace Cookies aka Korova Cookies from Pierre Herme, via Dorie Greenspan. Since you all already know how good they are, I don't think I need to tell you. These cookies may look humble, but they are anything but. They literally disappeared when I brought them to my sister for Rosh HaShana.
I didn't use the fleur de sel because I was afraid of scaring everyone away with it and I used a good quality dark chocolate that I chunked up myself. So nice and melty gooey when they came out of the oven with a crispy, shortbready, melt in your mouth texture... Seriously, if there's anyone else left in the universe that hasn't made these cookies yet, go on and make them. You'll be sorry you waited this long!

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Pumpkin Swirl Bread

2011-10-07T10:16:00.000+02:00

Sweet Challot weren't the only thing I baked for Rosh HaShana last week. With the chill of fall definitely upon us, I decided to put a can of valuable pumpkin to use and make a pumpkin bread with a cinnamon swirl inside. Instead of making them into buns or loaves, I'd shape them into round, coiled loaves as is traditional for this time of the year. That's exactly what I did. I adapted a recipe from Marcy's A Passion for Baking and I love the way it turned out! The breads turned out to be perfect with a healthy slather of apple butter.
I cut back the yeast in the recipe and used oil instead of margarine. I think I would make a few changes so that the loaf itself would be slightly moister and improve it's keeping quality when frozen. As for the swirl, I pretty much just used the amounts of brown sugar and cinnamon called for in her recipe. I allowed the dough to rise overnight (obviously!) and shaped them the next morning. The dough handles beautifully and bakes up to a beautiful orangey-brown. Next time, I just might decide to flavor the dough with some classic fall spices. Definitely goes on the Rosh HaShana bread rotation. These are headed off to Yeastspotting!

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Black Chocolate Cake

2011-10-06T20:58:00.000+02:00

Last Sunday, I decided to bake a cake for my class in the course that I'm observing in the army. One of the guys had a birthday and a bunch of them are finishing their service as soon as the course is over, so I figured a cake was in order. But really- who needs a reason to celebrate with cake? I decided a simple chocolate cake with frosting was in order, so I turned to one of my Israeli cookbooks to help me out. Deep and dark, this cake is thick (not quite ooey gooey like my mom's recipe but still good) and the frosting is nice to work with also. I tossed on some sprinkles to make it more festive and I like how it came out- kind of youthful and childish. The cake was really appreciated-- everyone was surprised that I actually showed up with it and it was eaten down to the last crumb and dab of frosting on the wrapper!

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Sweet Challot

2011-10-02T07:26:00.000+02:00

It's been a really long time since I've posted a new challah recipe, because I've been making the same one every week, but I figured that Rosh HaShana was the perfect time to try the Sweet Challot recipe in my favorite Israeli challah book. What makes this recipe unique is the addition of grape juice in place of some of the water. I thought this would be sugar overload (Israeli grape juice is on the very sweet side) in addition to the two cups of flour but they turned out to be not in your face sweet at all. The texture was great and these froze beautifully. My sister froze them and took them out as needed- the texture barely suffered at all. I shaped these into rounds, as is customary for this season, as the rounds symbolize the continuing circle of life, etc. I made different types of rounds: one using a four stranded weave, a couple of coils, some twists that were coiled or knotted. I just had fun. Challah was amazing served with my sister's one of a kind homemade apple butter. Delicious! Shana tova, everyone! As usual, check out this week's Yeastspotting!

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Chocolate and Roses Cake

2011-09-25T10:46:00.000+03:00

Being in the army actually makes me crave baking. I think about it all week and when I get home, I can't wait to get my hands into some flour. (I think they call it withdrawal...) All this past week, I was thinking about what to bake to bring to my hosts for Shabbat. I knew chocolate would be a must, so I browsed through my copy of the Israeli cookbook, More Chocolate (expect to see more recipes from there, soon!) and settled on the recipe for Chocolate and Roses Cake, which is, get this, chocolate buns baked into a chocolate cake batter. (It sounds more difficult than it actually is but I split up the work, making the dough and filling Thursday night and finishing the cake on Friday.) I actually think it's quite impressive and the look of it when cut is kind of cool, with the swirls from the chocolate filling and all. (No picture, it was Shabbat!) For me, the highlight of this recipe was the chocolate filling. Liquid when hot, when cooled, it turns into a mixture identical to the chocolate butter my mother makes every Pesach, which is very nostalgic for me. It's also just insanely good and rich, so I think it'll be my go to filling for buns or babka or kokosh now. (There was leftover dough and filling so I made a cake of just chocolate buns. That was a hit. One of the kids said next time I should just make that. Then again, another one loved the chocolate covered chocolate challah. Can't win 'em all!) I did find the cake needing to be a bit more chocolatey, so next time I would up the cocoa powder. Anyway, hope you give this recipe a try. Happy and healthy new year! This cake is off to Yeastspotting!

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Adventures with Rye Part 10: Rye Pumpkinseed Breadsticks

2011-09-18T21:47:00.001+03:00

As a little gift to myself for successfully completing basic training (I only cried four times!), I bought myself a few of the latest Israeli baking books (they were all on sale!). One of them is the second book by Micky Shemo, devoted to the baked goods of Shabbat and the holidays of the year. I was psyched to come across it (being a big fan of his first book, and all) and picked it up right away. I've been thumbing through it at least once a day and decided to break it in this erev Shabbat by making some breadsticks from the Tu Bishvat (the new year for the trees) chapter. I made some changes, making these decidedly un-Tu Bishvat like, but totally delicious. These breadsticks are made with rye flour and were supposed to contain raisins, pumpkin seeds and sunflower seeds. I omitted the raisins and idiotically bought two packages of pumpkin seeds instead of pumpkin seeds and sunflower seeds. I sprinkled sesame seeds on the shaped sticks. Even with these changes, they came out delicious, with a delicate sweetness from the rye and seeds. I was expecting these to be crunchier instead of bready, but still I liked them and happily munched them until they were gone. Reheat them as necessary to get rid of any staleness and freeze for longer storage. These are heading off to Yeastspotting!

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Adventures with Rye Part 9: Date-Rye-Cinnamon Cookies

2011-09-16T14:09:00.000+03:00

These cookies may be the homeliest cookies you'll ever see, but their looks are deceiving. (Don't be put off by the name either!) In fact, these cookies to me are the homiest cookies (in the best way possible) in the sense that they remind of the cinnamon cookies that my mother used to make when I was growing up. When I first made them about a month ago, the dough (made entirely of rye flour) looked gnarly and the cookies themselves weren't too attractive. But one bite of them took me way back and totally won me over. I photographed them then but having no faith in how they'd taste, got rid of the photos. (Guess you can never judge anything by the way it looks!) Home for Shabbat this week, I decided to try these again, this time adding some white flour to give the cookies a bit better texture, and omitted all the spices except for the cinnamon to give them that childhood feel. I would even up the cinnamon next time. These cookies are made with silan, date honey that is found everywhere, and that's what makes these special. If you can't find it, well.... come to Israel and buy a jar. These are also made with oil, so require just a bowl and a wooden spoon, even your hand if desired. Be aware, the cookies come out crunchier with all rye flour and softer with white flour. They are both delicious either way. Choose your texture. Use leftover cookie crumbs as a pie crust. Assuming there are any leftovers...

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Caramel Glazed Chocolate Cake Doughnuts

2011-09-12T21:29:00.000+03:00

I know I haven't blogged in ages and that these donuts are wayy late in coming. But I have good reason. I joined the Israeli army and I've been in training the last few weeks. I finally finished today and am at home and ready to sleep, sleep, sleep before I start my job. I promised myself that I would post this, even if it meant not being a great post. I made these for dessert ages ago and remember someone commenting that these are a good parve alternative to Entenmann's, a compliment I'll happily accept since I love their doughnuts. I'm a bit too exhausted right now to post the recipe, but one of these days, I'll back track and post it. The recipe comes from Lara Ferroni's cute little book. Oh, and if you think I'm done with doughnuts, I'm not.

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All in the Pan Chocolate Cake

2011-08-19T17:57:00.000+03:00

For lunch last weekend, I had it in my head that I wanted to make chocolate cake. I fondly remember my mother's Ooey Gooey Chocolate Cake from my childhood and I wanted to make it but then I recalled a fast and unique recipe for chocolate cake from In the Sweet Kitchen. This cake is one of those old timers where all of the ingredients are dumped into a pan and stirred directly in it. Easy peasy cleanup. And, this recipe has no egg in it, making it perfect for vegans. The frosting does involve some sort of mixer but takes no time at all. This was a really successful dessert-- nothing left but a few crumbs. I think I should make a point of making homey cakes like these more often. They're down home, delicious, and non-threatening (nothing wacky in them!) to the average person. I'll just have to remember that the next time I plan a dessert. If you're rushed or just want to try something easy and fun, give it a shot. The recipe calls for regular vinegar but I used red wine as that's what I had and it turned out perfectly.

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Cinnamon/Chocolate Glazed Vegan Doughnuts

2011-08-18T21:29:00.000+03:00

For last Shabbat's dessert, I wanted to make something... different. One of the reasons I was excited to move to a real apartment was to finally be able to have a stove top. You know, real fire instead of the electric burners that don't heat very well. All I wanted to be able to do was fry. (And make pastry cream, but I havent gotten there yet.) Naturally, I decided it was time to make doughnuts. The authentic-deep-fried way. And that's exactly what I did. I opened Lara Ferroni's book and settled on the recipe for the Vegan Doughnuts as I was having a vegan for dinner. (It wasn't that much different than a recipe I would adapt for my parve needs, anyway, so it really was not a big deal.) I made some chocolate glazed (and some with sprinkles, just like when I was a kid!) and some.... Well, I really wanted to make a silan glaze, a la maple. But the silan just tasted off with the powdered sugar, so I kept adding cinnamon to make it a cinnamon glaze and it worked beautifully. I must say.... frying was really fun! So much so that I think I'm gonna try doughnuts again this weekend, this time of the chocolate persuasion. My guests were really shocked and impressed by the doughnuts and thought they were delicious. I snuck in a couple of munchkins and thought they were, too. I realized that they came out on the small and thin side because I might have rolled them a bit too thin. I'm pretty sure people felt more virtuous with the smaller size though. I also reduced the yeast in this recipe from a whopping 3 tbsp to 1 and I think it was still plenty. I also gave this dough an overnight rise, as per my usual. Here's to many more successful frying experiments! These doughnuts are being Yeastspotted!

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James Beard's Basic White Bread

2011-08-12T15:05:00.000+03:00

Besides for the foods that are totally off-limits to me, I'm not that big of a picky eater so I knew exactly what I wanted to eat before the fast that was observed earlier this week. Bread. With cream cheese and lox. (I think that's me saying I miss my Brooklyn roots.) I wanted an easy, simple white bread so I looked to James Beard's book on bread and made his Basic White Bread. This is a pretty basic loaf, consisting just of flour, water, yeast and salt. I thought his amount of salt, 1 tbsp was way too much for four cups of flour so I cut it down to 2 which was bordering on salty. So feel free to use anywhere between 1 1/2 and 2. The bread rose fast and because of the lack of white sugar and sugar developed during fermentation, this bread had little color. That was fine because the loaf was delicious warm. It was still good the next day, but best fresh and a bit warm, perfect with my favorite sandwich staples. I made the dough in my mixer but feel free to do it by hand, if you're not feeling lazy. The original recipe says that this should be baked in a 9x5 inch pan but I'm glad I used the 8x4 inch because the dough yield wasn't huge and it didn't fill the bigger pan. I tried. This loaf is off to Yeastspotting

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Frozen Ganache Shortbread Bars

2011-08-09T21:44:00.000+03:00

I'm sorry the pictures for this dessert aren't better, but this was Shabbat dessert and I couldn't photograph on Shabbat. I was asked to bring dessert for Friday night dinner and thankfully, it didn't take much research to decide on these cookies. This recipe is another one I'm keeping under wraps but use any shortbread base and your favorite ganache to simulate your own version of these fudgy and deliciously cold bars. They were a hit for me and they will be for you, any way you choose to make them. I might try my hand at flavoring the ganache with extract or liqueur and sprucing up the shortbread base to match. The possibilities are endless but all I know is that a cold, chocolate dessert on a hot August day is just the ticket.

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Neo-Neopolitan Pizza

2011-08-07T10:51:00.001+03:00

During the nine days, there really isn't much to eat besides lots of dairy and carbs. (This week is a vegetarian's dream!) I still stay away from pasta so that wasn't an option. So, I decided to make pizza. Normally, I stay away from that to, but as my food choices are limited and I haven't had a slice of it in ages, I decided to go ahead and make some dough. I've made pizza plenty of times before and posted about it, too but this time I decided to go with a different recipe. I made Peter Reinhart's Neo-Neopolitan Pizza from his latest, Artisan Breads Every Day. What I loved about this recipe is that it makes enough dough for five pizzas and that you can freeze what you don't use right after mixing! I divided the dough into five portions, froze four in individual baggies and threw them in the freezer, leaving the fifth portion to ferment overnight. The next day, I made the sauce recipe that he provided and froze what I didn't use into individual portions. I felt so mommy-like with all this planning ahead! The dough comes together so easily in the mixer, and besides for a stretch and fold, doesn't require much. After it had risen overnight, (and when I was ready for dinner) I stretched the dough out onto a baking sheet and topped with sauce and cheese. I needed to bake the pizza for much longer than I did because I got no color on the sides and bottom, even though it was perfectly cooked. I think I'll bake directly on the stone next time. All in all, it was a delicious pizza and I'm really glad to have more pizza nights in the near future. This pizza is headed to Yeastspotting! Hope everyone has a meaningful fast!
UPDATE: I just made another pizza, baked directly on the baking stone. It made all of the difference. The flavor really comes out of the crust and it is just so delicious. Homemade pizza has never tasted this good. Lesson learned- always use the baking stone.
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Plum Hazelnut Frangipane Tart

2011-08-05T10:48:00.000+03:00

This is the dessert that I made for Shabbat last weekend- a hazelnut frangipane tart topped with fresh plums. I love the way it turned out. The filling so clearly tasted of hazelnuts while not being too sweet. This is one recipe I'm keeping secret, but here are the pictures anyway. Til next time....

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Irish Dairy Bread

2011-08-03T15:13:00.000+03:00

Sunday and Monday were days mostly spent at the base. I've been pretty good at packing food to take with me so that I don't starve in the blistering heat. I finished up the last of the rye rolls on Sunday and was wondering what I could make for the next day that would be fast and easy. Turns out, they didn't let me go until six thirty so making a yeasted bread was out of the question. But then, inspiration hit! Why not make soda bread? All I'd have to do was pick up buttermilk from the supermarket (there's one right next to the CBS!) and voila, in very little time, I'd have bread. Seeing as it's the nine days and all, I might as well take advantage of making dairy bread, right? Right. Anyway, as soon as I walked through the door, I turned on the oven and proceeded to look for a recipe. Almost every recipe for soda bread calls for whole wheat flour which I didn't have around. I did find a recipe for Irish Dairy Bread in the Baker's Companion and that's what I made, but I couldn't help throwing in a tablespoon of caraway seeds. :) Making this bread is much like making scones, but with a much shorter ingredient list. Eating this bread reminded me how much I love buttermilk in things. The slight tang of it is really, really good. The craggy exterior of this bread belies its smooth interior crumb, speckled with caraway seeds. Feel free to leave them out, if you want. This bread is good plain, or eaten with savory goods, such as egg or tuna salad. I'm really glad I tried this type of bread; it's another thing to cross off my baking bucket list.

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Brown Sugar Squares

2011-08-01T20:36:00.001+03:00

This past Shabbat, I tagged along with a friend for dinner in Nachlaot, the quaint and charming neighborhood right behind the shuk area. I made these plans Thursday night and so when I was asked to make dessert, I felt extremely pressured- no time to research! Thankfully, I found a good choice (more on that later) and went to sleep secure. Come Friday, with dessert already I made, I wondered if people would be allergic to nuts or dislike fruit. So I decided to make something else. Literally on a whim, I pulled out Paula Deen's dessert cookbook and flipped through it. In the cookies and bars sections, I stumbled on what looked like the world's EASIEST recipe and get this, had no oil or butter in it. Now, I was skeptical. A Paula Deen recipe with no fat in it?! Impossible! I looked for the recipe and found that people had successfully made this recipe. So I did, too. The recipe comes together with no more than whisk and a bowl and yields a very thin, chewy, almost candly-like brown sugar square. I don't even think they qualify as a cookie. I added some chocolate chips instead of the nuts to jazz them up a little. They aren't gonna win you any beauty contests, but for flavor (and ease of preparation) these can't be beat.

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Adventures with Rye Part 8: Rye Rolls

2011-07-29T15:06:00.000+03:00

Before I say anything about these freshly baked rye rolls, I must first wish myself a Happy Blogoversary! Three years ago, on a blazing hot summer day in Bar Ilan, this blog was born. It's been so much fun baking and keeping it up. I hope to even with the army ahead of me. Here's to three more! Once more in Jerusalem for Shabbat, I knew for certain that I wanted a caraway flavored bread. At once a total stranger to the flavor of caraway, I now love its hard-to-pinpoint flavor. I searched all of my books for a simple caraway bread but didn't come up with much. It looked to me like if I wanted caraway, I was going to have to take rye with it. Which was fine by me. Having bought a kilo of rye flour, it was time to start putting it to use, anyway. Greenstein's Secrets of a Jewish Baker had the perfect recipe for Rye Rolls. Simple, easy and full of caraway. Bingo! I made the dough last night, allowed it to ferment overnight in the fridge and baked them this morning. I couldn't resist having a couple for lunch today and my were they divine. Perfect sandwich bread texture, soft but with a good chew and great flavor. I made 9 large rolls instead of 18 small ones because I like to be able to use them in a sandwich. These rolls are off to Yeastspotting. Check it out!

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Water Rolls

2011-07-26T18:17:00.000+03:00

After my draft on Thursday, they sent me home to wait for news on what my job will be. It was nice because I was home for Shabbat, but now it's Tuesday and after going back and forth for a couple of days, I'm still waiting. I took the opportunity erev Shabbat to throw together a batch of rolls (even though I was going out for all meals) and it was really good I did because they have been serving as my source of sustenance on my long trips back and forth to the base. Thank God for egg salad sandwiches otherwise I'd have starved over there while waiting in the blistering heat. The recipe for this is actually a great one from Beth Henspberger's Bread Bible. A simple water roll that's perfect for sandwiches, it's a recipe I've been looking for for awhile. I omitted the rice flour topping and instead used an egg yolk glaze and topped with sesame seeds. I made the dough in the mixer and because it has a nice amount of yeast coupled with the insane heat, the dough rose fast. I would, however, reduce the yeast next time to get some better flavor. But I'm not complicating. I also want to try these with fruit juice, so I'll post about those when I do. Until then, happy sandwiching and beat the heat! These are off to Yeastspotting!

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Gingersnaps

2011-07-22T10:17:00.000+03:00

I made these cookies last weekend to pair with the plum and mango sorbets. I know I'm a bit late in posting them but that's because life has been busy. In fact, just yesterday, I went into the army and as I type this I'm sitting in uniform. I don't know how often I'll be able to post, let alone bake, but I'm not letting this blog go! Anyway, everyone loved these cookies on their own, forgoing eating them with the sorbet. Oh, well. The recipe comes from Bakewise, although I followed someone's tip to use turbinado sugar, and that's what I used. I tasted a tiny bit of them and they were robustly flavored, with an almost hind of deep caramel. I guess the overnight chill in the fridge really benefited them. If you want really snappy gingersnaps, bake the full amount of time. If you prefer some softer, pull them out a bit earlier.

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Mango Sorbet

2011-07-20T10:06:00.000+03:00

Here's the mango sorbet that I promised you. Originally I intended to make an apricot sorbet but the supermarket that I went into Thursday night was out, indicating that apricot season was effectively over. Disheartened, I looked around and saw mangoes. Now, I personally am really not a fan of mango at all, but I walked over to them anyway and they were perfectly ripe. Mango sorbet it would be. I picked up three of them and took em on home. Like the plum sorbet, this was super easy to make. Well, almost super easy. I don't have much experience cutting mango so I thought I would cut myself a couple of times. The other challenging part for me was straining the puree. The recipe doesnt call for it straining but I wanted super smooth sorbet so I took the time to do it. A bit messy and time consuming, but definitely worth it. More so than the plum sorbet, the mango sorbet really was really true to the fruit's flavor. I omitted the rum from the recipe and substituted lemon juice for the lime juice and the result was still great; clean and fresh. If you're looking for something easy to make, freeze your ice cream maker work bowl today so you can have refreshing sorbet tomorrow! In this summer heat, how can you resist??

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Maryetta's Oat Bread

2011-07-18T17:13:00.000+03:00

As I'm generally do when I'm home for Shabbat, this weekend I made bread for Friday night dinner in addition to the challot for Shabbat day. (Those came out beautifully but unfortunately, way too dry.) Browsing through some of my books, I came upon Maryetta's Oat Bread in Beard on Bread and did some research on it. The blogs that I found featuring this recipe raved about it. Having everything on hand, I decided to make a half batch. I am so glad I did, because all those blogs turned out to be sooooo on the mark. This bread was one of the best loaves of bread I have ever made. The crumb was soft but still sturdy, with slight but present creaminess from the flecks of oats, and a subtle sweetness from the oats and date honey. This bread never made it past Friday night, at all, in fact I think I had most of it, but I imagine it would be awesome toasted. I did adapt it slightly. To supplement my lack of whole oats I used some quick cooking as well, and I used date honey instead of molasses. I made a half batch, yielding one 9 inch loaf and two rolls. You could scale the dough differently, making an 8 inch loaf and more rolls. As soon as I get my hands on some more oats, I'm making this again. Until then, this loaf is off to Yeastspotting!

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Plum Sorbet

2011-07-17T10:52:00.001+03:00

Shavua tov! The whole of last week led up to a big Shabbat meal I hosted as a sort of pre-draft get together with all my friends. Thank G-d, it was a success, but this week now leads up to the draft itself, on Thursday. Ahh!! In any case, planning the meal was super fun and this time, with my new (used) ice cream maker in hand, Shabbat dessert was a no-brainer: fresh, homemade fruit sorbet. As you can see, I made a plum sorbet. When I was in the shuk last week, I saw Santa Rosa plums and figured that in one form another, the latest additions to the market would make it into dessert. I opened up my copy of The Perfect Scoop and found a recipe for Plum Raspberry Sorbet. Since raspberries are hard to find here, fresh or frozen, and are quite expensive even if you do manage to find them, I decided to adapt the recipe into a plum only recipe. The sorbet couldn't have been easier to make. Cook together plums, sugar, water. Cool, blend and churn. Done. The cooking turned the final product a beautiful color I don't even know the name of! And the flavor was so fresh and clean and summery. I served these with gingersnaps (more on those later) which I thought was a great pairing and David Lebovitz agrees; I only saw afterwards his recommendation to serve these in gingersnap ice cream cones. Anyway, if you want to take advantage of the fruits of the season, make some sorbet. I have leftover cherries that a guest brought... can you guess what I'm going to make with them once they're all pitted??

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Cowboy Cookies

2011-07-13T18:56:00.000+03:00

I was asked to bring dessert for lunch this past weekend and figured the best thing to make would be cookies, small, dry (travelling with frozen dessert- not the wisest thing to do in this weather) and no fork necessary. The decision to make cookies really came as I was browsing through Baked Explorations for inspiration. In the cookie chapter, I came across this recipe for Cowboy Cookies, which is essentially a chocolate chip oatmeal cookie with the addition of salty pretzels, playing off the sweet and salty flavor contrast. Interestingly enough, I found out when I served them that they brought to mind Chubby Hubby, the Ben and Jerry's ice cream flavor that contains pretzels. This was new to me. When I got home I found out that Ben and Jerry's renamed their ice cream Hubby Hubby in support of gay marriage. So maybe I should rename them Brokeback Mountain Cookies. Anyway, these cookies were really easy to make but do require quite a chill in the fridge. The Baked guys recommend four hours, but I didn't wait that long. Something else I learned- I'm not a fan of convection baking for cookies. I've realized that they are indeed responsible for making my cookies crisp instead of chewy because they bake them faster than I can realize that they are done. So when it comes to cookies from here on out, it's regular bake! These cookies were really well received (after people got over the shock of the pretzels) and if you really feel inclined to take these over the top, you can sandwich them around some ice cream for a really fun summertime treat.

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Herb Rolls

2011-07-10T11:00:00.000+03:00

Shavua tov! Things are heating up here in Jerusalem in an unbearable way. Shabbat was particularly brutal, especially when walking to and from shul and meals in the blazing heat. I find myself staying home and hanging around in my apartment all day just to avoid the heat! In any case, seeing as I was home again for Shabbat, I decided, along with the challah, to bake some rolls. I've been wanting to make herb rolls again ever since I made them for a Purim Seuda years ago in Bar Ilan, adapted from one from KAF. A thorough search in my recipe box for the index card with the recipe neatly written on it turned up nothing. So it was back to the drawing board. A cursory glance through my bread books yielded nothing. Then I thought to look through Bernard Clayton's thorough bread book. My copy is still in the states, but I did a search through Amazon's look inside the book feature. My search turned up a recipe called Six Herb bread. Perfect! Well, almost, considering I didn't have all those herbs. But I decided to use it as a jumping off point and adapt it. That's exactly what I did. I omitted the sugar from the recipe, used regular oil, and used some dried rosemary, dried thyme and a touch of caraway. I made the dough and let it rise overnight in the fridge. The next day, I took the opportunity to try my hand at shaping different types of rolls. The rolls turned out really well! The flavor of rosemary dominated, but it was mellowed out by the baking and at some points I got a lovely hit of caraway. (I gotta start using it more!) I enjoyed it mostly with Matbucha, a mild to spicy tomato spread, and stashed the leftovers in the freezer. These rolls are headed off to Yeastspotting!
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Sugar Puffs

2011-07-06T12:47:00.000+03:00

I made these vanilla cookies this past weekend as a counterpoint to the deeply chocolately Chocolate Sorbet, thinking that the lightness of the cookie itself and its gentle vanilla flavor would nicely balance it out. Or, as one noted, for those who don't like chocolate. Or, if you know me, to complete my favorite color combination- black and white. ;) The addition of cornstarch to this shortbread like batter makes these ethereally light. This batch yielded about 21 cookies for me, so double the recipe if you need more. The tops won't color terribly, but keep an eye on the bottoms and sides, they should turn a nice golden color.
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Chocolate Sorbet

2011-07-04T23:07:00.000+03:00

This weekend, I hosted my very first Shabbat meal in my apartment! And, be proud, for the first time in a long time, my dessert choice came easily to me! As the summer progresses and the days get hotter, I find the need for something cool and refreshing increases. So I whipped out my copy of The Perfect Scoop and looked around for information. In this definitive volume devoted to all things ice cream, David Lebovitz provides no shortage of inspiration. Seeing as I have no ice cream maker, I didn't want to use a million egg yolks, and dairy was off limits, I headed to the chapter on sorbets. The fruit sorbets sounded delicious, (the cherry sorbet stood out as it's prime cherry season here!) but I passed them over in favor of the rich and decadent Chocolate Sorbet. Made with only the best cocoa powder and bittersweet chocolate, this sorbet packs a powerful punch. Add the chill factor and you have a wonderful, refreshing, and refreshingly different Shabbat dessert. If you have an ice cream maker, this is a breeze to prepare. If you don't, and I don't (I asked around electronic shops here, apparently they dont carry them anymore in this country- shame!), you can still make this by chilling the base and then beating it every half hour to break up the ice crystals. The texture isn't as smooth as if machine churned, but this version doesn't suffer too much. Out of sheer laziness, and the late hour, I didn't blend before starting the freezing process, but I don't think it mattered. Also, for easier mixing, I poured the base into a nine inch pan. I would suggest though, pouring the base into a tall container when you're finished the "churning" process as the increased surface area of the pan allows the sorbet to melt faster. No one complained about the fudgy, melty texture, in fact this was a big hit, but I would have preferred nice, clean, unmelted scoops of sorbet.

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KAF 100% Whole Wheat Bread

2011-07-03T10:36:00.000+03:00

Happy July everyone and more importantly, happy summer! (I can't believe it's summer already. I keep asking people what they're doing for summer before realizing, oh wait, it is summer!) This loaf of bread was the last thing I baked in SFW before moving to the new apartment, which really does end a two year "era" of baking there. It seems fitting that the last thing I baked was a loaf of bread, my favorite thing to make. Normally, I don't eat bread during the week, so I have to hold myself back from baking it, but because the move was coming up and there really was no food in the fridge, I made an exception. Especially since it was going to have to be whole wheat, as I had a bag of it still in the fridge. The recipe I used was the 100% Whole Wheat Bread Baker's Companion. I made this bread once before when I was in Bar Ilan and my notes accompanying it say, "Really great bread-nice subtle flavor. Not squishy but not at all dense. Perfect w.w. loaf- go to recipe, keeper! Omitted walnuts and seeds. Made by hand, used scale." This bread really is a great whole wheat loaf but this time I made it in the mixer and the rise and texture were even better than I remembered. I did leave out the nuts and seeds again and of course as I always do these days, use the scale. I can't really remember a time when I didn't pull out the scale to bake... This recipe remains a quick, easy and most importantly, great whole wheat bread recipe. Give it a try. This bread is off to Yeastspotting!

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Beer Bread

2011-06-27T17:24:00.000+03:00

After the disaster that was A's original birthday cake, I had almost an entire bottle of beer leftover. My first instinct? Beer bread. But not the quick bread kind. I wanted an honest to goodness loaf of yeasted bread made with beer. A quick scan through my shelf of bread books yielded a perfect and perfectly simple recipe for Beer Bread in the Bread Bible. I made this dough in the mixer, using sugar instead of malt powder or syrup. The dough after kneading was so silky and a pleasure to work with. I let it rise at room temperature and then shaped and allowed it to proof overnight in the fridge, although Rose says this is not necessary because of the deep flavor the beer gives. Anyway, the next day, I took the well risen loaf out of the fridge, scored and baked. Later that night, I ripped into it and the first bite was sweet, with an unidentifiable flavor contributed by the beer. It was, frankly, delicious with a soft and moist crumb. My roommate, a friend and I finished the whole loaf within minutes. Should it last longer than that, it would actually make great sandwiches. Even if you don't happen to have leftover beer on hand, I would strongly recommend you buy a bottle strictly for this purpose. This Beer Bread is headed for this week's Yeastspotting!

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Nectarine Lattice Pie

2011-06-26T20:22:00.001+03:00

I realize it's been a while since I last posted.. but there are good reasons for that, I assure you. One is I finally moved to my new apartment!!!!! Yes, I am sitting on my new bed, enjoying GOOD wireless internet (poo poo poo) in my new neighborhood. :) And secondly, my dad's here for the week, so between unpacking and spending time with him, (and sorting out ANNOYING army stuff) this Nectarine Lattice Pie, which I made a couple of weeks back when I went to visit L and J, got pushed to the back burner. This recipe was adapted from The Art and Soul of Baking. The original recipe is for a Nectarine Blackberry Pie but since blackberries cost an arm and a leg and it is peak season for nectarines, that's exactly what they got. (For those of you who think the concept of nectarine pie is bizarre, just think about peach pie, minus the fuzz.) I really enjoy making pies and this was no exception, especially since this one gave me a chance to improve my lattice making skills. A scoop of ice cream on a hot Shabbat afternoon wouldn't be amiss here whether you choose to serve the pie hot or cold.

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Double Fudge Mint Brownies

2011-06-21T16:44:00.000+03:00

I'm not sure how I neglected to take a final photograph of these brownies, but it seems I did. Oh well. This past weekend I went to my friends (crazy!) in Alon Shvut and I baked dessert. L told me that she likes chocolate and mint while her husband likes fruit and pies. So for her, I made these Double Fudge Mint Brownies and for him, a nectarine pie (more on that later). For the brownies I used the brownies from KAF Whole Grain Baking and added in chopped Mint Thins to give them a mint profile. The mint thins melted nicely into the final brownie so you would never know they were there just by looking. They turned out nice and fudgy and delicious, with no indication that they are whole grain. Be sure to let them set overnight for the bran in the whole wheat to sufficiently soften. Following is a half recipe, as I made it. Double for a full 9x13 inch pan.

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Gingerbread Cake with White Chocolate Lemon Mousse Frosting

2011-06-20T19:41:00.000+03:00

My dear roommate A turned 23 last week and in honor, I wanted to make her a birthday cake. Not wanting there to be any surprises, I asked her what kind of cake she wanted and while she didn't have any definitive requests she was opposed to having a chocolate cake. The entire year A had been begging me to bake spice cookies so in tribute to that love of hers, I decided to bake a gingerbread cake. A quick browse through Sky High Cakes and I had found the cake I was going to bake. A Gingerbread Beer Cake. I went out to buy all the ingredients and set out to making it. I don't know what went wrong, but the cake turned out soft and sticky with no structure and it sunk. Big time. Into the trash it went. Plan B. I opened up my copy of Country Living's Great Cakes and landed on Grandma Stonifer's Spice Cake. Bingo. The recipe is one for a two layer birthday cake but of course as my oven has room for only one pan at a time, one layer baked up perfectly while the other sank. It was going to have to be a one layer birthday cake. I wrapped it up and set it aside for the next day. As I was on my way to catch a bus, an idea for frosting hit me like a ton of bricks. Lemon infused white chocolate ganache frosting! Excitedly, I went out to get the white chocolate and lemon and got to work right when I got back. Now, I'm not going to lie, I prepared the white chocolate ganache in Sherry Yard's book but I don't remember how much cream I added to it to get it to a spreadable consistency when I whipped it. I peeled off strips of zest from the lemon and steeped it in the cream, for a subtle but present flavor. When the frosting became spreadable, I covered the cake with it. I used my leftover gingerbread crumbs to coat the sides and some of the top, which was a big hit, pulling the lemon and ginger flavors together. A LOVED the frosting (she got so mad when she saw I got rid of the unused frosting) but thought the cake could use a bit more moisture, so next time I would add some oil in place of some of the shortening. All in all, this cake was a winner and I was very proud of it.

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Carrot Bread

2011-06-19T18:15:00.000+03:00

The final Shabbat that we had with the girls was spent in the dorms and as I was baking for it minimally, I decided to bake some rolls for myself. I'd long been wanting to make carrot bread and on one of my trips to the shuk, I remembered to pick up a couple to make the recipe from Secrets of a Jewish Baker, fast becoming one of my favorite bread books. (Yes, there is a bit of competition for that spot. I have more bread books than anything else!!) The bread calls for a sponge and some grated or ground carrots. The carrots lent a lovely orange color to the bread, but I wonder if the ground carrots would have made the color more intense and lent more of a sweetness to the bread itself. I opted to make half a recipe, which resulted in six large, perfect sandwich rolls. They turned out crusty on the outside but nice and soft in the middle. The flavor is much like a water roll and the texture is quite sturdy, so these would be perfect for burgers or sandwiches. I enjoyed mine with lots of eggplant salads on Shabbat. I omitted the milk powder from the recipe to keep them parve, but I imagine the addition of milk would make the texture a bit softer. I also made a note to increase the salt for next time, something I seem to be doing in all of Greenstein's breads. These rolls are being Yeastspotted! Check out Susan's weekly round up on Friday.

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Rustic Apricot Galette

2011-06-16T10:30:00.000+03:00

It's apricot season here in Israel and every time I walk through the shuk, I stare longingly at the containers of them lining each fruit stand. Sadly, they are still too expensive to justify buying. And so, I continue walking through, apricot-less. To my total surprise and excitement, our terrific cook B ordered PLENTY of apricots for our final Shabbat at SFW! Going through them and washing them to serve, there were of course some fruits that were blemished and too soft to be deemed edible. I happily set those aside to bake with. I headed back to my room, apricots (mishmish, in Hebrew) in tow to begin the research process. After flipping through a number of books (all of my pie books came up empty!) I was hit with inspiration and ran to pick up Regan Daly's In the Sweet Kitchen. There in the section for Pies and Tarts was a recipe for a Rustic Apricot Galette. Ahhh, perfection. Rustic, simple and beautiful (I can hardly look at the pictures, the fruit is stunningly bright!), just the thing to highlight this perfect fruit. A couple of summers ago I made the plum variation but my pie skills were seriously lacking then and well, it wasn't entirely successful. This was the chance to redeem myself and it was quite nice to see how well my pie making skills have developed. This open faced pie came together so quickly. I chilled it in the fridge the night before and baked it the next morning although I wouldnt repeat that because although the chilling step is IMPERATIVE a lot of liquid somehow seeped out of the galette making a bit of a mess. Lesson learned. Anyway, the heat of the oven did wonders for this and the apricots tasted tart and sweet and delicious, like the best apricot preserves in a simple filling. If there are apricots to be found near you, make this in celebration of the season's bounty.

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Regan Daly's Really REALLY Fudgy Brownies

2011-06-15T22:48:00.000+03:00

The very last girl left a couple of hours ago and now the dorms are eerily quiet and empty. It's at once both peaceful and sad but I suppose life must go on and now I'm faced with the intimidation that is packing up an entire room! Instead, I'm blogging :) The girls' last hurrah was this past Sunday evening and I was asked to bake brownies to contribute to the dessert table. Seeing as this would be the last time they would enjoy my baked goods, I happily obliged. It was settled that I'd make three pans of brownies so I thought that I would flavor two of the three pans but in the end I just left them all plain and it was good I did. As for the recipe itself, I decided to give a new recipe a try that being the Really REALLY Fudgy Brownie from Regan Daly's In The Sweet Kitchen. A quick glance through the recipe told me that it was very, very similar to the Baked recipe and so I knew this was a guaranteed success. So I got to work. The pictures below indicate a triple batch and yes, I was actually covered with chocolate by the end but it was all worth it. These brownies turned out perfectly crackly, fudgy and well, heavenly. The perfect way to end a great year.

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Buttermilk Cluster

2011-06-14T18:00:00.000+03:00

I spent Shavuot in school with the girls and so wanted to bake some bread to enjoy for it. Because we traditionally eat dairy on Shavuot, I took the opportunity to make the bread dairy. (Dairy bread, by Jewish law is forbidden to make, lest one accidentally eat it at a meat meal. The only way it is permissible is if the shape is distinct enough to serve as a reminder that it is different than the norm.) For ages, I've seen the picture of the Buttermilk Cluster on the Fresh Loaf website and so I wanted to make something along those lines. I opened up Secrets of a Jewish Baker and settled on the Buttermilk Bread. I made half a recipe in my mixer and baked it as rolls in a cake pan. I used oil instead of margarine or shortening. This dough would make a great sandwich loaf because it is nice and soft. I was anticipating a sweeter roll with a stronger taste of buttermilk although I'm not sure why because there is barely any sweetener in it, this making it perfect for savory applications. Next time, I would definitely up the salt as I found myself sprinkling the rolls with salt before I took each bite. Because I love sesame seeds, I took the liberty of glazing the rolls with egg white and sprinkling half of them with sesame seeds. These rolls are being Yeastspotted!
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Lemon Chiffon Pie in Gingersnap Crust

2011-06-13T17:57:00.000+03:00

I've been baking a lot lately, but things have been crazy and I am just now finding the time to post. The girls' banquet or sob fest was last night and most of them are leaving in the next couple of days so my time is freeing up for a bit before I move. Crazy! Two weekends ago, when I went to A for Shabbat, I brought over this Lemon Chiffon Pie. Something mousse-like was requested and I immediately went for lemon. I figured a chiffon pie would be perfect and indeed, made with a homemade gingersnap crust, it was. In my humble opinion, gingersnap and lemon are perfectly complementary and everyone else agreed. Light and refreshing, it's the perfect summertime dessert. However, there are a couple of technical things I'd do differently. The recipe for the chiffon pie comes from the book Pie by Ken Haedrich. He calls for one envelope of gelatin and not knowing what the Israeli equivalent was, I used 2 teaspoons. I think it was too much as the end product was a but too... jiggly for my liking. I loved the texture of it when it was still mousse-like, not all the way set. I think the next time I make this, and there will be a next time (even if I only make the filling as a dessert) I'd cut the gelatin back to the vicinity of a teaspoon, a teaspoon and a quarter. Otherwise, I have no complaints. All my eaters were happy. My roommate ate the leftovers of this pie all the way to the last crumb.
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Chocolate Refrigerator Cake

2011-06-06T20:00:00.000+03:00

I had a beautiful Shabbat this past weekend, spent with friends in one of my favorite places, the Katamon neighborhood of Jerusalem. For both of my meals, I was put on dessert duty. I'm always happy to make desserts but lately I've been realizing that it's easier to make difficult life decisions than decide what to make for dessert. It's actually pretty sad :) I spent part of my in-day on Tuesday researching desserts (yes, baking constitutes research for me!) that would be great for a hot day and as I was flipping through all my books I was hit with inspiration. Chocolate Refrigerator Cake! Or Cookies and Cream Cake. Whichever you think will elicit a better reaction from your eaters.This cake comes from the fifties but is no less of a success now than it was then. Made with chocolate wafer cookies layered with whipped cream and then stacked in rows in a pan, the cake is chilled overnight where the cookies soften into a wonderful cake-like consistency. You can use store-bought chocolate wafers or make your own, as I chose to do here. I used the recipe from the Cookie Companion but you can also use the cocoa wafer recipe found here. Once the cookies are made, this is a breeze to put together. The response to this dessert was overwhelmingly positive. At both meals where I served this, people LOVED it! With cookies and cream involved, it's not too difficult to understand why, but still my roommate placed this in her favorites of all time category and she's been eating my baking for two years now! Needless to say, if you're looking for a fun dessert to make this summer, this should be it.

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Strawberry Linzer Bars

2011-06-05T16:29:00.000+03:00

The hunt for nut based cookies keeps going. This here is a bar cookie that plays off the classic Linzertorte. I used one bag of ground hazelnuts/filberts to make a dough that is layered with strawberry jelly and topped with some reserved crumbled dough. I know raspberry is the more traditional option, but they were out in the supermarket. The girls found these bars interesting and happily ate them, but I was in love with the scent of the hazelnuts, toasting as they baked. (Whenever I buy raw hazelnuts for snacking, I ALWAYS toast them before eating. There is just nothing like it.) Everything comes together super fast with a handy-dandy mixer. Be aware that the crust won't deeply brown and also grease your pan WELL so you have no breakage where the jelly sticks to the pan. Only three bags of nuts to go!

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Apple Rhubarb Pandowdy

2011-06-01T14:34:00.000+03:00

The picture you see here may look like a pie, but really, it's something a bit simpler to put together with a much cooler name. It's a pandowdy. A pandowdy essentially is a bottomcrust-less pie, so instead of going through the work of making and rolling out two pie crusts, you only have the inconvenience (if you can call making pies incovenient! Shame on you!) of making one. Naturally, I still had some rhubarb leftover and some apples that were neglected from dinner so I threw this together one night. The recipe comes from Rustic Fruit Desserts and it really couldn't be easier, especially if you have ready made pie crusts (only the homemade kind!) in the freezer. A scoop of vanilla ice cream is really welcome here, so if you have that, this will make a wonderful Shabbat dessert. Or whenever you just feel like having a nice plate of comforting pandowdy. Or two. With ice cream. I won't tell.

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Vanilla Kipferl

2011-05-29T20:20:00.000+03:00

I think I mentioned that when I was leaving America after Pesach, I cleaned out my mother's baking cabinets of things that I could use that were just sitting there. I took back a 7 pound bag of light brown sugar (working my way through!), a bag of chocolate chips, a few bars of chocolate, natural powder, and bags and bags of ground nuts. I thought I won the jackpot with the ground nuts but for a while at least they just sat in my kitchen cabinets. With my moving date fast approaching, I decided I had to make a dent in them somehow. I faintly remembered lots of cookie recipes using ground nuts in the KAF Cookie Companion, so that's where I started my search. I immediately settled on Vanilla Kipferl, an old-fashioned Austrian cookie (in fact, my brother in law commented that these were something his grandmother would make but I think he was just stirring the pot...) made with ground almonds (score!) and dipped in vanilla sugar, a full canister I happened to have sitting around. The dough came together really fast in the stand mixer and I let the dough chill overnight thinking I would bake them the next day. Wrong! I didn't bake these until Friday afternoon when I realized that I hadn't baked anything to bring for my sister. Thankfully, I remembered the kipferl dough and not wanting it to go to waste, started shaping them into their traditional crescent shape. For a recipe so simple and made from so few ingredients, these cookies really went and they were enjoyed by my sister and brother in law although let's just say my niece's tastes aren't nut inclined. These cookies are the perfect accompaniment to tea or or coffee but they'd also be right at home on a dessert table as well. Just make sure not to burn the bottoms ;)

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Chocolate Crusted Pumpkin Tart

2011-05-27T11:19:00.000+03:00

Thumbing through my brand new copy of Martha Stewart's New Pies and Tarts, this chocolate crusted pumpkin tart immediately jumped right out at me. (The recipe is actually calls for a spiderweb design, making this perfect for Halloween. Since it is neither October nor do I nor my tasters celebrate Halloween anyway, I omitted the piping work.) Although pumpkin is traditionally an American fall dessert, courtesy of Thanksgiving, here in Israel, I do as I please, especially as fresh pumpkin is abounding in the shuk. I had the canned stuff at home and some leftover sour cream and so finally got to work making this. I made the spiced chocolate dough the night before in my mixer-- such quick work!! It chilled overnight until I was ready for it. The pumpkin filling comes together so easily- simply whisk up a bunch of things in a bowl and strain. A word on straining-- it is imperative to get a smooth satiny filling. Do not skip this step! The resulting tart, in my humble opinion, is pretty attractive. The contrast of the dark chocolate and orange really is beautiful to behold, or maybe that's just the baker in me. Again, there were some girls who felt like the spices in the tart were too strong. On the other hand, I had a couple who loved it and one who actually ate most of the tart over a few days because she really loved it. This all could be because I baked this in a 9 inch tart instead of a ten inch tart and so the crust to filling ratio was high, making the spices more apparent, so do as I say not as I do and go for the ten inch tart or feel free to dial back the spices in the crust and filling as you wish. One more thing- be sure to chill the tart before serving. Due to the dairy in the filling, the baked tart can come off as a bit slimy and the time in the fridge will firm it up for you.

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Monkey Bread

2011-05-26T10:14:00.001+03:00

I promised you a Monkey Bread and I'm finally delivering on that promise. The only things I have to say are, this was worth waiting for and MAKE IT NOW! Redolent of cinnamon babka, this cake is made up of balls of sweet yeast dough coated in cinnamon and sugar. Just the smell is enough to drive you mad. Could you resist that? In true monkey fashion, this cake was actually devoured in mere minutes with girls begging me for the recipe at the end. The recipe itself comes from the new book, Baked Explorations but I adapted it slightly. For starters, I just threw in the margarine without melting it and let the dough do it's thing in the fridge overnight. Works like a charm for me every time. For the coating, I also used light brown sugar as that's what I had on hand. Assembling the cake itself is kind of fun. You just pull off pieces of dough, roll them into little ballies, dip and dump into a greased bundt pan. Then you can let it rise and bake or you can stash it in the fridge for next morning's breakfast, if you please. One pan, though, might not be enough, so consider making two. Or maybe that's just what I'll need to do with over seventy eager eaters around. I think I'd like to try a pumpkin variation or even a chocolate variation, so stay tuned for that. This Monkey Bread is being Yeastspotted!

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Rhubarb Ginger Buckle

2011-05-25T15:19:00.000+03:00

When I first saw rhubarb in the shuk, my mind immediately jumped to this recipe from Rustic Fruit Desserts. I searched the blogosphere for reviews on this recipe and sure enough, those who had made it gave rave reviews. And so, this Rhubarb Ginger Buckle moved to the top of the list. Thinking I needed sour cream for the recipe, I bought some only to later find out that I needed buttermilk. Instead of just swapping one for the other, I decided to use the rhubarb for something else. The other day, I came home with more rhubarb and buttermilk, all set to make the cake. The only problem now was that I didn't have any crystallized ginger for the crumble topping. Instead of leaving it out, I added some ground ginger to the top. I'm not going to lie, among the girls, this cake was hit or miss. I left a sign for them warning them about the ginger and that it might be too strong a flavor for some. Some absolutely loved it, and some really didn't care for it, declaring it interesting. I guess it all depends on how you feel about ginger. I enjoyed the top and my roommate from last year thought it was the best part. Truthfully, were I to make this cake again, I would use the crystallized ginger or put about 3/4 teaspoon of ground ginger in the topping. The cake itself is moist and tender from the buttermilk and the rhubarb is softened into tart deliciousness. This should be on your must bake list this rhubarb season.

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Sour Cream Pound Cake

2011-05-23T19:38:00.000+03:00

The other day in the supermarket, I saw a full sized container of sour cream, not the ones that come in the small four packs. Pleasantly surprised, I randomly bought one. I thought it would sit in the fridge until I found a use for it (I always think I have a million ways to use something, then I buy it and can't remember a single thing I had intended to make with it- go figure). I flipped open Carole Walter's book on coffeecakes and the like and picked out... the Sour Cream Pound Cake. This cake is no frills, just down home, simple but good, cake. A dusting of powdered sugar would be welcome but not necessary. The crumb of the cake is wonderfully tight and velvety, each slice moist but with a crunchy crust. If you like pound cake, this cake is for you. If you don't, try toasting a slice and serving it with whipped cream and berries or ice cream. Maybe that will convert you. Oh, and you can tell that I'm sort of a pound cake novice as I served the cake upside down by accident. Only afterwards did I realize the rusting appeal of the top. Oh well. No one was the wiser. Most important tip ever: cut out a parchment circle to line the bottom of your tube pan. You'll thank me later.

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Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cake

2011-05-22T16:43:00.000+03:00

The recipe for this coffecake-like cake comes from Baked Explorations, the second book to be put out by the guys behind Baked, the bakery. This book was waiting for me when I got to America and I was excited to bring it home and start baking from it, as I've had nothing but success with the recipes from the first book. The very first recipe to jump out at me was the Monkey Bread, as I've been looking for a recipe for it for ages. Alas, it wasn't the first cake I made. Instead, I turned my attentions to the humble Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cake. The recipe is accompanied by a cream cheese frosting, but I decided that if I was starting simple, it would be simple all the way. What I love about this recipe is that it requires no mixer and is super easy to make. This cake is perfect for breakfast (it earns its place in that chapter) or with a cup of tea or coffee. My girls couldn't really tell what this cake was except that it was moist and delicious and studded with chocolate chips. Mine sadly sunk to the bottom, but I think they appreciated the layer of chocolate. I used quick cooking oats, as that's what I had on hand, so they disappeared into the batter. But if you want your oats to make more of an appearance, go with the rolled oats.

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Rhubarb Crumble Pie

2011-05-20T10:19:00.000+03:00

It was obvious to me that the leftover rhubarb would go not into a cake or muffin but into another pie. (I have a thing for pies. I just never get bored of making them.) This time around, finding inspiration for a rhubarb pie wasn't difficult- I just turned to my brand new copy of the beautiful Martha Stewart's New Pies and Tarts. (Just as an aside, this book has mouthwatering recipes with stunning photos accompanying it. I'm hoping to make the chocolate-pumpkin tart next week....) In the "Rustic" chapter of the book is nestled a recipe for Rhubarb Crumble Pie. Rhubarb. Crumble. Pie. Three things I love in one glass pie plate. All I'm going to say about this pie is that I left it out for the girls during sign in and when I came to check on it later, all that was left was a tiny bit of pie crust. I guess the girls can't resist a seasonal pie, either. There's nothing difficult about this pie- make the crumble while the dough chills and make the filling while the completed pie shell is chilling. Ice cream wouldn't be amiss here, but I'd understand if you just wanted all rhubarb, all the time.

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Toronto Blueberry Buns, My Way

2011-05-18T11:04:00.000+03:00

A couple of weeks ago, I went into the school's kitchen to talk to the cook about something and I left with about five jars of unopened blueberry jelly. He said he needed to use them up before the end of school and was hoping I would so something with them. For days the jelly sat on my kitchen table while I brainstormed recipes that I could make with them. Crumble bars? Been there. Jam shortbread bars? Done that. Finally, it hit me- Marcy Goldman has a recipe for Toronto Blueberry Buns. That is exactly what I was going to make. These classic buns are made with a fresh fruit filling, but I decided to rework the recipe a bit to fit my needs. So I used most of the blueberry jam and swapped out shortening for the butter, as per their original recipe, anyway. I'm not going to lie, these would have been sublime with fresh blueberry filling but alas fresh, or even frozen, blueberries cost a pretty penny. Anyway, this recipe made plenty of gargantuan buns. Feel free to make them smaller. They were so large that girls took halves. They didn't disappear until last night, when I cut the remaining buns in half for them and plated them. Lots of girls loved them in their entirety, and some loved the pastry but were skeptical about the filling. I was totally with them on that, but feel free to use a better jam or your own homemade blueberry filling. Either way, you should give these a try. While a bit time consuming to shape, they are fun to make. A couple of technical notes: I made my dough the night before and stashed it in the fridge. Although the dough doesnt rise much, it was easier to work with when cold. Also, I scaled my dough at 3 ounce pieces. They made large buns. Feel free to dial them back to 2 ounces each. These buns are off to Yeastspotting!

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Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

2011-05-16T18:13:00.000+03:00

Spring has finally arrived! I'm not sure it's made up it's mind that it wants to stay, as the weather keeps changing back and forth, but it certainly is here! You know what that means... more fruit-centric desserts. It's no secret that I much prefer making fruit based delights over the heavier chocolate or butter laden ones and now that the season is changing and the best that nature has to offer has arrived, there is simply no reason not to. When I went to the shuk last week, I noticed that the rhubarb was back and I couldn't resist buying a bundle. Sadly, strawberries are on their way out, but there are still some to be had at a bargain. Once I scooped up a bundle of rhubarb, I quickly snatched up a kilo of strawberries and headed home, pie very much on the brain. Strawberry and rhubarb is a classic combination; the sweetness of the berries mellows out the tartness of the rhubarb resulting in pie heaven. Even though it's my idea of heaven, I wasn't sure how the girls would take it, some having never heard of rhubarb before. I decided I didn't care- the pie was going to get made! I opened my copy of Luscious Berry Desserts to find a simple, straightforward recipe and got to work. I omitted the lemon juice as I didn't have it on hand, but be sure to add the cinnamon. It's just a slight amount and although you might think it has no place in a pie like this, it works. In the end, I needn't have worried because the pie tasted delicious and the girls loved it. My roommate, who had never before had rhubarb, kept going back to the pie, concluding that it was amazing. I'm sure you all have your own tried and true recipes for Strawberry Rhubarb Pie but might this post encourage you to get into the kitchen and start baking? I hope so. Happy Spring!

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Oldie but Goodie: Chewy Chocolate Cinnamon Cookies

2011-05-15T15:58:00.000+03:00

Odd choice of title? Allow me to explain. Back when I started baking in high school, this was one of the first cookie recipes that I made. Again. And again. Simple to prepare, but they were that good. After that year, this recipe, which comes from the Hershey files, took a backseat. It was only when I came home from Pesach with a canister of natural Hershey's cocoa and plenty of American brown sugar in tow that I was inspired to pull this recipe out for the girls. The name of these cookies perfectly describe them. They are wonderfully chewy, with a slight crispness on the outside from the coating of cinnamon and sugar. Let me just say, they do not disappoint; the girls really raved about them, one going so far as to tell me that I made her night. One recipe doesn't really make enough to feed all the people who are going to want these so I advise you to double or even triple the recipe. What I love about these cookies is that they bake up nice and crackly and pretty much uniform in appearance. The only thing holding these back from being super duper fast is that the dough has to firm up the fridge for about an hour. If that's a deterrent, well, you're seriously missing out.

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Israeli Bageleh

2011-05-14T21:55:00.006+03:00

Two weeks ago, I spent our last out Shabbat with the girls in one of Israel's four holy cities, Tzfat. Recalling from last year that the food wasn't all that great, I decided to make my own bread. Since this was a last minuet decision, I needed something quick. While I was pondering what to make, it hit me to make regular pita. This thought led me to my beloved A Blessing of Bread by Maggie Glezer, which I've used extensively in the past but haven't touched in a while. Flipping through the pages, I saw this recipe for Bageleh, a ubiquitous bread here in Israel. These breads are made with her pita bread base, shaped as bagels, dipped into sesame seeds and flattened. Anything with sesame seeds is a winner in my book. I used the KitchenAid to put these together and the mixer made quick work of this dough. It turned out wonderfully soft and silky. They are immediately shaped and coated with water, dipped into sesame seeds and allowed to rise. Once they rise, they are flattened with a rolling pin, allowed to proof again and then baked on a baking stone. My breads lack the glorious color that commercial ones have because of the lack of sugar added (lack of fermentation time also doesnt help here) and the fact that there's no egg wash here. Nevertheless, these breads score major points for deliciousness. I enjoyed them throughout Shabbat plain or dipped into "salatim" or dips but feel free to slice them in half and use them for sandwiches. Below is the full recipe, but I only made half. This recipe has been Yeastspotted.

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Mommy's Pesach Banana Cake

2011-05-10T21:38:00.017+03:00

I know Pesach is a long way behind us, but I had all of the ingredients at the ready for this cake so I decided to bake it anyway. Besides, in this case kosher for Pesach means gluten-free, and when you know people who are living the gluten-free lifestyle, this is a cake to make any time. This cake is in the style of sponge/chiffon cakes, except in this case, there is no oil. That's right- except for the yolks, this is a fat-free cake. The bananas, sugar and yolks are sufficient to keep this cake moist and the beaten egg whites contribute their usual light-and-fluffiness. My mother likes to add some vanilla sugar to the batter but I just made do with vanilla extract. This cake is not only delicious, but to me, sentimental as well. My mother bakes this cake, along with her chocolate cake, every Pesach and in the years I've been home, I've been right alongside her, helping to fold in the whites. I hope it becomes a mainstay in your homes, too.
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Lemon Glow Chiffon Cake

2011-05-09T14:54:00.000+03:00

This cake has gotten such short-shrift, it's not even funny. This was the cake I baked for dessert the Shabbat before I went home. I figured that if I didnt take the time now to tell you all about this cake, it would get lost in the shuffle of this blog. And that's just not right. This Lemon Glow Chiffon Cake from the Cake Bible is a soft, fluffy, sponge-cake like, cake. It's ethereally light and delicate that would perfectly complement a cup of tea. Since it was just me and S, the cake had barely a slice taken out of it by the end of Shabbat. Slowly, when the girls got wind of it, it disappeared, and to raves, no less. What would have gone to waste made some people very happy. Although this recipe appears in the Cake Bible, I used Rose's technique from her latest book and baked the cake in a springform pan with a flower needle/pin inserted in the middle. It worked beautifully; my cake didnt sink. To me, chiffon cakes are extremely underrated. Now with my new mixer, making them will be a snap- stay tuned for future chiffon cakes!

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Soft Cheese Bread

2011-05-04T18:29:00.000+03:00

I've still not recovered from my jetlag enough to pull out my new mixer and bake (I haven't slept a full night since I've been back-ugh!) so I'm going to keep catching up on older posts. Hope y'all don't mind too much.

I made this Soft Cheese Bread the weekend before I left (same time as the Struan) in honor of S who loooves cheese. This bread was my tribute to her. Once I knew I wanted to make a cheese bread, I had to decide what kind of cheese to put in it. Considering I don't like cheese or know anything about selecting them for bread, I figured this would be a tough one. I went in to the supermarket and asked the cheesemonger for his recommendation. He told me to avoid all of the strong French cheeses as he thought they'd overpower and overwhelm the bread. So Parmesan was out. Disheartened, I bought some sliced yellow cheese and a log of Mozzarella. What else could I do? I was definitely not about to buy blue cheese. (Tried eating that once; let's just say it did not go over too well.) I made the dough the night before and so assembly the next day was a breeze. The bread itself is delicious, with such a soft texture; the onions add the most delicious flavor- reminiscent of the onion rolls we used to get in the summers from the Heimishe bakery. Definitely have to experiment with adding onions to bread! I tried to avoid the cheese parts but S loved the bread, so in her honor I declare this bread a winner. Thankfully, this loaf made the room smell very good instead of... well, like stinky cheese. This loaf is headed off to Yeastspotting!

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Spiced Cake Donuts

2011-05-01T17:35:00.000+03:00

I'm pretty sure these donuts were the very last thing I managed to make before I flew to New York. This recipe comes not from the adorable book Doughnuts (I wish I could bake more from it but I don't have a fryer!); it's the recipe that accompanied one of the donut pans that I bought at the beginning of the year. Figuring that any recipe that comes with a product must be tested well, I decided to bake them for the few girls who were still here. These donuts are lightly spiced with cinnamon and nutmeg and so I decided that they would be best topped with cinnamon and sugar. Given that they only have 1 tbsp of fat in them, these are best eaten as soon as they are made, although they probably won't even make it to the next day. And although you skeptics might be right that these are just little cakes disguised as donuts, the donut shape is pretty darn irresistible. These come together really easy with just a whisk, so there's no reason not to make them. If you don't have a donut pan, try making them as mini muffins.
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Struan

2011-04-27T05:51:00.000+03:00

I'm well aware that I haven't blogged in ages, and as usual, it's not for lack of things to post about. It's just that I surprised my family for the holidays (they were quite surprised!) and flew to New York. (I leave tomorrow night- ahh!!) Wanting to soak up every second with my parents and family, I sort of neglected the blog. And then it was Passover itself and I sort of felt strange posting about leavened baked goods on the holiday about not consuming leavened baked goods. Anyway, I made this recipe the weekend before I flew on the occasion of hosting my friend S for the weekend. (Stay tuned for the rest of the baked goods from that weekend!) This recipe was also the inaugural recipe for Josie, my new apple green mixer. :) This Struan recipe is Reinhart's latest incarnation from his book Artisan Breads Every Day. I adapted it to what I had in the fridge. I used it as an opportunity to finally finish the whole wheat flour and make a dent in the rye flakes I bought on a whim. I made one loaf and a bunch of rolls and let me say, I was in love with this bread. This was really delicious and deserves to be baked again as the recipe is written and in a million other adaptations. For now, this loaf will have to do. I'm sending it off to Yeastspotting!

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Peanut Butter Graham Squares

2011-04-11T20:24:00.000+03:00

With many of my girls either in Poland or already at home for the holidays, things have been pretty quiet around here. The bunch that is here for Pesach is quite bored, as am I, and so they come to hang out in my room to just chill out. One night, I offered to bake for them. I found this no bake recipe and decided to make it. Miraculously, I had just enough powdered sugar for this recipe, one girl generously donated some peanut butter and I was able to finish these tea biscuits-- the very last of my chametz gamur! The original recipe calls for graham crackers but since they are rare in Israel and I wasn't going to be making my own, the tea biscuits made a convenient substitute. If you so choose to use tea biscuits as your base, be sure to let the whole thing chill for a while so that they filling and crackers can meld. Otherwise, the crackers are likely to fall off as they did on the first night they were eaten. A good amount of them got eaten that night and the rest when off to the Botanical Gardens for a picnic that some girls were having. I used a mix of bittersweet and 60% for the topping- use whatever you have on hand.

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A Week of Whole Grain Baking, Day 8: Soft Barley Sugar Cookies

2011-04-10T10:38:00.000+03:00

Yes, I am fully aware that there are only seven days in a week, but I just couldn't leave out these sugar cookies from the roundup, seeing as how they are whole grain and were a part of the baking marathon. (Rest assured, this is the last post in my series on whole grain baking! Sadly, even with all this baking, I didn't finish all the flour. On a side note, I have now made more than enough [winning] recipes from this book to give it a glowing review! Buy it!) Aside from the necessary overnight chill, these cookies, made with sour cream, were easy to make. The first line in the header for this recipe says, "These taste just like my Grandma's!" Now, these barley cookies definitely aren't my grandmother's, (now that I think of it I can't recall my grandmothers baking cookies..) but they do give off a comforting, homey scent. The cookies stay soft for a while, which is a major bonus. I'm guessing that's due to the sour cream in it. The recipe calls for making ten HUGE cookies but I made regular sized cookies. I made these the night the girls were set to head off to Poland and I think they were very much appreciated. What's amazing about this whole week of baking is that no one could tell these baked goods were whole grain, just delicious. This recipe included. I hope I've encouraged you enough to seek out some whole grain flours (if I can find them in Israel, you can!) and try some of these recipes.

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A Week of Whole Grain Baking, Day 7: Chocolate Graham Crackers

2011-04-09T21:26:00.000+03:00

This week long, whole grain bake fest involved a lot of cracker making. While I was at it, I decided to try my hand at the sweet kind, namely the Graham Cracker. Having made regular graham crackers ages ago, pretty much at the beginning of my blogging days, I decided to go with the chocolate graham. Besides, who doesnt love chocolate? Right. Aaaand, it would make a bigger dent in the barley flour-- let's not forget the reason for this week of wholesome baking. Anyway, the dough comes along pretty easily by hand and then takes a time out in the fridge. It then gets rolled out, docked and baked. The smell of them baking pervaded the entire hallway with a luxurious chocolate scent. Yum! And they taste as good as they smell, a deep chocolate flavor with a nice crackery crunch. I cut some of the cracker dough in half and so the smaller pieces got burned and threw them away; with such a deep colored dough, it's kind of hard to tell when theyre done. My next batch, I took them out earlier, which made for a softer, hbendier cracker, which my girls actually loved. The last batch, I made normally. I plunked a jar of peanut butter down next to the crackers, encouraging the girls to eat them together. Most girls did. Classic combination. Feel free to eat them plain or crush them up in a food processor to use as a crust in your favorite pie. Or make a chocolate smore. Whip out your cookie cutters and make animal crackers. Let your imagination run wild!

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A Week of Whole Grain Baking, Day 6: Sesame Crackers

2011-04-08T12:30:00.002+03:00

These are, hands down, some of my favorite things ever. Cracker + sesame? YUM! If you don't know this already about me, I love sesame, especially toasted sesame. I knew these were going to be winners before I even made them, so I don't know what took me so long. I guess I just needed the push of getting rid of flours to get me going. Seriously, I don't think I stopped munching on these from the time they came out of the oven until they were finished. These deserve to be made again (shocking!) this time with the addition of the optional sesame oil, to boost the sesame flavor. If you don't have it, don't fret- the toasted sesame really adds tons of flavor. By now you should be so used to the process of cracker making that you could do it with your eyes closed. Go on. Make them.

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Introducing.....

2011-04-07T16:39:00.000+03:00

A Week of Whole Grain Baking, Day 5: Sweet Spelt Sourdough

2011-04-07T10:53:00.000+03:00

I figured that the easiest way to get rid of a whole bag of spelt flour was to make a loaf of bread. The only spelt bread recipe that I found in the Whole Grain Baking book was the Sweet Spelt Sourdough bread. Having been thinking about it all week, in preparation for Shabbat, I pulled out my sourdough starter. Let me tell you, that thing was severely neglected. Nevertheless, I discarded the nastiness that was on top of it, and began nourishing it anew with spelt flour. I seemed to be getting little action, which is not surprising as it had gone abandoned for so long and I didn't give it long enough to ferment properly. In any case, I disregarded this and proceeded with the recipe. In the end, I spiked the dough with 1 tsp of instant yeast to help it along. And it helped it along marvelously. (So much so, that should I ever want to make a spelt loaf, this is the recipe I'll use, adapting it as needed for a regular yeasted loaf.) The only other change I made was to use oil instead of melted butter. Additionally, I gave this loaf a rise in the fridge instead of baking it straight away. How did it turn out? AMAZING! that's how! With the very first bite, I tasted the sweetness of the spelt flour. The loaf had great, moist texture, perfect for sandwiches- and that's not just because the slices were nice and tall. The loaf didn't scream sourdough at all, but it was definitely there, the last thing you tasted in the loaf. Visually, this bread is one of my best yet; it slashed beautifully (I think because I was quick and confident!) and didnt collapse. The slashes opened up beautifully in the oven and I got a deep brown color on the crust. Pretty much, what I'm trying to say, is that I loved this bread, both by the slice and topped with dip. This one gets a repeat. I'm sending this off to Yeastspotting!

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A Week of Whole Grain Baking, Day 4: Multigrain Snickerdoodles

2011-04-05T12:00:00.000+03:00

As previously mentioned, we had an in Shabbat this past weekend, and even though I didn't bake on a large scale for the girls, that didn't stop me from getting in the kitchen. One of the things I made was these Multigrain Snickerdoodles. It seems Whole Grains take very well to cookies, so when I saw these classic cookies made over with a twist, I set out to making them. The fact that the dough needed to have an overnight chill really appealed to my do-ahead nature, allowing me to check something else off my to-do list. Just like their white flour counterparts, these old-fashioned, classic cookies are, as one of my girls called them, Cinnamon French Toast Cookies. Heavily coated with cinnamon-sugar, these cookies are quite comforting. My only problem is, they turned out crunchy instead of soft. Mind you, this deterred no one from eating them, but I think I would try underbaking them more or adding a drop of corn syrup. This version is just as good if not better than the white flour ones, so I definitely would make this version over those for the benefit of the whole grains. That's assuming I dig myself into a whole again by buying more flours than I can handle....

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A Week of Whole Grain Baking, Day 3: Gingered Apple Pear Crisp

2011-04-05T10:47:00.000+03:00

I threw this crisp together a couple of nights ago after seeing the sad and neglected leftover apples and pears sitting in the dining room. I know I promised I wouldnt get myself into trouble taking more fruit than I could handle, but this time I took just enough to put to good use. Luckily, the perfect recipe was right in front of my nose (in the Whole Grain Companion, of course!) and I even finished up the crystallized ginger that a friend had given to me (thanks, S!). Points for me! After all these carbo-loading desserts, it was a nice change of pace to be making a fruit dessert- I remember how much I love making them and how much more virtuous I feel. Anyway, the original recipe called for just pears, but I used pears and apples as per what I had. The fruit filling simply has a couple of tablespoons of cornstarch, sugar and lemon juice and some chopped ginger. That's it! On to the topping. It calls for some spelt flour (finished the bag!!), whole wheat flour and gingerbread crumbs. (Truth be told, I used the rest of the spelt flour I had and made up the difference with whole wheat-- turned out great!) I didnt have any gingerbread crumbs, so I swapped in some oat flour instead, in an effort to mimic the texture. In addition, I upped the cinnamon and ginger. I admit this didnt make a tremendous size crumble, but nonetheless, it was gone in record time. I think they were nervous before flying to Poland. ;) This is definitely a keeper [base] recipe for fall, or whatever season has apples and pears in your country.

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A Week of Whole Grain Baking, Day 2: Wheat Thins

2011-04-04T10:38:00.001+03:00

I am on a cracker kick. Once I tried my hand at making crackers (my first try was the rye batch), it seems I just can not stop. (And I probably won't stop until I try at least a couple other combinations, too!) Anyway, this past weekend, we had an in Shabbat, our last together before the girls head to Poland and/or home for the holiday. Since I had time, I decided to bake for myself. Just like last time, I made some bread (more on that later) and these crackers. The whole grain of choice in these Wheat Thins are whole wheat flour. They are flavored with a bit of sugar, paprika and vanilla. The vanilla and sugar add a bit of sweetness that is quite pronounced, so I would omit the vanilla next time, cut back the sugar, and sprinkle some salt on the top to highlight the savoriness of the cracker. They taste most like their real counterparts when they are well done, so don't be afraid to let them get there. These are quite addictive- you won't stop at just a handful. I know I couldnt.

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A Week of Whole Grain Baking, Day 1: Nutty for Oats Cookies

2011-04-03T12:16:00.001+03:00

The countdown to Pesach has begun and with that, so have my efforts to rid my cabinets and fridge of all chametz and/or perishable items. Months ago, in my excitement about finding whole grain flours, I bought a load of them. I stashed them in the fridge for safe keeping, and periodically used them for something or other. Now that Pesach is right around the corner, I'm scrambling to use up those flours (I hate waste!!) and whatnot. In the flour category, we have barley flour (the toughest to use up, it seems!), spelt flour, oat flour, whole wheat flour and a bit of rye flour. All this means I've been baking A LOT and mostly from the KAF Whole Grain Baking book as it is the best source of recipes that I own to use the flours. And so I bring to you this post that will be the first of a week of Whole Grain Baking recipes (or more, if need be, until those flours are gone!). Nutty for Oats Cookies are, as the name implies, made with peanut butter, bound together by oat flour and oats (nary a grain of white flour in sight), with a healthy dose of chocolate chips added for good measure. Pretty much three of your favorite types of cookie all rolled into one. The cookies come together quite easily. I subbed the oat flour that I already had instead of grinding whole oats, and used quick cooking instead of old fashioned, as that's what I had on hand. On the first bake of these cookies, I didn't flatten down the dough and they didn't flatten themselves in the oven so on the remaining batches, I flattened them down to get a more traditional (and more attractive, in my opinion) cookie. They are delicious and will disappear quickly- you can sort of feel good about them because they are full of fiber and therefore....virtuous? Perhaps that may be pushing it. Watch these carefully so their bottoms don't get too well done.

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Mekupelet Cake

2011-04-03T00:32:00.001+03:00

I'm happy to finally present to you the long awaited Mekupelet cake! Part of the reason it took so long to get this cake baked is because the recipe calls for self rising flour, a product that I have never bought and is quite pricey. I was going to make my own but...... A couple of weeks ago, I stayed in for Shabbat with two girls and asked them to buy my flowers because I think they really enhance the Shabbat table. One of the girls, who is very literal, came into my room with a small package of self rising flour (get it?). I was quite surprised and disappointed until I saw the second girl come in with real, beautiful flowers. When I got over the shock of the whole joke, it registered that this was exactly the type and amount of flour I needed to make this cake. So Tuesday, I finally made the cake. The cake is really easy to make, it's a typical butter cake enhanced with sour cream for moisture. Take care not to over bake the cake; I think I did slightly, and the cake was just bordering on dry, making this a great accompaniment for tea, coffee or just as a casual dessert. For those non-Israelis out there, without access to Mekupelet chocolates, use whatever you have.

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Bread Pudding with White Chocolate

2011-03-31T11:15:00.000+02:00

Aside from almost an entire chocolate cake leftover after the weekend, I was also left with a whole, untouched loaf of challah. What to do with it? My first thought was french toast, but we don't exactly have a stove top to fry that in. My roommate suggested I make a french toast casserole, specifically one she enjoyed at a bridal shower we both attended. I got the recipe but decided to just find my own recipe for bread pudding. (It seems to me that I wasnt the only one with bread pudding on the brain, as seen here and here.) I was kind of nervous about making it because this is the type of dessert that I thought the girls would balk at. Soaked bread? Knowing that these girls would eat anything I set before them, I forged ahead (and told them it was challah kugel- made them feel right at home!). Bread pudding is, as I said before, bread that is soaked in custard and then baked. You can add whatever you feel like, chocolate, raisins, fruit, etc. This recipe is adapted from Marcy Goldman's in which she adds white chocolate. I didn't have her exact ingredients on hand, so I just used whatever I did have, using the guideline of about 3 cups liquid. I used some cream, a bit of regular milk, and soy milk for the rest. I also totally missed the seventh egg, using only six medium. The resulting bread pudding was certainly no beauty, but was so..... housewarming. My roommate cut into it and deemed it delicious, so then I knew it was going to be okay. I was worried that the texture would be wet and mushy and eggy, but I was happy to see that it wasn't wet at all, but perfectly moist. I set it out for the girls to devour, and when I came home most of it was gone. I really was surprised about that. Anyway, feel free to doctor this recipe as you wish. And just know that french toast is not your only option when contemplating uses for stale challah. This post is headed straight to Yeastspotting! Check it out!

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Chocolate Chiffon Cake

2011-03-29T17:30:00.000+02:00

This past weekend I stayed in the dorms for Shabbat with a couple of girls who decided to stay in. Instead of buying food for Shabbat, I decided that I was going to cook food. Could one have Shabbat any other way? I don't think so. So just for the three of us, I made everything from challah (mommy's obviously) to dessert. Everything in between was the no-brainer, it was the dessert part that, as usual, threw me for a loop. What to make? I knew that this week, I really wanted to make a chocolate cake and after going through all my books, I finally settled on a Chiffon Cake from the Cake Bible. But then chiffon cake made me think of all the other flavors, vanilla, orange, lemon... When I asked the girls to pick a flavor, they chose chocolate. So chocolate it was. (Fortunately, I also had the extra egg whites sitting around the fridge.) For those who arent familiar with it, chiffon cake is a cake invented by Harry Baker that is similiar to angel food cake but uses the yolks as well as whites, and also contains oil. The oil was his secret ingredient that added moisture to this spongy cake. Making it is easy- blend all of the ingredients, save for the whites, beat the whites, fold in and bake. Like angel food cake, this is foam cake gets cooled upside down to set its structure. Unfortunately, my pan is only one piece, so parts of the cake did get stuck to the pan. For my next chiffon cake (orange, anyone?) I'll bake it in a springform pan with a flower pin in the center, as per Rose's latest technique. The girls loved the cake, but barely made a dent in it, as we were only three people. After Shabbat, the other girls took care of it, leaving just a trail of crumbs behind. You might want to dust with powdered sugar to hide its imperfections, for contrast, or just because; suit yourself.

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Mekupelet Crumbed Banana Cake

2011-03-27T15:35:00.000+02:00

As I mentioned in some earlier post, last week was Purim. With it came an excess of junk that I didnt know what to do with. All of the madrichot pooled together all the junk and placed it on our table for the girls to take as they wanted. The only thing I took for myself were the famed Israeli chocolate bars, the Mekupelet. Between me and the other madrichot, we got a ton of them, many of them mehadrin. Having recalled a Mekupelet cake in one of my Israeli cookbooks, I collected many of them. This cake before you is not the Mekupelet cake (I will get around to making it soon!) but rather the delicious Mekupelet Crumbed Banana Cake. You see, at the same time that all the Purim craziness was happening, I had three overripe bananas sitting in my fruit bowl, waiting to be used. Marcy Goldman had a recipe for a banana toffee crumb cake in her oft used A Passion for Baking. I had everything except the toffee so I decided to swap in crumbled Mekupelet. Brilliant! (If I may say so myself...) I knew this cake would be a hit and indeed it was from the very first bite. Extremely moist banana cake (love using sour cream!) topped with a chocolatey crumb- what could be bad? I finally employed the technique of applying the crumble when the cake has already set up on top and guess what? Works like a charm! No sinking crumble! Leaves you with a cake that not only tastes delicious but looks beautiful, too. Feel free to use toffee bits, crumbled chocolate bars, whatever ya got- be creative!

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Chocolate Wows

2011-03-23T19:17:00.000+02:00

This past Shabbat I was in Katamon with my dearest friend, E. It took a reallly long time to finally find a weekend that worked for both of us, but it did and I had a great time. (Thanks, El, if you're reading this!) I offered to bake challot (mommy's again) and dessert. Because A the chocoholic was coming, chocolate was the only way to go. It took me ages to figure out what to make- at first I wanted a cake- but then settled on these appropriately named Chocolate Wows from Good Housekeeping's Favorite Chocolate Recipes. These cookies more than live up to their name- chewy and chocolatey, like a brownie in a cookie, with toasted pecans. Mmmm! Everyone raved about these, but really, what's not to love? To up the deep chocolately flavor in these, I used Dutch process cocoa (my fave!) and about 3 1/2 ounces 60 percent cacao chocolate and the rest bittersweet. I also toasted the pecans as mentioned. (Don't skip this step- it takes the pecan from humble to sublime. You can't help but eat them all up.) Once again, my pictures look nothing like the photograph because I keep forgetting to adopt the food stylist trick of reserving some chopped pecans and chocolate chips to press into the top. Go ahead and do it if you remember, if not, your eaters will just be surprised when they take a bite. That's about it. Enjoy your chocolate fix for today. (Sorry for the long pictures, these were the first taken on my new camera. Still getting the hang of it, so bear with me.)

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Shaker Lemon Pie

2011-03-22T10:42:00.000+02:00

I really wanted to have this pie baked and posted in time for Pi Day (last week) but it just didnt work out that way, so I'm posting this now. At a recent visit to Rami Levi, I picked up some lemons. It took me a while to figure out what I wanted to do with them (and I still have a few of them left to use!) but I finally settled on this Shaker Lemon Pie because it's a pie and because I wanted to try my hand again at baking with the full fruit. This pie is credited to the Shakers, a thrifty bunch that tried to avoid wastefulness in their cooking, hence the use of the whole lemon here. I was intrigued by this concept but knew that the girls would not take too well to having peel in their dessert. Although most recipes that you can find for this pie are the same, I opted to use Rose Levy Beranbaum's version from The Pie and Pastry Bible. Being without a mandoline, I sliced the lemons as thinly as I could and macerated them for a good 18 hours before baking. I opted for a butter/shortening crust instead of her suggested cream cheese crust with no harm done. Once the lemons were finished macerating, assembly was pretty easy- just whisk together some eggs and add to the lemons to form a custard and bake. So how did it turn out? Pretty deliciously, I think. The sugar mellows out the lemons to produce a lemon-bar like custard filling. Yum. And the peel? Had a nice zing, but without the usual bitterness that the pith contributes. I was a big fan. The girls? They loved the flavor but unanimously decided I should make this again without the peel. I tried to explain that that would defeat the whole purpose of this pie but to no avail. I'm still happy I tried it and this would be a great dessert to make for lemon lovers with more sophisticated palates and open minds. This pie requires advanced preparation so plan accordingly.

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Many Splendored Quick Bread

2011-03-21T10:53:00.000+02:00

Purim Sameach everyone!! (But more on that in a later post!) This quick bread from Rose's Heavenly Cakes has been in the far reaches of my mind since I got it but when I saw real green zucchini here in Israel, it was the first thing I thought of. I know you're thinking, they dont have zucchini there? Well, there are two different types, light green squash that are suitable for cooking, and regular green zucchini. They have a specific season, I believe, so I was thrilled to find them in a health food store right near the shuk while I was waiting for my bus home. I bought four, and having already had carrots and bananas at home, was very excited to put it together. There's not much to say except that this is very simple to put together once you've got all your mise en place. The toughest part was grating the carrots and zucchini. The result is a very moist cake. The girls kept asking me if this cake was healthy and while I couldnt lie and say there was no oil, the banana, carrot, zucchini, and oatmeal certainly make this a more virtuous option. I was on sign in when this one was eaten, but girls popped in to give me the thumbs up and it was all gone by the time I popped my head out. I omitted the nuts from the original recipe, but otherwise, everything remains the same.

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Adventures with Rye Part 7: Crispy Rye Crackers

2011-03-18T12:11:00.003+02:00

I'm not really sure why I never thought to make crackers before. They are as easy as pie (dough) and awesome. Awesomely addictive, that is. In addition to the spelt pitas that I made for Shabbat last weekend, I made these, figuring I'd need something to much on Shabbat morning. Well, they didn't make it that long. I know I only made half a recipe, but still. This recipe comes from Whole Grain Baking (another duh!). It was hard to pick a cracker recipe but knowing that I still had rye flour sitting in the fridge, I opted for these Crispy Rye Crackers. Just like pie crust, you mix some dry ingredients together, in this case, rye flour, regular flour, and a bit of cocoa powder. Stir in some caraway seeds (YUM!), rub in some fat, drizzle in some water and molasses. Chill, roll, bake. Done. I topped half of the batch with fleur de sel, but I think I preferred them without. I would say these would be great for tuna fish or whatever else you got laying around, but they are also so good by themselves. They are so munchable, you can't stop at just a few. Definitely going to try more crackers in the future. Sesame? Can't hardly wait.

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Spelt Pita

2011-03-15T21:42:00.001+02:00

This past Shabbat, we had a school weekend in a beautiful community called Nof Ayalon. Knowing that the food we would be eating for lunch was yeshiva food, I took the opportunity to once again bring my own bread with me so at least I knew I would be eating something. I whipped out my Whole Grain Baking and decided to make the Spelt Pita. It's been a while since I last tried my hand at making pita (the last try was the successful Whole Wheat Pitot) and I still have a bag of spelt flour hanging around from when I discovered a health food store that sold presifted every type of flour imaginable. (I have since found a much closer store that carries everything in more. I even found rye flakes!) It seemed the natural choice. One might ask, why make pita when you live in Israel? Now, it's true that pitot are Israeli's most loveable bread, especially if you love falafel. With their built in pocket, they are ready for any sandwich filling and they are ubiquitous. Still, there's something to be said about homemade bread- it's just fun! Especially watching them balloon in the oven. That never gets old. And I've never seen a spelt pita in any store. So there. Back to the recipe. I made a half recipe and it was quite simple. Make a sponge, add remaining ingredients, knead, let rise. I stashed my dough in the fridge overnight and baked them off Friday morning. I rolled them a bit too thin, so next time I would make them smaller so that they are more bready and sandwich like. I wasnt able to enjoy them right out of the oven, they would be soo good that way, but nonetheless they were really good. The spelt lends a noticeable sweetness and mellowness and I love the speckled, branny look it gave the dough as well. These breads are off to Yeastspotting!

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Apricot Ginger Upside Down Cake

2011-03-15T00:40:00.000+02:00

Months ago, when I was planning what to desserts to bake (I dont even remember what for), I found this upside down cake in Carole Walter's Great Cakes and decided to make it. I even went out and bought a can of apricot halves. I guess at the last second I opted for something else and so the apricots were relegated to the pantry shelf. I finally decided to put them to use (time for something else to take a seat in the pantry!) and having all the ingredients for this cake decided to make it while I was already making the pumpkin cake. This cake is a traditional upside down cake in that you just melt some margarine or butter in a pan, sprinkle with sugar and top with fruit. The batter is then spread over the top and baked. I had a slight mishap turning the cake out, I simply replaced the apricot halves and no one was the wiser. I was a bit nervous about how this cake would be received; my roommate was the first one to try it, and she, lover of all things fruit, declared it to be yummy. Although it finished second to the pumpkin cake, it was finished and enjoyed, and I'm happy that at least some girls tried something new. I think they were honestly astonished to see apricots on a cake. Anyway, some notes. The cake was nice and moist but I was nervous the fruit would make the top of the cake too soggy. Indeed it was very moist, which is to be expected somewhat. Take care to thoroughly drain and dry the apricot halves to prevent any problems. The cake looks quite elegant but would also be at home with some vanilla ice cream.

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Whole Grain Pumpkin Cake

2011-03-13T19:50:00.000+02:00

Last week, I took a girl to the doctor on Emek Refaim. While she was in his office, I took the opportunity to go into the supermarket right next door. This supermarket is quite pricey, but their produce is beautiful and they carry loads of American products. I rarely go there because it's not often that I'm in the area, but I decided to take advantage. The first thing I looked for was canned pumpkin. I had gone through my last can around Thanksgiving time to make a pumpkin pie and I decided it was time to replenish my stock. I came home with four cans. :) This is all very well and good, but then came the challenge of figuring out what to do with them. First up? Pumpkin cake. I know, I know. Last year, I made Pumpkin Cake with Cinnamon Buttercream. But this cake? Far more humble. Baked in a simple 9x13, made with whole grains, and studded with chocolate chips.... as homey as homey gets. I cut them into huge hunks and piled them on a plate. Made with both margarine and oil, this cake was tender and moist; you could see it in the cut pieces. As far as the whole grains? You never would have guessed they were there. A dusting of powdered sugar would be nice here, but forgo it as I did if you're feeling rustic.

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Gingerbread White Chocolate Blondies

2011-03-10T10:36:00.000+02:00

I've had my eye on these for aaaages and I finally got around to making them this week. (Tip-Writing down a list of all the things you want to bake is really effective in getting rid of baker's block! I think it's safe to say that I'm back on my baking game!) I happen to love gingerbread and I think the pairing of the spices with white chocolate is brilliant and not just in terms of the color contrast. Put that into moist, fudgy bar form, and you have a winning combination. (I wonder how it would play out in a scone....) Anyway, I did make a couple of changes based on the reviews on the Martha Stewart website and they were to cut down the butter/margarine. Reviewers complained they were too greasy so I used a bit less than two sticks rather than two and a half. Also, I baked them in a 9x13 pan for thicker blondies, rather than in an 11x7 pan for a thin blondie, as pictured on the site. These cookies were a hit with the girls! I'm always very surprised when they taste things other than chocolate. They were a bit wary of them at first- many didnt even know what gingerbread was! (Don't worry, I educated them fast!) After they got passed the name, they tasted and loved them. The few pieces that were left were finished the next morning by my roommates, who werent dairy at the time of baking. They subsequently declared them very delicious. :)

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Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie

2011-03-08T13:00:00.000+02:00

This past Shabbat, I returned to Bar Ilan (ahhhh) to visit my dear friend, S. She recently spent Shabbat by me (the one where I cooked!) making this past weekend my turn. She asked me to bring challot (Mommy's challot) and dessert. Although I didnt have a lot of time, I knew exactly what I wanted to make! Obviously a pie! (I'm on a bit of a pie kick- can you tell?) But not just any pie! The weekend before, I was at my sister's and she served a chocolate chip cookie pie. Bingo! Her pie looked quite cake like and was baked in a store bought shell. I wanted something really more cookie like and in a homemade shell. In my first or second year, I made a pie like this from Carole Walter's book and it really was a cookie in a pie shell. I went in a slightly different direction, using the Tollhouse Pie from the Baked cookbook, after seeing rave reviews on blog throughout the internet. Described as a "cross between a pecan pie and a chocolate chip cookie", this pie is made with whiskey, which I swapped for vanilla, and does indeed turn out with a nice gooey texture, although you probably can't tell that from the matte looking surface of the pie. The chocolate chips sink to the bottom forming a nice chocolatey layer. I used their pie crust recipe and chilled it thoroughly baking. The filling was done before the bottom of the crust had much color so I turned off the top heating element to cook the bottom more. The result was a home run of a pie- not a crumb left in sight. S commented that she usually hates pie crust but that she loved this. She actually kept raving about it, which she said was a pretty good indicator of how she liked it. The sentiment was echoed by everyone who tasted it. In lieu of a microwave, as the Baked authors suggest, I just heated this pie up on the hot plate well before dessert time and it was perfect. Ice cream is a must, but you'll love it without it, too.

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Mommy's Challot

2011-03-06T17:01:00.000+02:00

Chodesh tov and happy Adar! New week, new month, new challah recipe. I thought I was done with my challah exploits, but it seems I can't resist trying a new recipe. These challot are special to me because the recipe is none other than my own mother's. Growing up, I can't remember a time when we always had homemade challah. It was very rare that my mother baked them, but when she did, it was a special treat. At some point in high school, I remember her making a honey whole wheat challah for Sukkot, and it was very shortly after that I started to bake challot myself. I have very warm memories of my mother's kitchen- she's a fantastic cook and baker. When the smell of these wafted from the oven and even more so when I took my first bite, I was brought back to her kitchen. I don't know why it took me so long to make them, but they turned out so well. The texture was so nice and fluffy, but the flavor was all water challah, just like I like it. I made half a recipe but doubled the salt and switched from fresh yeast to dry, as that is what I use these days. I also cannot overstate the importance of sesame seeds on top of challot. I don't know why I didnt insist on them all the time. They are delicious! This bake is also unique in that it's the first time I tried this brand new flour type, Stybel #18, flour especially for challot, hence the picture on the bag. I stumbled on it in the supermarket, and unable to resist anything challah related, I bought a bag to try this time.....

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Brownie Pie with Peanut Butter Crust

2011-03-04T10:20:00.000+02:00

Chocolate and peanut butter... making its second appearance in a pie in the last month. All I gotta say is that people here love chocolate and peanut butter and I looooove making pie. So making this pie for our weekly meeting was a no-brainer. Well actually it was a brainer, because the original recipe for this (which comes from Pie by Ken Haedrich) did not call for a peanut butter crust. I happened to have some leftover dough from the Peanut Butter and Jelly bars. Not wanting to waste, I thought it would work perfectly as a pie crust. Work perfectly? Certainly did and definitely elevated this brownie pie to new heights. Moving on to the brownie pie itself..... The filling comes together much like the typical brownie, except for the fact that the eggs are beaten for four minutes until fluffy, giving the filling extra lift in the oven. The nice crunch meringue like crust totally belied the ooey gooey chocolately filling inside. I through in a handful of chocolate chips for good measure and would swap in some cocoa for flour next time to make this pie even more chocolatey. This pie one raves all around and after the meeting was over, it didnt last long in my room when the girls found it. Apparently I outdid myself with this one. Try it, even with a regular pastry crust, you wont be disappointed. Vanilla ice cream, anyone?

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