Perfectly Peachy

When I find in season fruits I tend to obsess. I can't just buy one perfectly-ripe-oh-so-juicy-peach. I need to buy this goodness by the pound. Once I get home and I realize I've bought far too much for one person, I start looking through my actual or virtual recipe books. I stumbled upon a food blog through Food Gawker (one of my favorite websites). I found a wonderful recipe for Peaches and Cream Buckle Bars. I never made the recipe before, but I knew it would be good judging by the ingredients and yummy photos! The bars are trying to hide from me at the moment (I plan to take them to Hospitality House later tonight or tomorrow...if there are any left!). I highly recommend this recipe!

Peaches and Cream Buckle Bars (Courtesy of Slice of Feist Blog)

Ingredients

Batter
1 Cup room temp. Unsalted Butter (I used salted butter and it was fine, just leave out the pinch of salt!)
2 Cups Sugar1 1/2 tsps Vanilla Extract
1/2 tsp Almond Extract
4 eggs
3 Cups Flour
A Pinch of Salt
1/4 tsp Cinnamon

Peach Mixture
3 Cups Sliced and roughly chopped Ripe Peaches
1/4 Cup Packed Brown Sugar
1 tsp Cinnamon
1/4 tsp Ginger
Splash of Vanilla

Creamy Dreamy Glaze
1 1/2 Cups Powdered Sugar
3 tbsps Cream (I used much more than this!)
1 tbsp Vanilla Extract

We're ready to get peachy!

Preheat Oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9 x 13 casserole dish.

Beat your butter and sugar until smooth and fluffy. Mix in one egg at a time, scraping down the sides of your mixing bowl in between. Add your extracts. Slowly mix in your flour, salt and cinnamon.


Butter and Sugar. You think that would be enough to make a recipe!

 

With the four eggs whipped in, the batter is coming together!


In a separate bowl combine your peaches, brown sugar, spices and vanilla.

How great are these peaches?! I know how to make them better...

...throw in some brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger, and a splash of vanilla!

Pour 3/4 of your batter into the baking dish. Next, evenly distribute the peach mixture on top.

The batter is sad and needs some friends...

...sooo much happier! One more thing...



...NOW we're talking!

Drop the rest of the batter on top, in little plops here and there…similar to a cobbler (it should look like the masterpiece above, hehe)

Pop the buckle in the oven for about 40-50 minutes or until golden around the edges and slightly firm to the touch (I did 45 minutes and it came out great!)

Yes, this looks divine. But I know adding icing is always a good idea!

Once the buckle is cooked, let it cool down mostly before proceeding with the glaze.

For the Glaze, mix the 3 ingredients together..if you feel that it should be runnier, add some more cream. Now take a spoon and generously pour the glaze in long strokes. Try to not put the spoon directly into your mouth. Focus on the buckle!

You're probably wondering...does it taste as good as it looks? The answer is YES!

Cut out a square, pour a glass of milk (in a frozen glass, of course) and try not to eat the whole thing!

Yep. This is happening.

Happy Eating!

Chicken in Tarragon Sauce with Risotto!

Timing is everything...especially in making a fabulous dinner. Most people like to enjoy all meal components at the same time. You wouldn't want to eat your chicken an hour before your risotto, would you? (well, maybe you would, but you fall in the minority). When you're cooking a meal with multiple parts, it is important to time the preparation of each part. Prepare all of your ingredients first so you don't have to deal with chopping and dicing while you're up to your eyeballs in risotto. Additionally, it is important to pick a time for your meal (say 7pm) and work backwards. If you'd like to eat at 7pm and the risotto takes 30  minutes and the chicken takes 15 minutes, start the risotto at 6:30pm and the chicken at 6:45pm. This way all of your meal will be ready (and hot!) for you to enjoy.

Let's start with the Risotto.

Ingredients:
1 cup Arborio rice
2 tbsp. olive oil
2 tbsp. butter
1/2 cup chopped shallots
3 cups chicken broth

Make sure you have the right rice - Uncle Ben is not your man.

 Get your shallots ready!

The shallots are ready for some knife action!

Nice dice!

 Next, saute chopped shallots in oil and butter for 3 minutes



A lovely butter bath

Paula Deen would be so proud. BUTTAH is better!

Butter party!

Add rice, stirring for about 2 minutes.

Stir in 1 cup of broth. Continue cooking and stirring until liquid is absorbed.


This is what happiness looks like :)


Gradually add remaining broth 1 cup at a time until liquid is absorbed.

Yummy risotto!

Chicken with Tarragon Sauce

Ingredients:
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
1 tbsp. unsalted butter
1 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
3 tbsp. chopped shallot
1 tbsp. chopped fresh tarragon (or dried)
1/2 cup heavy cream
Fresh lemon juice, to taste (optional)
Chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley for garnish

Now onto our star - chicken!

Trim any excess fat from chicken. Rinse and pat dry with paper towels. One at a time, flatten the chicken with the flat side of a mallet.

This chicken could use some cardio...

...or at least a good plastic surgeon! With my trusty purple knife, you can call me Dr. Liz!

In a large pan over medium-high heat, melt butter with olive oil. When hot, add chicken, season with salt and pepper and saute gently, turning once, until chicken is golden and opaque throughout and juices run clear when meat is pierced with a knife (above 3 minutes per side). Transfer to a warmed plate and keep warm. Pour off any excess fat from pan and place pan over medium-low heat.


This is the chicken just kicking it

 Add the chopped shallots to the pan and saute, stirring, until translucent, 1-2 minutes.

Shallots are clearly very popular tonight!

Add tarragon and cream, increase heat to medium and stir with a wooden spoon, scraping up any browned bits (this is where the flavor is at!) from pan bottom and blending well. Cook, stirring, until bubbling and thickened slightly, 2-3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and a squeeze of lemon juice.

Heavy cream, too? NOW, we're talking!

Of course the chicken is happier in the sauce than on the paper towel!

Return the chicken to pan and turn each breast several times in sauce until well coated and hot. Transfer to a warmed serving plate or individual plates and spoon remaining sauce over chicken. Sprinkle with parsley (if you have it and/or like it) and serve immediately (you won't be able to wait anyway).

Serves 4 (depending on hunger)

The perfect serving. Nom nom nom!

Happy 4th of July!

How do you make crumb cake patriotic? Add blueberries!

Happy Fourth of July Weekend everyone! I felt like baking something super yummy today. I have a wonderful crumb cake recipe - the king of crumb cakes. Normally when you say something is "really crummy" that is a bad thing. I think when cake is really "crumby" is a GREAT thing! I know that my blog title has "made from scratch" in it, so it is a bit hypocritical to use cake mix from a box (ahhhh!!) as the base for my cake. This is my favorite recipe, so you can judge, but trust me, you will enjoy!

Ingredients:
Cake:
1 Pkg Duncan Hines Butter Recipe Cake Mix
2/3 cup oil
4 eggs slightly beaten
2/3 cup milk

Crumbs:
3 sticks butter
4 cups flour
2/3 cup brown sugar
1 tsp. Cinnamon
2/3 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla

What is more American than Duncan Hines cake mix?

Mix cake mix and the rest of the cake ingredients.

This is before 4 minutes of tough love...

...this is after. Whipped into shape!

Don't forget to fold the blueberries into the batter. They are sensitive, so be gentle!

Pour the cake batter into a 18 x 12 x 1 pan or two 11 5/8 x 9 1/s pans.
DO NOT GREASE PAN(S)!!
Bake at 350 for 20 minutes. Cool 10 minutes

Now, the important part...

THE CRUMBS!!!!!! (Did I mention I love crumb cake?)

Mix dry ingredients - melt butter slightly (I usually do this on the stove), add vanilla to it and pour over dry ingredients.
Mix with a fork  Do NOT over mix or crumbs will get too small. This is critical! The crumbs need to look more like boulders than crumbs.

Don't you wish you could be in my kitchen? :)

Spread crumbs over cooked cake by hand (make sure the cake is completely invisible, like my beautiful specimens above!)
Try not to put the crumbs in your mouth. They belong on the cake!

Put back in oven and cook approximately 10 minutes longer.

Watch to see that it doesn't brown too fast. Cool...sprinkle with powdered sugar.

Note: You likely won't be able to let this completely cool.

This recipe freezes well.  Will keep 3 days covered with foil, but I doubt it will last that long!

My family tends to DOUBLE the crumb recipe because that the ratio should really be 2 parts crumbs to 1 part cake!

Happy Fourth of July!

When you feel like you may break...bake!

What better way to unwind on a Friday night than by watching competitive cooking shows while simultaneously baking a fresh batch of chocolate and peanut butter brownies? I'm sure some people would rather black out than bake out, but maybe I'm just old fashioned like that. This week has been somewhat stressful (though I'm not quite sure how that is much different than any other week), so I'm savoring catching up with my KitchenAid.

I wanted to make something with a brownie base, so I looked in my treasured Joy of Cooking recipe book. There is a wonderful basic brownie recipe. Like my outfits, I prefer to accessorize my baked goods. Who wants a boring brownie? I had a bag of Reese's peanut butter chips (like chocolate chips but deliciously peanut-buttery instead) in my pantry. Last time I checked, chocolate + peanut butter > chocolate. Apologies for the inequality. I've been studying for the GMAT, so I'm dorking out to the extreme.

Ingredients:
1 stick unsalted butter
4 ounces unsweetened chocolate
4 large eggs
1/4 tsp salt
2 cups sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup all-purpose flour
Whatever you'd like to add (pecans, chocolate chips, coconut, peanut butter, etc.)

Preheat the oven to 350. Grease a baking pan (if you want chewy and moist brownies, use a 13x9-inch pan; if cakey, a 9x9-inch pan).

The cast of characters in my decadent storyline

 Melt the butter and unsweetened chocolate in a small saucepan

Like an awkward first date, the butter and chocolate experience
some difficulties in the beginning...

...but after some time (or in the case of the date, some drinks) the two
 ingredients decide to get along

Let this mixture cool. If you don't let it cool, your brownies will be heavy and dry (and very sad).
Next, beat the 4 eggs and salt until light in color and foamy in texture.

Whisks are for amateurs. Serious chefs use SERIOUS equipment.



Gradually add the sugar and vanilla and continue beating until thick. With a few swift strokes, stir in the cooled chocolate mixture just until combined. If you're using a snazzy KitchenAid like me, switch to a wooden spoon for this. Stir in the flour just until combined. Gently stir in any of your "accessories" (I stirred in half of the bag of pb chips and sprinkled the rest on top).

All dressed up for Friday night!

Scrape batter into the prepared pan. Bake about 25 minutes. The recipe says to cool completely in the pan on a rack, this is just plain nonsense. Who waits for any baked good to completely cool? Clearly, you are allowed to sample it once it has cooled enough so it doesn't scorch your mouth.

Pictures are worth a thousand words. Brownies, a thousand calories.

May your weekend be filled with brownies, or at least something of equivalent awesomeness.

I have a date(s)!

I've been in the bunker this weekend studying and I was in dire need of a date, or at least a use for dates since I have a container of deliciously sweet Medjool Dates in my fridge from Trader Joe's. Meredith (a dear friend) and I made English Sticky Pudding (yum!) two weeks ago and I'm been trying to think of creative ways to use dates. My favorite (so far) has been to stuff them with blue brie (think blue cheese taste plus the consistency of brie, double yum!) and wrap them in prosciutto. HEAVEN! The bold flavor of the cheese and the saltiness of the prosciutto both complement the sweet dates. By far, the best date I've had in awhile!

Recipe:
No hard and fast rules with this, just have enough dates, cheese and prosciutto to fill you up (figure about 4 per person)
Broil in the oven until the prosciutto crisps.
Be careful when you take a bite - the cheese will be hot and so will your date (thank goodness, right?)

All you need for a satisfying date - who knew it was so easy?

Ready to go in the oven- the silicone baking liner prevents date disasters!

Do you see that bubbling brie goodness? Sorry...I didn't save any for you!

With a happy tummy, I'm back to the books.

Lemon Poppy Seed Scones...my first post!

As a loyal reader of multiple blogs, I thought it would be quite easy to make my own. This initial post may be a bit rudimentary, but I'm sure I'll pick it up quickly. I love baking for other people, especially the Hospitality House of Charlotte (http://www.hospitalityhouseofcharlotte.org/). I haven't baked scones in awhile and noticed that I had a container of poppy seeds on hand. Even though they don't have much taste and take days to get out of my teeth, I love them, especially in lemon poppy seed scones. This is a recipe I found and fell in love with when I first made it with my mom in 2003 (my mom loves dating recipes and she photocopied the original for me- thanks!). I checked the fridge and didn't have any lemons, so I went to the "Teet" (Harris Teeter, a local food store), but not the Taj MaTeet (the large HT by my office).

My beautiful ingredients...don't the lemons look juicy?

Ingredients:

3 cups all purpose flour

1 cup granulated sugar

3 tbs poppy seeds

1 tbs baking powder

2 tsps grated lemon peel

1 tsp salt

10 tbs chilled unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

1 large egg

2 tbs fresh lemon juice

1/3 cup (or more) whole milk (I used skim and it was just fine)

Icing:

Juice from lemons

Powdered sugar

Water as needed (for desired consistency)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Position rack in top third of oven (this is important!)

Mix flour, sugar, poppy seeds, baking powder, lemon peel, and salt in processor. Add butter and cut in, using on/off turns, until mixture resembles coarse meal.

Grating lemons - a stress reliever that smells nice!

I love my food processor. Reliable and has an on/off switch...is he single?

Whisk egg and lemon juice in medium bowl to blend. Add to flour mixture. using on/off turns, process until moist clumps form. Add 1/3 cup milk. Using on/off turns, process just until dough comes together, adding more milk if dough seems dry.

Using floured hand, gather dough into ball. Flatten into 8-inch round. Cut round into 8 wedges. Transfer scones to a large baking sheet. Bake until scones are golden brown and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 25 minutes. While the scones are baking, make the icing. Sift the powdered sugar and add lemon juice and water as needed.

GIANT SCONE!!!

Ready for some lovin in the oven!

Transfer to rack and cool. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Store airtight at room temperature.) While the scones are still warm, drizzle on the icing. Makes 8 scones.

Iced and ready to go!

Don't worry, I was brave and sampled them- they were AMAZING!