As each new year rolls around, we inevitably look to our lives, ask ourselves what  improvements are necessary and take up that time honored “New Year’s Resolution” once more.

Rather than choose a temporary resolution (sure to be undone by the time Valentine’s day rolls around) that involves removing foods from my diet- I am choosing to add healthier foods to it. The hope is that making room for better nutrition frees me from unhealthier choices. Nice theory- we’ll see if it works.  Well at least the idea of “measure yourself by what you do not what you don’t do” appeals to me.

So little things like adding more fiber and phytochemicals is a good thing. With that in mind I bought a couple of bags of fresh cranberries, sorted through to remove any squidgy ones, washed and dried them well and then divided them into small portions of 1/2 cup to put in the freezer. These can be taken out and added to a smoothie or to some steel cut oatmeal for a bit of tart contrast  in flavour and a boost to the morning meal.

 The Wikipedia article on cranberries says: “Cranberries are a source of polyphenol antioxidants, phytochemicals under active research for possible benefits to the cardiovascular system, immune system and as anti-cancer agents.”  They also have 46 calories and 4.6 grams of dietary fiber per 100 grams. Little red gems of nutritional goodness.

I also made some homemade granola using my Mom’s fresh orange cranberry sauce from our holiday meals. Granola with little fat and sugar added- great stuff! The recipe is very flexible- add what you like – leave out what you don’t – sound familiar?

 Kitchen Sink Cranberry Granola

• 1 cup cranberry sauce - preferably low sugar or cook 2 cups ground cranberries in enough orange juice to cover
• 1 cup natural no sugar applesauce
• 2 Tablespoons Agave Syrup or honey in a pinch
• 2 Tablespoons raw cashew or almond nut butter
• 1  teaspoon cinnamon powder
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla or 1/2 teaspoon orange extract
• 8-10 cups rolled oats (not instant)
• 1-2 cups natural almonds with skins
• 1 cup raw pumpkin seeds
• 1/2 cup flax seed, slightly ground to break hulls
• 1 cup dried cranberries
• 1 cup dried pitted tart cherries
• pinch of salt (optional)

Mix the cranberry sauce, applesauce, agave syrup, nut butter, cinnamon and extract together (plus pinch of salt if using) in a medium bowl. In a large bowl, mix the oats, nuts, seeds and fruit together. Combine the “liquid” into the mixture in the larger bowl and mix well. (Your hands works best for this) It will be quite wet.  Squeeze bits together with your hands to form small clumps, spread on one or two large rimmed baking sheets depending on what size you have and will fit in your oven. Bake at 250F for an hour or so, turning occasionally until dried through. Cool and store in an airtight container.  Makes about 4 quarts. Lovely for breakfast or as a snack.

The next time you want a change up on your regular breakfast or brunch why not try a Dutch Baby? While the name may not be PC (and do any of you know where it came from?)  they are delicious. They are basically large puffed pancakes or popovers with lots of lovely tender and crispy bits.

 They are also deceptively easy to make yet spectacular served in a skillet with a bit of spiced fruit and some whipped cream. If you have more than one cast iron skillet they are a great recipe for entertaining because the simple batter mixes quickly and then they spend time in the oven unattended which leaves you free to entertain your guests or prepare other dishes.

Dutch Baby

• 4 Tablespoons butter
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup all purpose flour
• large pinch of salt
• 1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon zest
• powdered sugar to top
• spiced fruit and or whipped cream for serving

Preheat the oven to 425F for about twenty minutes. Heat a 10 inch cast iron skillet over a medium flame and melt the butter in it, turning to coat all of the pan. In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs and milk and then add the flour and salt and whisk to combine until smooth.  Pour the mixture into the heated buttered skillet and cook without stirring for one minute. Immediately place into the oven and close the door. Do not open the door for at least the first 20 minutes. After 20 minutes reduce the heat to 350F and cook for another 10 to 15 minutes until puffed and golden. Remove and sprinkle the lemon juice over the top evenly then sprinkle with powdered sugar and lemon zest to cover top. Serve from the skillet and top with whipped cream and spiced fruit if desired.  Serves two to four people.

Spiced fruit

• about 2 cups of any fresh fruit you desire- peaches, necatarines, bananas, cherries or apples are all good- even pineapple
• 2 Tablespoons butter
• pinch of salt
• 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon
• 3 Tablespoons of brown sugar

Wash and cut the fruit into bite sized pieces. Blot on paper towels or clean kitchen towel t0 dry. Melt the butter in a large  stainless steel skillet, add the fruit, salt, cinnamon and brown sugar. Cook for aboutthree to five minutes until the sauce is bubbly and the fruit is softly cooked through. You can add a splash of liqueur if you wish- Calvados with apples, Amaretto with peaches, Cassis with berries, Poire William with pears etc. Serve warm over the Dutch Baby  and finish with lightly sweetened vanilla whipped cream.

By the way that La Pavoni Espresso maker I gave Rick for his birthday several years ago- one of the best investments ever! A little cinnamon tops my latte here…

Happy start to a great day

I find this a very satisfying way to make use of the fresh corn available at the farmers’ market or if you’re lucky your own back yard during the summertime. The cornmeal in the crust adds a bit of crunch and the herbs in the quiche complement the flavours of the Shitakes and corn.

Fresh Corn and Shitake Mushroom Quiche                                         

(adapted from Martha Stewart’s Baking Handbook, page 273)

Corn Meal Pie Dough or Pate Brisee:

• 2 cups AP flour
• 1/2 cup of cornmeal
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• 1/2 pound fresh butter, cold and cut into small bits
• 1/3 cup iced water as needed

In the bowl of a food processor, pulse the flour, corn meal, salt and sugar together until combined. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse sand. Turn the machine to full “on” and add the iced water in a slow steady stream, adding only enough to make the dough come together. Process as little as possible. Place a two large squares of plastic wrap on your counter. Turn 1/2 of the dough out onto each. Using the plastic wrap form each into a disk and place in the fridge for an hour. You will need only one of the disks for this recipe. Freeze the other half or use for another purpose. A nice fresh fruit gallete maybe?

Corn and Shitake filling:

• 6 cups sliced fresh Shitake Mushrooms, stems removed and brushed clean of any dirt or debris
• 1 large onion, finely diced
• 2 green onions, finely diced
•  a little olive oil for sauteing mushrooms
• 2-1/2 cups fresh corn kernels- or can use frozen just thaw and drain well- do not use canned!
• 1 cup freshly grated Mozzarella cheese
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmegiano Reggiano Cheese
• 1/4 cup minced chives
• 1 Tablespoon minced Tarragon
• pinch of salt and freshly ground pepper
• pinch of chile powder use the good stuff
• 1 cup of half and half cream
• 3 large eggs
• 1/2 recipe of cornmeal pie dough (Corn meal pate brisee) recipe  from above, rolled out and placed into a round 9″tart pan with a removable bottom and 2″ sides- or a similar type pan. Chill in the pan before prebaking below.

Preheat the oven to 375F. Place a piece of parchment into the chilled, dough lined tart pan, place beans, rice or ceramic pie weights into the parchment. Bake for about 30 minutes and then remove the parchment and weights. Return to the oven and bake for about 15 minutes more until golden. Remove and cool on a rack while preparing the filling.

Heat a large saute pan over medium high heat for a minute and when the pan is hot add a little olive oil to coat the bottom. Add the mushrooms and cook for a few minutes until they begin to release their liquid. Add the onion, green onion, and half of the chives. Cook until the onions are soft and translucent. Add the corn and cook a couple of minutes. Remove from the heat. Set aside while you mix the half and half and eggs together. Beat them well to combine and season with a bit of salt and pepper and a pinch of chile powder. 

Stir the remaining chives and tarragon into the cooled mushroom corn mixture. Layer into the prebaked pie shell alternating with 2/3 of the cheeses. Pour the egg and half and mixture over it all and top with the last bit of cheese. Place the pan on a baking sheet lined with parchment or foil to catch any overflow and bake in the center of the 375F oven for 35-40 minutes , turning it round at midway through baking to ensure it cooks evenly. Watch the crust for overbrowning and cover with a circle cut out of foil to just cover the crust edges if necessary.  Stick a knife edge into the center to make sure the custard is set before removing from the oven. This is really important because the cheese will set and become golden on top before the eggy custard will have cooked through.  Remove to a wire rack in the pan and cool slightly before serving.  Makes about eight generous servings.

Before adding last layer of cheese and custard and baking off

The final golden yummy quiche!

Hope you enjoy this one

Individual Kouign Amann aux amandes

“Bretagne Braid”

These are my own version of Kouign Amann. Kouign Amann (which is pronounced “Queen Ah-mahn”) means butter cake in the Breton language. They are the mouthwatering, buttery, salty, caramelized, sweet pastry from Bretagne- the region of Brittany in France.
With the addition of a bit of marzipan and toasted almonds they become a heavenly cross between traditional  Kouign Amann and our favourite almond croissants. They become “Kouign Amann aux amandes”. We think that they are the ultimate – the bomb- the “I’m having a transcendent moment here”  pastry!

I first learned of Kouign Amann through reading  Madeleine Kamman’s lovely book, “When French Women Cook- A Gastronomique Memoir”, written in 1976. Her book takes you through the dishes of several regions of France represented by women she knew growing up there- friends, family and friends of the family-from 1934 to the 1970s.  I wish I could duplicate her journey but sadly those days and places are lost to the march of time and history. She hosted the PBS series “Madeleine Cooks” in the mid 1980s and has contributed much to the interest in and teaching of French Cooking in the USA. I am not using her recipe here, it is an amalgamation of several others I’ve read with my own tweaks added here and there.

I’ve also mentioned before that our favourite local place to buy these if you don’t make them yourself is Les Madeleines Bakery. They are exquisitely made there- lovely, gooey and carmelized. If you live in Salt Lake or are passing through do give them a try- they are worth the trip. Rick and I got addicted to them at Les Madeleines and I remembered seeing them in “When French Women Cook” and several other French cookbooks I own- so I started making them at home.

Back to the pastry…laminating a not too rich dough (you can even start with plain white bread dough) with salted butter and sugar is the secret to making Kouign Amann. They are not difficult to do as long as you keep everything cold, chill between “turns” and are patient in your rolling.  They take a bit of time is what I am saying here- it is at least a two day process so make sure to plan ahead.    (BTW I have made a very good version using homemade quick puff pastry and laminating in sugar with a pinch of salt to make up for the unsalted butter in the puff pastry.)

A word about equipment first- you don’t need lots of special stuff to make these but I find these things helpful:  a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook and also a paddle- a bowl, spoon and elbow grease will do if you don’t have one;  a flexible straight sided ruler 18″ to 24 ” is very helpful -I have a flat plastic graphics ruler that I have marked with black marker at 8″, 12″, 18″ and 24″ increments;  a soft pastry brush; a large french style rolling pin; english muffin rings (or a jumbo muffin pan), a flan ring if making a large version and heavy duty baking sheets lined with parchment or silpats, plus a sharp knife or pastry roller cutter.

Risen Dough

First and Third Turns Marked

Kouign Amann aux amandes

• 1 package active dried yeast = (1/4 ounce) or  1 level Tablespoon of Bob’s Redmill instant yeast
• 1-3/4 cups warm water about 105F
• 1 large pinch of granulated sugar, plus 1-2 cups more for laminating and rolling and for topping the pastries
• 5 -6 cups of all purpose flour (start with 5 add the other if needed -see below)
• 1-1/2 teaspoons sea salt, plus another  pinch  for the  topping
• 1/8 cup melted butter, cooled
• 1 pound best quality SALTED butter, cold (or use unsalted and mix in a little fleur de sel when forming the block)
• 7 ounces best quality home made or prepared marzipan
• slivered almonds- to top -about 1/3 cup total

Mix the yeast, warm water and a pinch of sugar together and let stand until foamy- a few minutes. Place the flour, salt and melted butter in the bowl of the stand mixer fitted with a dough hook and mix together, add the yeast mixture and mix until a smooth dough forms and begins to pull away from the sides of the bowl. This should only take a few minutes.  If you don’t have a stand mixer, use a bowl and a wooden spoon and then turn out to knead on a lightly floured counter until a smooth dough forms. Place the dough in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap and place in a warm place to rise to double- about an hour.  When doubled, punch down and chill for about an hour, meanwhile get the the butter block  ready.

Place the cold butter  in the clean bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment this time, or beat it with a rolling pin between two pieces of parchment paper until it is pliable but still cool. Form this into an  8″ square block (about 1/2″ thick) and cover with parchment or plastic wrap and place on a tray in your fridge to chill. Chill for 30 minutes.  So the dough will have been in the fridge for about one hour and 35 minutes and the butter block that was already cool has joined it in for about 30 minutes. This will make them approximately the same temperature. 

Remove the dough from the fridge and roll it into a uniform 18″ square with the center a bit thicker than the edges. Remove the butter block from the fridge and place it catre-cornered on the dough square- in other words have the corners of the butter point at the center of the sides of the square.  Fold the corners of the dough over the butter to overlap on top and pinch to seal. Roll out to a 24″ by 8″ rectangle – use your ruler to keep the dough straight and squared off, then brush off any flour with a pastry brush. Sprinkle with  about 1/4 cup sugar and press with the pin to roll in. Fold the right edge over the middle third of the dough and the left edge over the whole right side edge you just folded over (as if you were folding a towel or book into thirds, so the 24″ becomes 8″ and the 8″ stays the same dimension.)  Dimple the dough with your finger once to mark this as your first “turn”. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and place on a baking  tray that will fit in your fridge and chill for 30 minutes.  Remove and repeat the rolling and folding but roll the opposite way so the 8″ side of your folded “towel or book”  will become 24″ and the other side will become 8″ when rolled( thats why it’s called a turn- you are turning the dough package to roll and fold the opposite direction from the previous way.  Fold again the same as above, brushing off excess flour and rolling in sugar before folding, and marking two dimples for the second turn. Repeat 2 more times but chill an hour between these turns. When you have completed 4 turns in total (of course chilling between) wrap and chill the dough overnight or for at least 6 hours.  The next morning….

Place some sugar on your rolling surface and roll the dough out to 24″ x 18″, cut to the desired size- I usually make twelve 4″x 4″ Kouign Amann and one larger sized pastry with the remainder of the dough. Knead the marzipan and place in the center of whatever shape you choose, fold the edges over to meet in the center and pinch to seal. Top each pastry with sugar mixed witha tiny pinch of salt and some slivered almonds. Place each pastry into english muffin rings on a parchment or silpat lined heavy sheet pan or even a jumbo muffin pan (no need to grease them) for the 4×4″ size and use a flan ring for the larger size .To make a “Bretagne Braid ” such as the one shown here – make a rectangle and put the marzipan lengthwise down the middle, cut in from the long sides towards the filling  at 1/2″ even, intervals and alternate bringing the side strips over the filling to make a braided pattern, turn under the ends and pinch to seal, place on a parchment or silpat lined baking sheet, cover the pastry with plastic wrap and (proof) place in warm place until slightly puffed- about 30 to 40 minutes. Preheat your oven to 425F. Bake in the preheated oven for about 45 minutes, rotating the trays about halfway through and bake until golden,   and puffed.  Remove to a cooling tray immediately.

They are good warm or cool but they do stale quickly so eat them or share them the same day- although we have nibbled them for up to four days they lose their stellar quality. I have frozen some, untopped, at the preproofed stage to pull them out proof them, top them and bake them as needed.

Proofing individual and large sized pastries

Finished Pastries

They make an awfully good breakfast!

Wow that was a long one! Hope you enjoyed the journey.

xo