Like Mother Like Daughters

I have been a little overwhelmed lately by the wedding plans for Working Girl and her darling fiancée… There are so many details, so many items to track down, and so many decisions to make… Today via text message and twitpic my niece picked out her bridesmaid dress! So things continue to progress, and I continue to tell myself not to stress…

I also have been reading drafts of an essay on Peter Pan that College Girl is writing, spending the past week immersed in the finer points of JM Barrie’s life… Did you know that Peter Pan was originally quite a dark adult story about a spirit who erects tombstones for children who get “lost” in his “garden?” (Yes, showing up in later versions as the Lost Boys!)  Today the paper was submitted, and I asked her to send me the final draft because I cannot quit thinking about it…never grow up, indeed…

And in more mundane news my dishwasher is broken. And the only repairman in Austin who does warranty work on my brand of machine has (understandably) disappeared because his young daughter broke her leg… The kitchen has slowed to a crawl as I search for new and imaginative ways to cook dinner without pans or dishes or utensils…(finding a new cooking strategy is kind of a full time job…) Today I broke down and baked – we may not have a hot dinner, but we have cookies!!!

Gather Up:
1 cup quick cooking oatmeal
¾ cup toasted pecan halves
1 cup whole wheat flour
¼ cup cornstarch
2 tablespoons ground crystallized ginger
½ teaspoon fine salt
¼ teaspoon baking soda
¾ cup unsalted butter, softened
¾ cup sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large egg

Grind oatmeal and pecan pieces in a food processor until they resemble cornmeal. Whisk the flour, cornstarch, ginger, salt and baking soda together in a bowl. Stir in the oat and pecan mixture.

Beat the butter in the bowl of an electric mixer until light and smooth. Gradually add the sugar and the brown sugar and continue beating until well combined. Add the vanilla and the egg.

Stir in the dry ingredients. Line a loaf pan with plastic wrap and pack the dough into the bottom of the pan. Gently press to level the dough and cover top with plastic wrap. Refrigerate until completely firm, about 2 hours, or overnight.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats.

Unwrap dough and slice it in half lengthwise. Slice each log into ¼ inch slices and place 1 inch apart on baking pans. Bake until just beginning to turn golden, about 10-11 minutes.

Transfer to a cooling rack. Cookies will crisp as they cool. Store in a tightly sealed container for up to 1 week.

 Recipe adapted from Food Network.

Oh, citrus, how I love thee… The season can’t be long enough for me, but I do appreciate the rhythm of nature in saving the best for last! Key limes are a blast of citrus nirvana that is enough (almost) to carry me until next winter!

Of course I made a pie… You know, the one with sweetened condensed milk and eggs and graham crackers and yes, it was creamy dreamy good… But with the rest of my limes I was craving something a little different…something a little more tart…something a little more decadent…

So I started searching… Leave it to a Southern girl to take a buttery shortbread-like cookie crust, cover it with a concentrated punch of sticky lime goodness, douse it all in powdered sugar and bake it up in a LARGE pan so there is plenty to go around! That is the genius that is Gina Neely.

I made this immediately! I hovered over it waiting for it to cool so I could sift it with powdered sugar… I devoured the raggedy edges for tasting inspiration before I took pictures… I coaxed the last rays of winter light over the plate because I wanted you to SEE and KNOW how fantastically puckery and wonderful these bars are!!! (And I ate all the bars in the photo because they were taunting me…true story… I implore you to make these now!)

Gather Up:
Cookie Crust
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 /2 cup confectioners’ sugar
2 cups flour
Pinch kosher salt

Lime Topping
4 large eggs, lightly beaten
2 cups sugar
6 tablespoons flour
¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
2 teaspoons lime zest
Confectioners’ sugar for dusting

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Generously butter a 9 x 13 inch cake pan.

To make the crust, combine the butter and confectioners’ sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat on medium high speed for 2 to 3 minutes until light and fluffy. Add the flour and the salt, and mix another minute until well combined.

Pat the dough out to an even thickness over the bottom of the pan, and then gently push up and build an edge all around. (This will prevent the filling from seeping down underneath the crust when it is added later.)

Bake the crust for 20-25 minutes until lightly golden. Remove and let cool completely on a rack.

To make the topping, whisk together the eggs and sugar in a mixing bowl. Add the flour and whisk until just combined. Whisk in the lime juice and the zest.

Pour the lime topping over the cooled crust and return to the 350 degree oven. Bake for an additional 25 minutes until the filling is set.

Remove to a cooling rack and allow to cool completely. Generously dust with confectioners’ sugar and cut into squares. Bars will keep 2-3 days at room temperature.

Recipe from “Down Home with the Neelys: A Southern Family Cookbook”

These cookies are for the young and the young at heart! They are perfect to make with a helper, and they are seriously addictive enough to make it hard to give them away… (I know of what I speak – I ate six while they were warm…)

But give them away you must! Because who doesn’t love to receive a homemade treat for Valentine’s Day? One crumbly jam-kissed bite and the recipient will fall hopelessly in love! (I mean with the cookie, silly goose…)

Gather Up:
1 ½ cups flour
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
½ cup sugar
½ cup packed brown sugar
1 cup creamy peanut butter
1 egg
3/4 cup raspberry jam, stirred to loosen

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.

Beat the butter and the sugars with a mixer on medium speed until pale and fluffy.

Beat in peanut butter and then egg.

On low speed, beat in flour mixture just until dough forms.

Roll dough into 1 ½ inch balls (about 2 tablespoons). Place on baking sheet and gently press into a small round, repairing any cracked dough with your fingers.

Make a gentle indentation in the cookie.

Bake for 11 minutes. Remove from oven and gently reshape the indentation.

Fill with a generous dollop of jam. Bake an additional 4 minutes until cookies are firm.

Remove to a wire rack to cool. Jam-filled cookies can be stored at room temperature for 2 days.

From: Martha Stewart Living, February 2011

I made this cake twice… I had two fresh orange recipes for cake in my winter pile of “desserts-to-try.” The first used an entire whole orange, poached in simple syrup and pureed down into a luscious blend of oranges and sour cream… Sound intriguing?  (It did not turn out – in fact I dreamed about it that night, and in my dream I was making the cake on the Food Network show, “Worst Cook in America.” Anne Burrell told me the cake looked like a sponge. It went downhill from there…)

But fresh orange was still rolling around in my mind, and after all, I have no shortage of recipes in the “wanna make this” pile… So I made the second cake. This one uses orange zest and orange juice and is topped with a smooth chocolate glaze that was calling my name, saying, “Chocolate and orange make everything better…”

And thankfully, success! It turned out with a bakery-style flat top, which is so exciting for me, and the orange flavor seems to be pronounced and subtle all at the same time! It tastes absolutely delicious, and totally satisfied every orange-centric craving that I had! (And no one asked me to demonstrate it on national television, thank goodness!!!) Enjoy!

Gather Up:
4 ounces butter, at room temperature
¾ cup + 1 tablespoon sugar
Zest of 2 large organic oranges
2 eggs, at room temperature
1 ½ cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup buttermilk, at room temperature
¼ cup fresh orange juice
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
½ teaspoon vanilla

For the Glaze:
5 ounces chopped semisweet chocolate
¾ cup heavy cream

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter an 8 inch round cake pan and line the bottom with parchment paper.

Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

Combine the buttermilk, orange juice, lemon juice and vanilla.

Cream the butter and sugar until lightened and creamy. Mix in the orange zest.

Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each.

Add 1/3 of the flour and mix until incorporated. Add ½ the liquid mixture and mix until incorporated. Continue with 1/3 of the flour, then the remaining ½ of the liquid, finishing with the last 1/3 of the flour. Blend just until it begins to look nearly mixed.

Remove from mixer and use a spatula to finish mixing with a few folds.

Scrape batter into prepared pan and smooth to level.

Bake until golden and a wooden pick comes out clean, 28 – 34 minutes. Cool in the pan on a rack for 10 minutes.

Turn out onto a cooling rack and peel off the parchment paper. Cool completely.

For the chocolate glaze, place the chopped chocolate into a bowl. Heat the cream just to the boiling point. Pour the cream over the chocolate and let it sit for 2 minutes. Stir slowly and gently until the mixture comes together. (If a little graininess remains in the sauce, depending on the type of chocolate you used, transfer the sauce to a double boiler and heat and stir for about 10 minutes until smooth and no grains of chocolate remain.) Cool the sauce until it is a nice pouring consistency and pour over cake.  Let it firm up before cutting the cake.

Recipe from: Pastry Studio

At long last, Christmas is upon us! At our house we look forward to the Christmas season every year: the tree, the lights, the decorations, the baking, the hustle and bustle…we LOVE Christmas. There’s a joyful energy in the air for the whole month. It’s magical.

But Christmas can be a little bit like planning a wedding. (An analogy that is top of mind for me this year.) You get caught up in the details – the parties, the shopping, getting your house ready – and you forget to pause and remember what the day is really all about. In the wedding analogy, this means focusing on the marriage rather than the accompanying party. On Christmas this means remembering what we’re really celebrating – the first half of that word: Christ. He’s the sole reason for the hope and joy that Christmas encompasses. He was the perfect gift. In fact, He’s the only gift that really matters.

So this Christmas, amid the unwrapping and eggnog and cookies, we hope you have a minute to  stop and reflect on the real reason for the day. We’ll be doing the same. And…we’ll be munching on this…

This eggnog cake is the perfect last-minute dessert. (Perfect for a last-minute post! Did this week get away from anyone else?!) It is super easy, super moist and the almond crust negates the need for glazing. We make this cake every year…usually at the last minute!

Although we have baked lots of eggnog goodies this cake is one we keep coming back to. It uses lots of eggnog, and the rum-infused batter is to-die-for good! Seasonal, homemade, fast. Perfect.

P.S. It uses a yellow cake mix. Please don’t judge, (or better yet, please don’t tell!)

You can think of this post as our little Christmas card and know that we’re sending prayers and love and best wishes from our family to yours for a blessed, happy, joyful Christmas! Merry Christmas!!

Gather Up:
3 tablespoons softened butter
½ cup sliced almonds
1 package yellow cake mix
½ teaspoon nutmeg
2 eggs
1 ½ cup eggnog
¼ cup melted butter
2 tablespoons dark rum

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Generously grease a bundt pan with 3 tablespoons of butter. Sprinkle the almonds against the sides and bottom of the pan. Do not skimp on the butter – it will form the almond crust around the cake.

In an electric mixer combine the cake mix, nutmeg, eggs, eggnog, melted butter and rum. Beat until smooth and fluffy, about 4 minutes.

Pour into prepared pan. Bake until a toothpick comes out clean, 45 – 50 minutes.

Cool in pan 10 minutes. Invert onto rack and cool completely.

Love…Nancy, Ellen and Robin