Peach Blueberry Crisp

I made the below using a combination of two recipes.  One of them had a really good peach filling/mixture (I added the blueberries, you don't need to have them) and the other had a much easier rendition of the topping.  I made a few tiny changes and voila.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

For the filling:   Toss the peaches in a large bowl with the zest and lemon juice. Add the rest of the ingredients and stir to combine.

4-5 fresh peaches, pitted and cut into chunks

1 lemon, zested and juiced

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1/4 cup tightly packed brown sugar

2 tablespoons sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Fresh blueberries to taste (1/2 cup or more)

Pinch kosher salt

For the topping: Mix flour, brown sugar, butter, cinnamon, and salt in a bowl using a pastry cutter or fork until evenly crumbled. Fold the rolled oats into flour mixture; sprinkle and press topping into peaches.

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup cold butter

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup rolled oats

Directions

1.Arrange peach mixture evenly in an baking dish (I used a 12 inch oval).

2.  Sprinkle and press topping into peaches.

3.Bake in the preheated oven until topping is lightly browned, about 30 minutes.

Blueberry muffins made with blood orange olive oil

Trying to play catch up on this blog.  It's futile, but I try.

I made blueberry muffins this morning and used blood orange olive oil (instead of regular) and also almond extract.  This recipe was fantastic.  The crumb topping mix could almost be halved, though.

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/to-die-for-blueberry-muffins/

Muffins:

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup white sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 egg
1/3 cup milk
1 cup fresh blueberries

 

Crumb topping:
1/2 cup white sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup butter, cubed
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

I used Blood Orange Olive Oil, and, added almost a teaspoon of almond extract.

Directions

1.  Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).     Grease muffin cups or line with muffin liners. 

2.  Combine 1 1/2 cups flour, 3/4 cup sugar, salt and baking powder.   Place vegetable oil into a 1 cup measuring cup; add the egg and enough milk to fill the cup.   Mix this with flour mixture.   Fold in blueberries.   Fill muffin cups right to the top, and sprinkle with crumb topping mixture. 

3.  To Make Crumb Topping: Mix together 1/2 cup sugar, 1/3 cup flour, 1/4 cup butter, and 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon.   Mix with fork, and sprinkle over muffins before baking. 

4.  Bake for 20 to 25 minutes in the preheated oven, or until done. 

Peachy Keen

I recently made a blueberry/peach cobbler that is posted on Smitten Kitchen. 

Peach Blueberry Cornmeal Cobbler


For the fruit
1 1/2 (about 4 cups) pounds peaches, pitted and cut into slices*
1 pint (about 2 cups) blueberries, rinsed and dried
2/3 cup packed dark-brown sugar
2 tablespoons flour
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt


For the biscuit topping
3/4 cup (3 1/4 ounces) all-purpose flour
1/4 cup fine stone-ground cornmeal (yellow or white)
3 tablespoons dark brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1/2 cup buttermilk

Preheat oven to 425°F (218°C).Toss peaches with blueberries, sugar, flour, lemon juice, cinnamon and salt in the bottom of a 2-quart ovenproof dish.

Make the biscuit dough: Stir together the flour, cornmeal, brown sugar, baking powder and salt. Cut the butter into the dry mixture with your fingertips, a fork or a pastry blender. Stir in buttermilk with a rubber spatula until a wet, tacky dough comes together.

Plop spoonfuls of the biscuit dough over the filling; don’t worry about covering entire surface. Bake until the cobbler’s syrup is bubbly and the biscuit tops are browned, about 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool slightly and scoop it into bowls. Top with whipped cream, vanilla ice cream, of if you’re having an accidental run-in with this cobbler before noon, plain yogurt.


http://smittenkitchen.com/2010/07/cornmeal-drop-biscuit-peach-blueberry-cobbler/


(NUMBER TWENTY-ONE in 2010)

Plum Crazy

AKA let's make a tart. 

I found a really interesting recipe in the Washington Post food section last week.  Tomatoes.  Peaches.  Plums.  A farmer's market bounty.  All in a deep dish pie dish.  Off we go!

http://projects.washingtonpost.com/recipes/2010/08/11/tomato-peach-plum-crisp/  From Betsy Garside of Washington.

Ingredients:

1 pound (about 3 medium) ripe tomatoes, cored and cut into thin wedges (about 3 cups)
1 1/2 pounds (2 of each) mixed peaches and red plums, peaches peeled and both fruits thinly sliced (about 3 cups
1/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
7 tablespoons flour
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 cup pecan halves
5 tablespoons chilled salted butter, cut into half-inch pieces

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Have a deep-dish pie plate at hand.

Combine the tomatoes and stone fruit in a large bowl. Add the sugar and cornstarch; toss to coat evenly. Pour the mixture into the pie plate.

Combine the flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and pecans in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse 3 or 4 times, until the nuts are finely chopped. Add the chilled butter, and pulse about 5 times, just until the butter is chopped. (If you start to see clumps, stop. You're headed for cookie dough.)

Spread the topping evenly over the fruit. Transfer the pie plate to a baking sheet wide enough to catch drips.

Bake for 35 to 45 minutes, until the topping is lightly browned and the fruit is bubbling.

Serve warm or at room temperature.

(NUMBER TWENTY in 2010)

Diane's Divine Ginger Cake

I am off to a party.  A big party.  With good friends and lots of food and a pool and everything.  A pig roast (smoked first - and Adam has his own smoker) with all the summer finger-licking sides you can imagine.  Home made Sangria.  Goodies Galore.  It's good to be friends with foodies!  Adam and Colleen's parties are becoming famous - word is getting out.  This time 70 people accepted.  I hope Adam starts his own catering business one day. 

So for this party I'm making a dessert.  There were many good options when I queried my friends about their favorites.  In fact I made one last night (Lime Posset - and you can bet that is going to grace one of my dinner parties this fall - see post below). 

The ginger cake tickled my fancy because of the unique ingredients.  There is even black pepper in the batter and of course fresh chopped ginger.  I think lemon curd would be fabulous on top.  I understand from Diane any fresh fruit with real whipped cream does the trick.

Below is Diane's recipe.  I am waiting for it to come out of the oven as I type.  It will still be warm when I arrive.  Which might mean digging into it sooner rather than later!

* 2 cups all-purpose flour

* 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
* 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
* 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
* 3/4 cup molasses
* 3/4 cup granulated sugar
* 3/4 cup vegetable oil
* 3/4 cup water
* 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
* 3 ounces fresh ginger, peeled, grated, and finely chopped (from a 4-inch piece)
* 2 large eggs, at room temperature

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Heat the oven to 350°F and arrange a rack in the middle. Coat a 9-inch round cake pan with butter and flour; set aside.

2. Whisk together flour, cinnamon, cloves, and pepper in a medium bowl to break up any lumps and aerate; set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together molasses, sugar, and oil. (I find it's best to measure in the oil, then use the same measuring cup for the molasses -- it will slide right out because of the slight residue left by the oil)

3. Bring water to a boil in a small saucepan, stir in baking soda, and remove from heat and add ginger, then mix into molasses mixture.

4. Gradually stir dry ingredients into batter. Add eggs and continue mixing until everything is thoroughly combined. Transfer batter to the prepared pan and spread evenly.

5. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 45 to 50 minutes. Remove from the oven and place on a rack to cool for at least 30 minutes before removing the cake from the pan.

Here are some photos.  To see the whole photo, please click on them. 

 
 

(NUMBER EIGHTEEN in 2010)

Chili for a chilly day

Yesterday was the SECOND Storm of the Century this winter.  How much more can metro DC take?  We actually have yet another snow forecast for early next week although currently that doesn't look like a blizzard, just a few inches.

I haven't had chili in ages and this recipe below looked interesting.  I thought I'd give it a try.  As usual, what is at the top is taken directly from the recipe, and below is where I describe my deviations. 

Ingredients

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 pounds ground beef
1/4 cup chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 bay leaf
1/2 (1 ounce) square unsweetened chocolate
2 (10.5 ounce) cans beef broth
1 (15 ounce) can tomato sauce
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
1/4 cup shredded Cheddar cheese

Directions
Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring frequently, until tender, about 6 minutes.

Add beef, in batches if necessary, and cook, breaking up with a wooden spoon, until browned.

Add chili powder, cinnamon, cumin, allspice, cloves, bay leaf, chocolate, beef broth, tomato sauce, cider vinegar, and red pepper. Stir to mix well. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally.

It is the best if you now refrigerate overnight.

Remove the bay leaf. Reheat gently over medium heat. Serve over hot, drained spaghetti. Top with shredded cheddar cheese.

What I actually did:

First, I used the entire onion and it wasn't a small one.  You can't have enough onion, right?
Second, I realized too late that I only had one pound of hamburger.  Ooops.
I used EVOO.
Because I didn't have enough burger, I went a little easy on the chili powder but more or less used the full amount of the other spices.  Perhaps I should have gone for broke.
No cloves
No bay leaf
No beef broth.  I was going to pour in a cup of white wine but the bottle I grabbed was corked and the other bottles were good wine and I didn't want to waste it on chili.
I used about 3 small squares of chocolate.  It was more than an ounce but I wouldn't say it was three ounces.
The overnight refrigeration occurred with the leftovers.

Consensus?  It seemed more like I was making spaghetti sauce than chili, really.  The taste is unique and perhaps a bit rich.  I'm going to see how the overnight settling changed things.  I'm betting the beef broth and a full 2 pounds of meat would have really helped.  A very concentrated flavor and believe it or not I would not say the onions ruled even though there was an entire onion and not just half a cup chopped.

(NUMBER FIVE in 2010)

SNOMG! Hamburger and rice? Nothing else in that pantry?

I did go grocery shopping before the Snow of the Decade, but I didn't do it with menu in mind nor grocery list in hand. 

However, what I did make actually tasted pretty good even if it's simple and boring. 

I made jasmine rice using chicken broth, for starters.

The two pounds of hamburger was unloaded into my large skillet which already had a good dose of EVOO heating up nicely inside.  After I put the chunk in the skillet, I coated it with cinnamon, a few dashes of allspice, and a couple of quick flicks of cayenne pepper.  Not too much.  I broke up the meat which was simmering away nicely and then poured a cup of water on top and put the lid on it.  Heat on medium and I let 'er rip for about 30 minutes. 

It was actually a delicious, flavorful meal.  I like it. 

Dessert:  I opened a bag of frozen peaches into a large bowl, earlier in the afternoon, and sprinkled cinnamon all over the peaches.  I later sprinkled sugar on top which gets a nice juice going.  They were still quite cold by the time I ate them but the juice was very cinnamon-ey.

Oh yeah, before the peaches were thawed I had some more Belgian Chocolates and Bordeaux wine (St. Emilion). 

Tomorrow I'm going to make a recipe that was quoted to me while standing in line at Wegmans.

(NUMBER FOUR in 2010)

The last meal of 2009

Peanut Butter Beef Stew!

It can't get any easier than this.

1 cup of chunky peanut butter (I only had creamy)
5 cups of stew meat (I used tenderloin)
1 tsp. of allspice
cinnamon
rosemary (oops, forgot this)
2 cups of beef broth
1/4 cup apple juice
 
In a large pot over medium low heat melt down the peanut butter and then add in the apple juice.  In a skillet brown the meat and add into the peanut mixture.  Stir and pour in beef broth and seasonings.  Simmer for 1hr or until meat is tender.

Butternut Squash Soup, surprise!

More domesticity...

A few nights previous I had bought a rotisserie chicken from Wegmans.  I industriously cleaned much of the meat from its bones and put the carcass in a pot of water with carrots.  I let it boil away for quite some time.  What was left was some good chicken stock.

Today (Sunday) I bought about 2.5 lbs of butternut squash (already cleaned and cut) and decided to make soup. 

Loosely following a recipe, I baked the squash for about 30 mins (light coating of olive oil) and then poured it into the pot of stock.  I'm not sure how much stock there was, I'd say no less than 6 cups.  I also cut up a granny smith apple and plopped it in, along with the remainder of the bag of carrots.

I then squirted a good 3T of honey on top, threw in some bay leaves, and then liberally sprinkled cinnamon on top.  A little bit of cayenne pepper, some curry powder (not much) and my kitchen is now aroma laden and I hope this will turn out well.  When I get closer to the end I will put a cup of heavy cream into the mix.

When all was said and done I used a potato masher to even out the big chunks.  It worked out very well - very flavorful!  I now have several meals...