Daring Bakers Bakewell Tart

The June Daring Bakers' challenge was hosted by Jasmine of Confessions of a Cardamom Addict and Annemarie of Ambrosia and Nectar. They chose a Traditional (UK) Bakewell Tart... er... pudding that was inspired by a rich baking history dating back to the 1800's in England.

"Bakewell tarts…er…puddings combine a number of dessert elements but still let you show off your area’s seasonal fruits.

Like many regional dishes there’s no “one way” to make a Bakewell Tart…er…Pudding, but most of today’s versions fall within one of two types. The first is the “pudding” where a layer of jam is covered by an almondy pastry cream and baked in puff pastry. The second is the “tart” where a rich shortcrust pastry holds jam and an almondy sponge cake-like filling.

The version we’re daring you to make is a combination of the two: a sweet almond-flavoured shortcrust pastry, frangipane and jam."

I had never tasted nor heard of a Bakewell Tart nor Bakewell Pudding before this challenge, but I'm happy to report that my tart turned out perfectly delicious!

There were two mandatory elements of the challenge: the Sweet Shortcrust Pastry and the Frangipane (a filling made from almonds). An optional element was to make homemade jam or curd. Having never made jam before I was planning on giving it a go, but when I had some unexpected dinner guests, I decided to use Smuckers Seedless Blackberry jam.

The shortcrust came together easily. I'm not a fan of almond extract, so I substitute vanilla in the crust and the frangipane. I don't have a kitchen scale, so converting to cups was a bit of a challenge because the online converters I Goggled gave me different measurements. I ended up using 1 3/4 cups flour in the crust, which was probably too much and I had to use 4 1/2 T. water.

I used 1 cup powdered sugar, 2/3 cup almond meal and 1/4 cup flour in the frangipane, which seemed about right to me. I put little dollops of the frangipane all over the top of the jam, which really helped when spreading the frangipane. My tart was nicely browned and set after only 25 minutes.

Bakewell Tart…er…pudding

Makes one 23cm (9” tart)
Prep time: less than 10 minutes (plus time for the individual elements)
Resting time: 15 minutes
Baking time: 30 minutes
Equipment needed: 23cm (9”) tart pan or pie tin (preferably with ridged edges), rolling pin

One quantity sweet shortcrust pastry (recipe follows)
Bench flour
250ml (1cup (8 US fl. oz)) jam or curd, warmed for spreadability
One quantity frangipane (recipe follows)
One handful blanched, flaked almonds

Assembling the tart
Place the chilled dough disc on a lightly floured surface. If it's overly cold, you will need to let it become acclimatised for about 15 minutes before you roll it out. Flour the rolling pin and roll the pastry to 5mm (1/4”) thickness, by rolling in one direction only (start from the centre and roll away from you), and turning the disc a quarter turn after each roll. When the pastry is to the desired size and thickness, transfer it to the tart pan, press in and trim the excess dough. Patch any holes, fissures or tears with trimmed bits. Chill in the freezer for 15 minutes.

Preheat oven to 200C/400F.

Remove shell from freezer, spread as even a layer as you can of jam onto the pastry base. Top with frangipane, spreading to cover the entire surface of the tart. Smooth the top and pop into the oven for 30 minutes. Five minutes before the tart is done, the top will be poofy and brownish. Remove from oven and strew flaked almonds on top and return to the heat for the last five minutes of baking.

The finished tart will have a golden crust and the frangipane will be tanned, poofy and a bit spongy-looking. Remove from the oven and cool on the counter. Serve warm, with crème fraîche, whipped cream or custard sauce if you wish.

When you slice into the tart, the almond paste will be firm, but slightly squidgy and the crust should be crisp but not tough.

Jasmine’s notes:
• If you cannot have nuts, you can try substituting Victoria sponge for the frangipane. It's a pretty popular popular cake, so you shouldn't have any troubles finding one in one of your cookbooks or through a Google search. That said, our dear Natalie at Gluten a Go Go has sourced some recipes and linked to them in the related alt.db thread.
• You can use whichever jam you wish, but if you choose something with a lot of seeds, such as raspberry or blackberry, you should sieve them out.
• The jam quantity can be anywhere from 60ml (1/4 cup) to 250ml (1cup), depending upon how “damp” and strongly flavoured your preserves are. I made it with the lesser quantity of home made strawberry jam, while Annemarie made it with the greater quantity of cherry jam; we both had fabulous results. If in doubt, just split the difference and spread 150ml (2/3cup) on the crust.
Annemarie’s notes:
• The excess shortcrust can be rolled out and cut into cookie-shapes (heck, it’s pretty darned close to a shortbread dough).

Sweet shortcrust pastry

Prep time: 15-20 minutes
Resting time: 30 minutes (minimum)
Equipment needed: bowls, box grater, cling film

225g (8oz) all purpose flour
30g (1oz) sugar
2.5ml (½ tsp) salt
110g (4oz) unsalted butter, cold (frozen is better)
2 (2) egg yolks
2.5ml (½ tsp) almond extract (optional)
15-30ml (1-2 Tbsp) cold water

Sift together flour, sugar and salt. Grate butter into the flour mixture, using the large hole-side of a box grater. Using your finger tips only, and working very quickly, rub the fat into the flour until the mixture resembles bread crumbs. Set aside.

Lightly beat the egg yolks with the almond extract (if using) and quickly mix into the flour mixture. Keep mixing while dribbling in the water, only adding enough to form a cohesive and slightly sticky dough.

Form the dough into a disc, wrap in cling and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes

Jasmine’s notes:
• I make this using vanilla salt and vanilla sugar.
• If you wish, you can substitute the seeds of one vanilla bean, one teaspoon of vanilla paste or one teaspoon of vanilla extract for the almond extract

Frangipane

Prep time: 10-15 minutes
Equipment needed: bowls, hand mixer, rubber spatula

125g (4.5oz) unsalted butter, softened
125g (4.5oz) icing sugar
3 (3) eggs
2.5ml (½ tsp) almond extract
125g (4.5oz) ground almonds
30g (1oz) all purpose flour

Cream butter and sugar together for about a minute or until the mixture is primrose in colour and very fluffy. Scrape down the side of the bowl and add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. The batter may appear to curdle. In the words of Douglas Adams: Don’t panic. Really. It’ll be fine. After all three are in, pour in the almond extract and mix for about another 30 seconds and scrape down the sides again. With the beaters on, spoon in the ground nuts and the flour. Mix well. The mixture will be soft, keep its slightly curdled look (mostly from the almonds) and retain its pallid yellow colour.

Spicy Grilled Pork Tenderloin

Lately I've been cooking a lot of pork tenderloin. It's fairly cheap, cooks up quick and easy, and is so tender, juicy and delicious. It also comes in a pack with two tenderloins, so I can usually make two meals from it.

The Salt Lake Tribune recently printed Cathie Mooers' Grilled Pork Tenderloins with Grilled Strawberry Salsa recipe. I wasn't brave enough to make the grilled salsa (my husband complains about grilled pineapple), but the spicy tenderloin recipe sounded quick and delicious, and it was!

Because of the rub, the tenderloins browned darker than I normally like, but it did not have a burnt flavor, just a wonderful spicy smokey flavor. We ate one tenderloin and I diced the other tenderloin and will use it tonight to make Lynda's Southwestern (Chicken) Pork and Rice Skillet Dinner. She posted the recipe last week and it looks like a great 30 minute meal!

Here's my slightly modified version of the tenderloin recipe.

Spicy Grilled Pork Tenderloin

2 (1 pound) pork tenderloins
3 T. olive oil
1 T. ground chili powder
2 t. salt
1 t. ground black pepper
1 t. dried crushed oregano leaves
1 t. garlic powder
1 T lime juice

Heat grill to high. Rub pork tenderloins with oil. Combine dried spices in a bowl and then sprinkle evenly on tenderloins. Drizzle with lime juice.

Place tenderloin on the hottest part of the grill. Cook turning occasionally, until well browned on all sides, about 10 minutes. Reduce temperature to low and cover with grill lid. Continued to cook pork covered, until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center registers 145 degrees, turning occasionally.

Crumpets and Nutella

I fell in love with crumpets and Nutella on our trip to Australia. So I thought it would be fun to make them at home. I bought some cute little egg rings, found an easy recipe online, and left the dough to rise covered with some plastic wrap on the counter while I went out to do some gardening. When I came back in the house the dough was flowing like lava out of the bowl on to the counter.

I cleaned up the mess, heated up the grilled, sprayed the rings with Pam and filled the rings with dough. Unfortunately, the cute little, piece of crap, egg rings I bought that were suppose to be non-stick stuck, so I had to get a knife and cut them out of the rings.

The dough was too thick and didn't bubble up, so I added some more milk and in the end abandoned the egg rings and just made crumpet crepes. My sad little crumpets didn't have that nice texture that I remembered from Australia, but when I spread them with Nutella they were tasty. Well the Nutella was tasty any way. And yes, I did lick the knife.

Daring Cooks Chinese Dumplings/Potstickers

Jen from use real butter selected Chinese Dumplings/Potstickers for the Daring Cooks June 2009 challenge. I had never made potstickers before and I was surprised how easy they were to make. The dough was easy to roll out, but I did need to add some extra water to the dough.

My step mom was visiting and helped me make them. It was so nice to have an extra set of hands to fill them after I rolled them out. We made a double batch in the early afternoon and left them in the fridge covered with a wet towel and it worked out great. We used the pork filling, pan fried them and used Panda Express's Orange Sauce for dipping.

They were a big hit with the entire family. I loved the pork filling and will definitely make these again. My daughter often buys frozen potstickers from Costco, she's excited to give this recipe a try. Thanks Jen for a fun challenge!

Chinese Dumplings/Potstickers

pork filling:
1 lb (450g) ground pork
4 large napa cabbage leaves, minced
3 stalks green onions, minced
7 shitake mushrooms, minced (if dried - rehydrated and rinsed carefully)
1/2 cup (75g) bamboo shoots, minced
1/4 (55g) cup ginger root, minced
3 tbsp (40g) soy sauce
2 tbsp (28g) sesame oil
2 tbsp (16g) corn starch

dough: (double this for the amount of filling, but easier to make it in 2 batches - or just halve the filling recipe)
2 cups (250g) all-purpose flour
1/2 cup (113g) warm water
flour for work surface

Make the dough, Method 1: Place the flour in the work bowl of a food processor with the dough blade. Run the processor and pour the warm water in until incorporated. Pour the contents into a sturdy bowl or onto a work surface and knead until uniform and smooth. The dough should be firm and silky to the touch and not sticky.[Note: it’s better to have a moist dough and have to incorporate more flour than to have a dry and pilling dough and have to incorporate more water).

Make the dough, Method 2 (my mom’s instructions): In a large bowl mix flour with 1/4 cup of water and stir until water is absorbed. Continue adding water one teaspoon at a time and mixing thoroughly until dough pulls away from sides of bowl. We want a firm dough that is barely sticky to the touch.

Both dough methods: Knead the dough about twenty strokes then cover with a damp towel for 15 minutes. Take the dough and form a flattened dome. Cut into strips about 1 1/2 to 2 inches wide. Shape the strips into rounded long cylinders. On a floured surface, cut the strips into 3/4 inch pieces. Press palm down on each piece to form a flat circle (you can shape the corners in with your fingers). With a rolling pin, roll out a circular wrapper from each flat disc. Take care not to roll out too thin or the dumplings will break during cooking - about 1/16th inch. Leave the centers slightly thicker than the edges. Place a tablespoon of filling in the center of each wrapper and fold the dough in half, pleating the edges along one side (see images in post for how to fold pleats). Keep all unused dough under damp cloth.

To boil: Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add dumplings to pot. Boil the dumplings until they float.

To steam: Place dumplings on a single layer of napa cabbage leaves or on a well-greased surface in a steamer basket with lid. Steam covered for about 6 minutes.

To pan fry (potstickers): Place dumplings in a frying pan with 2-3 tbsp of vegetable oil. Heat on high and fry for a few minutes until bottoms are golden. Add 1/2 cup water and cover. Cook until the water has boiled away and then uncover and reduce heat to medium or medium low. Let the dumplings cook for another 2 minutes then remove from heat and serve.

To freeze: Assemble dumplings on a baking sheet so they are not touching. It helps to rub the base of the dumpling in a little flour before setting on the baking sheet for ease of release. Freeze for 20-30 minutes until dumplings are no longer soft. Place in ziploc bag and freeze for up to a couple of months. Prepare per the above instructions, but allow extra time to ensure the filling is thoroughly cooked.

To serve: Serve dumplings or potstickers hot with your choice of dipping sauce combinations.

Carne Asada Tacos

I've seen lots of yummy looking recipes for Carne Asada Tacos online lately. So I decided it was time I try them and I decided to make the recipe in the L.A. Times that is used at Dodger Stadium. It called for skirt steak, but I was unable to find skirt steak so I substituted flank steak.

I had never cooked flank steak before and was amazed at just how tender and delicious it was, cooked to medium and sliced thinly. I served the meat on whole wheat flour tacos with fresh cilantro and homemade salsa. Although I still prefer my shredded pork tacos, this was a delicious change of pace.

Carne Asada Tacos

4 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, roughly chopped
1 tablespoon minced garlic
3/4 cup chopped onions
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 cup chopped green onions
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1/2 cup tomato purée
1/2 cup fresh lime juice
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
1 cup canola or vegetable oil
2 1/2 pounds skirt steak

1. In a large bowl, thoroughly mix the chipotle, garlic, onions, cumin, green onions, cilantro, parsley, tomato purée, lime juice, salt, pepper and oil. (I used my immersion blender to puree it.)

2. Rub the marinade all over the skirt steak, then place the steak in a large, resealable plastic bag with the marinade and refrigerate overnight.

3. Remove the bag from the refrigerator one hour before grilling to allow the steak to come to room temperature. .

4. Heat a grill over medium-high heat. Grill the steak about 2 to 3 minutes per side for medium rare. Set the steak aside until cool enough to handle, then cut it into a half-inch dice or slice it against the grain into 1-inch slices. Serve immediately.

Each serving: 151 calories; 14 grams protein; 1 gram carbohydrate; 0 fiber; 10 grams fat; 3 grams saturated fat; 32 mg. cholesterol; 157 mg. sodium.

Note: From Joseph Martin, executive chef, Levy Restaurants at Dodger Stadium. At the stadium, the carne asada is served with corn tortillas, pico de gallo, tomatillo sauce, chopped onions, chopped cilantro, grilled whole serrano chiles and slices of lime.

NEIMAN - MARCUS $250 COOKIE RECIPE

Most of you have probably heard the urban legend of the Nieman Marcus cookie. I have to admit to being a Toll House Chocolate Chip Cookie girl, but when my step-mom kindly brought me a stack of her favorite recipes on her recent visit, I knew I had to finally give the Nieman Marcus cookie a try.

I really liked this cookie. The blended oatmeal gives it a little more texture than a Toll House cookie, more like an oatmeal cookie and I'm always happy with a little extra fiber where ever I can get it. I prefer my cookies slightly under-baked and had to watch these closely to achieve the perfect color/texture. They seemed to brown very quickly at the end.

I needed to bake 2 dozen oversized 4" cookies, so I used a #16 scoop and only made 6 cookies at a time. Initially, I thought I should flatten the dough signficantly so it would cook more evenly, but the first ones really spread too much, so I just flattened the top on the rest and that worked out really well.

NEIMAN - MARCUS $250 COOKIE RECIPE
(I divided the recipe in half)

1 c. butter
1 c. granulated sugar
1 c. brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
2 c. flour
2 1/2 c. blended oatmeal
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
12 oz. chocolate chips (2 cups)
1 (4 oz.) Hershey bar, grated
3 c. chopped nuts (I omitted these)

Blended oatmeal: Measure and process in blender to a fine powder.

Cream butter and both sugars. Add eggs and vanilla. Mix together flour, oatmeal, salt, baking powder and baking soda and slowly add to butter, sugar, egg mixture. Add chips, candy and nuts. Roll into balls and place two inches apart on cookie sheet.

Bake for 10 minutes at 375 degrees.

Homemade Samoa Bars

I love Samoas! They are my favorite Girl Scout cookie. I've seen lots of different recipes for them online, but when I saw this recipe for samoa bars on Baking Bites that was easier to make, I decided they would be perfect to take to an upcoming church activity.

They were a big hit with my family and the ladies at church. The yummy caramel coconut topping tastes just like the cookie. The shortbread crust is delicious. Different than the cookie, but no one, including me, complained. Thanks Nicole for sharing the recipe.

Homemade Samoas Bars

Cookie Base:
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup butter, softened
1 large egg
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt

First, make the crust. Preheat oven to 350ºF. Lightly grease a 9×13-inch baking pan, or line with parchment paper. (I lined mine with foil.) In a large bowl, cream together sugar and butter, until fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla extract. Working at a low speed, gradually beat in flour and salt until mixture is crumbly, like wet sand. The dough does not need to come together. Pour crumbly dough into prepared pan and press into an even layer. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until base is set and edges are lightly browned. Cool completely on a wire rack before topping.

Topping
3 cups shredded coconut (sweetened or unsweetened)
12-oz good-quality chewy caramels
1/4 tsp salt
3 tbsp milk
10 oz. dark or semisweet chocolate (chocolate chips are ok)

Preheat oven to 300. Spread coconut evenly on a parchment-lined baking sheet (preferably one with sides) and toast 20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes, until coconut is golden. (Mine was golden after 10 minutes.) Cool on baking sheet, stirring occasionally. Set aside.

Unwrap the caramels and place in a large microwave-safe bowl with milk and salt. Cook on high for 3-4 minutes, stopping to stir a few times to help the caramel melt. When smooth, fold in toasted coconut with a spatula. Put dollops of the topping all over the shortbread base. Using the spatula, spread topping into an even layer. Let topping set until cooled. When cooled, cut into 30 bars with a large knife or a pizza cutter (it’s easy to get it through the topping).

Once bars are cut, melt chocolate in a small bowl. Heat on high in the microwave in 45 second intervals, stirring thoroughly to prevent scorching. Dip the base of each bar into the chocolate and place on a clean piece of parchment or wax paper. Transfer all remaining chocolate (or melt a bit of additional chocolate, if necessary) into a piping bag or a ziploc bag with the corner snipped off and drizzle bars with chocolate to finish. Let chocolate set completely before storing in an airtight container.

Makes 30 bar cookies. (I cut mine into 24 bars)

Super Fast Salsa

My son loves chips and salsa. When he was just a toddler we went to a Mexican restaurant and he was eating chips and salsa. The waitress told us we shouldn't be letting him eat the salsa because it was too hot for him, but he loved it.

Now he's nineteen and loves fresh salsa. I've never made salsa at home before. So when I saw Laura's Super Fast Blender Salsa recipe and he was home from school, it was the perfect time to try it.

While I'm sure this recipe would be even better with some homegrown tomatoes, we loved this salsa. The fresh cilantro and lime juice give it a nice fresh flavor that you don't get from salsa in a jar. Yet it was so easy and simple to make. I used my food processor instead of the blender so that it would be a little more chunky. Here's my version:

Super Fast Salsa

1 clove garlic, chopped

1/4 yellow onion, chopped

1 (10 ounce) can diced tomatoes & green chilies, undrained (use mild if you don't like it hot)

1/2 cup cilantro leaves, with some tender stems

juice of 1 lime

salt, to taste

Combine ingredients in the food processor. Pulse until smooth, or leave a little chunky, if desired.


A big thank you to Teresa at A Blog About Food for giving me the One Lovely Blog award! Be sure and stop by her blog to check out her wonderful healthy recipes and yummy treats.

I'm going to pass this award on to Laura at Real Mom Kitchen. Thanks for sharing the salsa recipe! Please be sure and visit her terrific blog and check out her other great recipes.