2013 Year in Review

Who'd have guessed?! Snowcaps was my most visited post this year. Yeah, they're super delicious!

Personally, I can't pick a favorite. But here are some highlights:

Stuff I altered/combined from other people's amazing recipes...

          

Excellent pies/tarts...

     

Super delicious cookies...

Yummy bread I'm about to alter for a Sunday morning breakfast treat...

Best birthday cake ever...

Favorite new frosting technique...

TGIP Rating--2013--A good year. Not very much inventiveness on my part, but I loved a lot of what I baked.

Next up: I'm going to alter that Coconut Bread with some toasted almonds and lime zest. See how that turns out!

Linzer Torte

This is my last baking project of 2013! And it sort of sums up where I think my baking is headed. I think.

I have never tasted a Linzer Torte before now. I've had cookies that are sort of reminiscent of it (in both flavor and design), but that's the closest I've come. It has always seemed like an exotically European dessert and, it turns out, that's exactly what it tastes like. In all the best ways. Yes, the crust is a little difficult to handle. But other than that, it's a very easy recipe. And frankly, the fact that the crust behaves the way it does isn't really a big deal. By the time it's all put together and baked, you can't tell what is crust and what is filling, and whether your lattice is an honest-to-goodness lattice or a cheat (spoiler, mine was a cheat).

The taste is sweet, but not too sweet. The texture is complex and nutty and crunchy. It tastes distinctly European, and I don't even know how to describe what I mean by that. Just trust me.

And here's why I think it's a good summation of my baking style--it's rustic. Not particularly fancy-looking. But the taste is perfect. A little tart, a little sweet, a little complex. The more I bake the more I discover that I'm just not one for fancy desserts. I think they have their place. But that place is decidedly not in my kitchen.

TGIP Rating--smitten kitchen's Linzer Torte--KEEPER. It might become a Christmas tradition. Festive and delightful.

Next up: I feel like I didn't do much baking this year, but I'm going to do a 2013 Year-in-Review anyway. Revisit and see what stands out.

P.S. In other news, I filled my first pie order. One cherry and one apple (plus some pie dough cookies) for a dear woman I was fortunate to share the stage with this year.

Recipe Roulette--Chocolate Banoffee Pie

Were you wondering if this pie would be good with a chocolate ganache on the bottom? I thought you were. This is just a note to tell you that it is not good. It is, rather, AMAZING.

You're welcome.

Banoffee Pie

You may not have heard of Banoffee Pie. I have only once or twice, and only recently. And I honestly couldn't tell you the source. It's a weird enough name for a pie (although, I'd call it a tart, but maybe it's just me) that I should remember though, right?! Here's what I REALLY have to say on the topic: Great Britain--you need some help with naming foods. I could win this argument by presenting only one piece of evidence, without commentary:

But I'd like to present this evidence as well (used to make the crust of this pie/tart):

An online description goes as follows:


"Arguably the UK’s favourite biscuit the McVities Digestive is famed for its sweet, wheaty taste, crumbly texture and renowned suitability for dunking. A bona fide legend in the world of biscuits. Whilst the name ‘digestive’ comes from the antacid properties that the biscuit was thought to have when it was first made, McVities Digestives no longer claim to deliver this benefit – they simply offer an unrivalled taste that is loved by millions."

The name alone made my children sore afraid. Turns out, they're not that different from graham crackers. In fact, I liked them as a pie (tart) crust MORE than graham crackers. They weren't quite as sweet, which made the crust a part of the overall flavor without adding so much of its own personality. Anyway, McVitie's, if they no longer have this digestive "benefit", why not change the name? To something that sounds delicious? Sweetie-Wheaties? Dunkers? Or how about just "McVitie's"? I have the same beef with "Banoffee Pie". Not a successful portmanteau, IMO. Because it's a food, and one has no idea what is in store if one orders/buys it. "Banana Toffee Tart"? Now, THAT sounds delicious, order me one! Or better yet, I'll make one at home!

Here's the recipe I used. Everything about this was unexpected. The individual elements are just slightly odd. But they come together to make a pie (TART) that is smooth and creamy and tasty and simple and really delightful. The toffee layer could not be easier to make (and this is coming from a person who is caramel-challenged). And it has the perfect consistency--just slightly gooey when you cut into the pie (TART!), but soft when you fork into it and not tooth-sticky at all as you eat it.

And the bananas. I mean, on the one hand it's obvious (Bananas Foster), that caramel and banana go together, but it took a stroke of genius to put them together in a pie (!TART!).

I put some toasted coconut on top of mine instead of shaved chocolate, for a little extra tropical flavor, and I quite liked it.

TGIP Rating--KEEPER. And as much as I thought all the elements played perfectly together, there's a part of me that wants to mess with this. Maybe give it a regular pastry crust and make it an ACTUAL PIE. Maybe make the bananas into something like bananas foster before putting them on top? Or add some rum to the whipped cream? BANANAS FOSTER PIE?! Will ponder some more.

Next up: A field trip. Actually two fieldtrips. To a local bakery and a local parking lot. Intriguing, right?

Whole Lemon Tart

Only picture. So sorry. 

Anyway, this was an attempt to wipe this from my memory. And it worked! This was probably the easiest tart I've ever made. Crust--all in the food processor. Filling--all in the food processor. The crust was utterly perfect. I've adopted it as my new go-to tart recipe and I am already thinking of all the things I can fill it with. The filling was lovely, it had texture and tartness and sweetness and all in just the right combination.

If you have a food processor and a tart pan, you should add making this to your weekend plan. You can thank me later. Perhaps by inviting me over for a piece.


TGIP Rating--Whole Lemon Tart--KEEPER. Especially the crust. A note: there is no baking time on the recipe for the filled tart. I baked mine for about 35 or 40 minutes.

Next up: Coconut Bread. I need Spring to come apace, I keep thinking tropically-tinged baked goods will encourage it.

2011 Year in Review

That year went past fast! I feel like 2011 was less impressive in the baking department than I wanted it to be. Maybe if I review I can prove myself wrong. Here are some things I baked (and liked):

Pies/Tarts:

• Sweet Potato Pie
• Rhubarb Pie
• Orange Creamsicle Tart

Cakes:

• Carrot Cake
• Devil's Food Cake with Coffee Buttercream
• Pumpkin Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting and Candied Hazelnuts

Cookies/Bars:

• Salt-n-Pepper Sandwich Cookies
• Sweet & Salty Brownies

Bread:

• Mostly Whole Wheat Sourdough
• Pain au Levain
• English Muffins

Other (it was the year of the whoopie pie):

• Red Velvet Whoopie Pies
• Pumpkin Whoopie Pies
• Chocolate Whoopie Pies

Most epic failure:

• Hot Cross Buns

Shout-outs/thanks for sharing/inspiring me:

• The BAKED boys--always and forever. Is it too much to say that my life would be empty without you?!
  
• All of my amazing friends who oooh and aaah over even the most minor of my baking successes. And challenge me to try things I haven't considered. Now, please come over more often and eat all of these extra baked goods.

Okay, so not as pathetic of a year as I thought it was. But still, lots to get on to in 2012. Namely:

• Bread. No, really this year. I am armed with a book I trust. I will learn.
  
• Figure out that Sarno's Italian Rum Cake I've been meaning to work on for YEARS. I have all the pieces (I think), I need to put them together. In time for my birthday. I'll make my own cake this year.

First up: Burnt Sugar Bundt Cake. Meant to do it before 2011 ended, but illness prevented me from even thinking about eating, let alone baking. This Sunday is the day.

French Apple Tart

It's my birthday. Shh. I don't actually usually tell people that. Not because I'm one of those women with an "age thing". The number of my age doesn't bother me. The wrinkle and sag of my age does, but that's something I can't hide. So. I'm telling you it's my birthday because you'll need to know that I'm not, as it turns out, making my own birthday cake. Time...is not on my side these days. But, I do have a fantastic husband who promised me a selection of cupcakes from The Sweet Tooth Fairy. That'll do.

I was going to make a Coconut Cream Pie this week. Truth is, I was going to make a French Silk Pie, a French Apple Tart, and a Coconut Cream Pie. But I succeeded only in the first two. My stomach/brain had other plans for me on Sunday. Coconut Cream Pie next time.

Here's the recipe I used for the French Apple Tart (you already have my recipe for French Silk Pie). It's from Baking with Julia, a series I loved watching and a book I love to use for recipes. This recipe is by Leslie Mackie. I used my own pie crust recipe, but tried to make it vegetarian, since I was taking the dessert to a party.


Bad idea. Lard is my friend. Lard is your friend. Embrace it, even if you're a veg. Seriously, even if you eat as many pies as I do each year (which you don't), you'd end up eating over the course of the year probably less than 1 cup of lard. That will not kill you! I promise. I might never make a vegetarian pie crust again. It's just so hard to work with. Blugh. It all turned out okay, but caused me no end of grief.

Anyway, I like this tart. It's not earth-moving, but it's yummy. I used quite a bit of lemon juice in it because I really dislike how apple desserts can so easily be overly sweet.


I think I found a good balance with this. It's pretty. It's yummy. With an easier to manage crust, it would be a super simple tart. Except for this one small (and weird) thing: I had to bake the tart at least twice (probably closer to 3 times) as long as the recipe says in order for my apples to turn dark brown.


Trust, I checked my oven temperature. It was just getting nowhere. And I had sliced my apples thin enough that I really thought they'd brown in no time. Maybe that was the problem? Maybe they were too thin? Next time, I might try a hotter oven. Or maybe not place the tart pan on another pan--I didn't experience any dripping anyway, so I don't really understand the point of that.

TGIP Rating--French Apple Tart--Yummy but had some mysterious baking problems. Still trying to decide whether or not I like this better than a good, old-fashioned apple pie...

Next up: Coconut Cream Pie. For real this time. Still planning to try a little something different with my pie crust. Still using lard. Let's not get too crazy now.

TGIP Field Trip: Utah Shakespeare Festival

Does this count as a Baker's Field Trip? YES!! Because there are all sorts of tasty baked treats to be had at the Utah Shakespeare Festival. You're going, right?

Okay, these pictures are terrible. But just trust me.

So, the Festival has adorable little concessions-sellers in booths or wandering around with baskets selling foods you might find in Shakespeare's time/place (really? I don't know. I wasn't there). There are Meat Pasties (below) and (with a short 'a', as in Daddy, otherwise you might accidentally wind up with one of these), Scottish Pies, cookies, homemade chocolates, etc.


But the hit for all of us was the tarts ("Fresh Fruit and Cream Cheese Tarts!"--if you hang around outside the theatre between 7 and 8, you too will come away with this call stuck in your head). Lemon, Raspberry, Blackberry, Apple, and Cream Cheese. And, okay, they're more like a danish than a tart. Or maybe they're closer to an Olde Tyme-y tart. Who knows, but I just made myself laugh, so that works. We tried all but the Apple and loved them all. Especially the Cream Cheese and Lemon. The dough was flaky and sweet and tender. The filling delicious. Even my anti-cheese Prima loved the Cream Cheese tart. I think they're made by a local (Cedar City) bakery. We drove by a place that had a sign in the window proudly stating "Shakespeare Tarts!" Which we assumed meant they were the bakers of these lovely morsels, but we didn't investigate further. Next time.


There are lots of other delicious sounding/looking treats there, but we loved the tarts so much, we ate them two nights in a row and couldn't bring ourselves to try anything else. Do yourself a favor, go to the Festival, enjoy the beautiful atmosphere, and eat something delicious at intermission. **Just don't rattle your concessions once the second act starts.** For real.

P.S. There's also plenty of tasty theatre to be had there!

P.P.S. Special thanks to my friend SLIM who gave us the heads-up on the tarts, otherwise we might not have tried them at all.

P.P.S.S. (?) On this day in 1613, Shakespeare's Globe Theatre burnt down. Sad day. It was rebuilt the following year. The Adams Theatre in Cedar City is so close in approximation, though, that the BBC filmed some of its Shakespeare series in the theatre in the early 1980's. Cool, right?!

Orange Creamsicle Tart

Okay, so I was too late to post as part of the BAKED Sunday Mornings crowd. Sometimes I have a cold and can't bake. I know, what?! But, if you head over there quick-like you'll see the recipe before they take it down.

I have mixed feelings about this one. I'm a lover of Orange Creamsicles like you wouldn't believe. I prefer them to all other frozen treats. ALL OTHER. But maybe that makes me picky about treats that try to mimic that flavor. The flavor is right in this tart. Perfect. But, the consistency doesn't really work for me. Part of that is my fault, I'm sure. My crust was a little tough, at least in part due to overworking it to try to get it in a 9" springform pan when I realized I didn't have a 9" tart pan. And my filling didn't set as solidly as I would have liked. Seems like some of those who posted on Sunday Mornings had a similar problem with the filling not setting up or getting up to the right temperature on the stovetop. I had hoped that, like theirs, mine would set solidly in the fridge, but it didn't quite seem to get there. Almost. But not quite.


But the biggest problem for me was the temperature. That taste goes with frozen. I don't know how else to say it. So, next time (yes, next time), I'll make mini tarts and freeze them to get a really good chill on them before serving. I think that will solve all my problems.

Tiny orange-shaped tart dough cookies.

TGIP Rating--Orange Creamsicle Tart--Good. Very good. But I need to tweak it for my personal tastes.

Next up: I've never baked or tasted a Tres Leches Cake, but it sounds like pretty much the best thing on earth. I've also never tried any of The Pioneer Woman's recipes. So, that's my plan. Unless one of you has a recipe of your own you're willing to share *eyebrow waggle*.

Midweek Kitchen Recommendations 3: Leftovers

So, a while back, I had a little bit of leftover coconut pastry cream from the Toasted Coconut Cake. I put it in the freezer for a month (or so) and then last weekend decided to use it in a tart. I made a basic tart shell (which, incidentally, was kind of a FAIL--I need to figure out my own tart crust recipe),

filled it with the leftover pastry cream, put cut fruit on top, glazed with an easy glaze (apricot preserves, plus a little booze--you could even use coconut rum! (or you could use water)--cook until melted, strain, brush over fruit). Voila! Easy dessert. And yummy, to boot!

All this to say: even 3/4 cup of leftover pastry cream can come in handy for a delicious dessert at a later date. Your freezer and freezer bags (plus a Sharpie to mark the date) should be your best friends, if they aren't already.

Pumpkin-Chocolate Tart

I have to admit: I am not the biggest fan of the combination of pumpkin and chocolate. Everyone in my family loves it, me?-notsomuch. But I've had this recipe since...a long time ago, and wanted to try it (that link goes directly to the recipe on marthastewart.com-I love a site with printable recipes!). As it turns out, it has just the right combination of spices that accentuate the chocolate and it all melds together perfectly. Martha, as usual, you come through, and provide me with a dessert that may become part of our regular Thanksgiving feast.

The dough was a bit of a revelation to me. I was surprised at how dense it was.


And then surprised at how easy it was to work with. It only stuck to my mat the tiniest bit when I first started rolling it out, but came up easily and was very easy to transfer to the tart pan.


It made me wish that I could use it for pie, but I think it's probably too crisp and cookie-like. I definitely need to add chocolate-y pie crust to my list of recipes to try/develop. I was a little concerned that the crust shrank so much during cooking,


but as it turned out, my filling came right up to the edge and didn't spill over at all.


The filling was also a bit of a surprise. As much as I like pumpkin pie, I have always found the texture a little unappealing--it's sort of gritty, don't you think? This filling is put through a sieve after everything is combined. Be aware, if you use freshly grated nutmeg (which, in fairness to Martha, the recipe doesn't call for, it simply says "ground nutmeg"--but now that I've discovered the virtues of using freshly grated I don't want to go back to my old ways!) the pieces will likely be too big to go through a sieve (assuming yours is as fine as mine is). All of my nutmeg got left behind, so I just stirred more back in post-sieve. It was a bit of work to push this mixture through my sieve, but so completely worth it. The result is such a smooth and refined custard. Beautiful texture with the crispy chocolate/spice crust. The taste is fantastic, spicy, not too sweet, homey and autumn-like. A very classed-up alternative to pumpkin pie.

P.S. Beautiful fall colors.

Speaking of which, I never use light brown sugar. A lot of recipes (including this one) specifically call for light as opposed to dark brown sugar. I like dark. I like the depth it gives to the flavor. And I don't think it's ever caused the flavors to be unbalanced in any recipe I've used.

TGIP Rating--Pumpkin-Chocolate Tart--KEEPER--and think about using this sieve technique on traditional pumpkin pie (maybe add spices post-sieve, or get a slightly less fine sieve)

Next up: Prima turns 10 on Sunday. Holy. I've been a mom so long, why have I still not figured it out?! At any rate, we're throwing a spooky/creepy party for her on Friday. I'm baking an Angel Food cake. Pretty scary, huh? Wait until you see what I do with it!