Atlanta tastes good

Taste of Atlanta is this weekend. I'm so excited! Even Oprah deemed it worthy of her grace. Moreover, it's right in my backyard. I mean literally. It's across the street from me. And while it's great that it's so convenient, it also means that I'm not going to be going anywhere today as the roads are going to be packed with more people than I have ever seen in my area. I'm not looking forward to that.

This photo, snapped really early this morning, isn't even of the main area down 5th street.

But check this out, there were people in kimonos! (My little point-and-shoot couldn't zoom in well enough. Sorry if it's blurry.)

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Yesterday evening, I had a few people over for dinner and made a Southern-ish meal, pretty simple all-in-all. I wasn't in the mood for anything fancy, so comfort food felt about right. I made chicken & dumplings, mashed sweet potatoes with maple syrup, green beans, and (what was going to be creamed but wasn't) spinach. I also somehow managed to throw out 6 apples I had bought not two hours previously, so the apple pie didn't happen.

I had leftover mashed sweet potatoes, so this morning I made sweet potato waffles. Mmm.

My Hearty and Filling Sweet Potato Waffles

2c flour

pinch of salt

3tbs sugar

3/4tsp baking powder

1c mashed sweet potatoes

2 eggs

1/4c butter, melted

1c milk

Whisk the dry ingredients together, and then do the same with the wet ingredients but in a separate bowl. Mix together. Depending on the potatoes, you may need more milk; your batter should be slightly runny. You will need to spread this batter when you scoop it into your maker since the batter is much thicker than typical waffle batter.

pie in the sky

The title of this post may be a little bit misleading. Pie is not something I think is difficult to make. You can make a pie with a decent crust, and it will taste really great because the filling makes that up for you. The crust doesn't have to be WOW-fantastic, but of course that never hurts.

Ever since I was little, I have wanted to make the perfect biscuits. But I never found a recipe that pleased me. All of the attention biscuits get seems to be an argument over shortening or butter (or both), but the actual recipe never changes much. No matter how many times I made them and how many times I tried new recipes, they always tasted about the same--bland, unimpressive, and dry. Even Alton Brown's biscuits failed me! It was infinitely frustrating that I couldn't even make a biscuit as good as a fast food restaurant, much less one better than a place like Ria's Bluebird here in Atlanta. (By the way, Ria's has the best biscuits in town, hands-down.) The fact that a great biscuit recipe is hard to come by, I think, is highlighted by the fact that the chain of restaurants here in town called The Flying Biscuit doesn't even have that great of biscuits. Disappointing.

So, biscuits have always been my "pie in the sky". Other people have it, but I never will. It seemed like an art lost between my generation's parents and their grandparents. Their grandma always made great biscuits, but with fast food, Bisquick, and Pillsbury taking over, the art was lost to most.

Finally I have found a recipe that I can honestly say I think is as good, if not better, than any I've had in a restaurant! Finally!! I owe Shirley Corriher a big one. Alexandra convinced me to buy Shirley's book, BakeWise. I was dubious at first. It looked overstuffed, which is always ominous for a cookbook. However, the more I read it, the more impressed I become. I recommend this book for sure! The best thing about this recipe? You don't roll out the biscuits... saves a huge headache.

On to her recipe for biscuits!

Southern Biscuits
2c (9oz) White Lily self-rising flour
1/4c sugar (optional)
1/2 tsp salt
1/4c shortening
2/3c heavy cream
1c buttermilk (more if not using White Lily self-rising flour)
1c plain all-purpose flour, for shaping
3 tbs melted butter, for brushing
________
Notes
#1 rule: Do Not Overmix!
#2: her recipe calls for 1/4c of sugar, but I don't think it needs it.
#3: White Lily self-rising flour was used here; it's all over the South, and with its lower protein content, it makes heavenly biscuits. You will need to use more buttermilk if you can't get a hold of it.
#4: Do NOT just scoop the flour out of the bag! This is the number one no-no. You can potentially end up with twice the amount of flour called for. If you have a scale, use it. If you don't, consider buying one. Otherwise, either sift the flour and then measure it (leveling off with a knife), or fluff the flour up inside the bag by scooping and dumping it out repeatedly, and then pour the flour into your measuring cup. This will ensure a light result.

Preheat the oven to 425F and arrange a rack in your oven 1/3 of the way from the bottom. Spray a 8- or 9-in round cake pan with non-stick spray. (Smaller is better; your biscuits will have less room to spread out while rising, which means taller biscuits.)

In a large mixing bowl, mix the self-rising flour, salt, and sugar if you're using it. I like to use a whisk for this to make sure it is distributed evenly. Work the shortening in with your fingers until the largest lumps are pea-sized. Very gently stir the cream in, and then add the buttermilk, stirring until the mixture resembles cottage cheese. It should be wet, but not soupy. Do not overmix! You will likely need more buttermilk if you aren't using White Lily; I found 1c was perfect.

Spread the regular flour out into a plate. With a medium ice-cream scoop (1 7/8" diameter) or spoon, place a few scoops of dough spaced far apart in the flour. Cover the tops of the mounds with flour, and rotate to cover well. Gingerly shape it into a disc, and place it in the pan. Repeat, placing the biscuits next to one another, scrunched up against the next until all of the dough is used.

Bake for 20-25 minutes. Brush with lots of butter, invert them onto a plate, and then flip them back over. Cut with a knife or spatula. Eat them right away!

Has it really been 5 weeks?
What have I done?!

I'm sorry to leave you lacking without food for so long.

In the meantime, I've made a mean lasagna, and spent a lot of time making cheese danishes. And man, were the danishes good. The process was similar to making the croissants, only with two extra turns and some added spices to the dough. Form them, plop some yummy cheese filling in the middle and voila! A most wonderful pastry.

A few evenings before that, I made souffle for the first time. It was a cinch compared to a genoise cake! Don't be afraid to make one. A little bit of cream of tartar in the egg whites and a well-buttered+sugared ramekin with an extra high rim made from tin foil will ensure a perfect result. That, and don't open the oven!

Yes, I know this does not satisfy. I will make things and post pictures. School started back and I've been busy. Then I got in a wreck. Then I didn't make anything for a week (blasphemy!). Hey, if you're busy, you're busy.

I'm taking requests on what my next baked good should be.
edit: The number one contender is opera cake! Speak now or forever hold your peace.

some come, some go

Well, I'm back! Miss me?
No? Well that's okay.

Now back to our regularly scheduled programming. Today I have made a brown butter tart with raspberries. You can make it with whatever fruit you like, but I like the tartness of the raspberry since it cuts through the sweetness of the tart very well. This is a completely baked tart unlike my previous ones, and it's delicious, nutty, and rich. It's not especially summery, but I've been making lots of autumn-y foods lately, so maybe my mind is trying to tell me something... that it's ready for summer to end, perhaps? It's served best slightly chilled but not frigid. It's not so great warm, to be honest.

I put together this tart using a crust recipe from Baker's Companion, the filling from Bon Appétit, and the streusel I made myself.

It's not much to look at (some powdered sugar would do wonders), especially considering I made too much streusel for this one. I used a full cup of flour and sugar instead of 3/4, so you can't see the berries very well. Whatever! It still tastes delish.

Brown Butter (Raspberry) Tart
Makes one 9-inch tart

Crust:
1 1/4 cups flour (pastry if possible)
1 tsp nonfat, dry milk (optional)
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 stick butter, chilled
1 egg yolk, cold
1 tsp vanilla
1 tbs cold water

Whisk together the flour, sugar, salt, and dry milk. Cut in the butter until the largest pieces are about the size of large peas. Mix the egg yolk, vanilla, and water together, and then stir it into the other ingredients. Roll out the crust and place it in a 9-inch tart pan, and then chill for 30 minutes in the fridge. You may want to chill the mixture some before rolling it out if your ingredients have gotten warm. Bake at 375F for 12 minutes, covered in parchment paper and weighted down. Remove the weights and parchment, and then bake for another 2 minutes. Allow the crust to cool. You may leave the oven on. The entire tart will continue to bake at this temperature.

Filling:
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
1/4 cup flour
1 stick butter, diced
12 oz (2 packages) raspberries or other fruit

Mix the sugar, eggs, and salt together. Add the flour and vanilla, and mix until smooth. Place the butter in a pan, and melt it over medium heat for 5 or 6 minutes until the water in the butter has mostly evaporated and the butter has turned brown. (If you wish, you may add the extra stick of butter included the streusel recipe at this point and only pour half of the butter into the egg-flour mixture. Since the water will have evaporated, it will be 6.5 tbs of butter, not 8 in the mixture.) However, don't let it burn! Pour the butter into a heat-proof bowl and add the sugar-egg-flour mixture and combine. Arrange the berries however you would like on top of the crust and pour the mixture over it. Place in the oven and bake for 30 minutes.

Streusel:
1 stick butter, melted and browned
3/4c sugar
3/4c flour
1tsp lemon zest

Whisk the flour, sugar, and zest together in a medium-sized bowl. Pour the brown butter over the mixture. Using a butter knife, form a streusel with the largest pieces about 3/4" - 1" across. After the tart has baked for 30 mins, remove the tart and cover it with the streusel. Return to the oven and bake for 15 more minutes. Place the tart on a rack and allow to cool. You will likely wish to chill it some before you eat it.

let bygones be bygones

This hater of blueberries is going out of town for a few weeks, so I am declaring a hiatus of all things baked.

seventeen-hundreds

[updated to include recipe]

So, I guess I like strawberries. I'm using them frequently to bake pretty ; they just go with so much! Plus, they are about in season, so when I buy them they tend to be deliciously sweet. However, the ones I got this time around for these cupcakes were a bit wanting. As a result, the cake itself wasn't as "I'M SUPER FULL OF STRAWBERRIES!!" as I wanted. Instead, it was a hint of strawberry plus the (better, because I bought some extras later) ones on top with cream cheese icing or chocolate ganache. I filled some of them with strawberry whipped cream as well to round out the flavor.


I was also really tired when I made these (hadn't slept the night before), so my Martha Stewart gene was lacking while I decorated them. I made them for a picnic in which we all came from 300 years ago.

Strawberry Cupcakes
12 tbs butter (1 1/2 sticks)
4 eggs + 2 yolks
2 3/4c cake flour
1/2c milk
1 1/2c sugar
3/4tsp salt
2 1/2tsp baking powder
1tsp vanilla extract

2c roughly sliced strawberries
enough sugar to sweeten strawberries to your liking

Preheat the oven to 350F. (Ensure that your ingredients are all room temperature!!)

In a small saucepan, place strawberries and some sugar over medium heat and cover. Once the mixture begins to simmer, reduce heat to low. Cook for ~15 minutes, covered, until the mixture is liquidy. Allow to cool some, and then place the mixture in a blender and puree until smooth. Set aside and allow to cool to room temperature.

In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter, sugar, salt baking powder, and vanilla until the mixture is fluffy, appx 5 mins. This will take longer if you are using a hand blender.

dd the eggs to the mixture one by one, beating well after each egg. Slowly blend in one-third of the flour and then the milk. Add another third of the flour and then add the strawberry mixture in slowly. Finally, add the final third of flour. You will likely need to scrape the bowl down several times.

Pour into cupcake/muffin liners, filling up the cups until they are 1/2" from being full. Bake 20-22 mins until a cake tester inserted in the middle comes out clean. Remove from the oven and allow to cool 5 mins. Remove them from the muffin pan and allow the cakes to cool completely. Decorate however you like! (I recommend cream cheese frosting or strawberry whipped cream.)

ew

As if Domino's Tuscani Pastas weren't bad enough, now they are serving them bowls of bread. They take the pasta and put it in what looks like enough dough to make a pizza.
So. Gross.


Also, about the focaccia, when I made it, it was good, but it's not quite how I want it, so once I fix the recipe to my liking, I'll have it up here.