Ciabatta Bread

Here is a simple Ciabatta Bread recipe that one of my neighbors gave to me. She got the recipe from her friend, Addie Hare.

*I ran out of all-purpose flour, so I used 2 c. all-purpose & 1 c. whole wheat flour. I added a bit more water than the recipe calls for (2 c. water total), to make up for the dryness from using the

whole wheat flour.

Ingredients:

3 c. all purpose flour

1 tsp yeast

1 1/4 tsp salt

1 5/8 c. water

Mix all together in bowl and let dough sit (*you may choose to cover the bowl with a damp cloth) for at least 12 hours. It will be very wet dough. Two hours before you want to cook it, turn it out on a very floured surface. Fold the sides over, gently, without incorporating too much flour. Do this about 6 times. Place some parchment paper into bowl and place dough back into bowl. Let sit for 2 hours. Preheat oven and oven proof container (2 quart container-*I used a cake pan) to 450*. Gently move dough from bowl into preheated container using the parchment paper to move the dough. Keep the parchment paper on the dough & cover loosely with foil, bake 25 minutes. Take foil off, remove parchment paper and bake another 15-20 minutes. YUM!

*I baked at 425* for 25 then took off foil/paper and baked 15 more.

Raspberry Rhubarb Tartlets

These raspberry rhubarb tartlets have a rustic look & are a great way to kick off the rhubarb season! This recipe is from www.marthastewart.com I did not alter the recipe at all since it is Martha we are talking about, and she knows what she is doing...

(i did have to make some changes to preparation of the crust as I do not have a food processor)

Pate Brisee (crust):

2 1/2 c. all-purpose flour

1 tsp. coarse salt

1 tsp. sugar

1 c. (2 sticks) chilled, unsalted butter, cut into pieces

1/4-1/2 c. ice cold water

Combine flour, salt & sugar in a medium bowl. Cut cold butter into tiny pieces, working fast so the heat from your hands doesn't heat the butter too much. Add butter pieces to flour mixture & cut in until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add water, a little at a time and turn with spoon until it starts to come together. Turn onto floured surface and knead until it comes together into a ball. cut into 8 equal pieces & roll dough out into circles, 7 inches in diameter, about 1/8 inch thick. Use more flour as needed to keep dough from sticking. Chill rolled dough for 30 minutes.

Rhubarb Raspberry Filling:

1 1/2 lbs. trimmed rhubarb, cut into 1/4 inch pieces

(about 5 1/2 cups)

1/2 lb. raspberries (1 pint, about 2 cups)

1 c. all-purpose flour, plus more for work surface

2 cups sugar, plus more for sprinkling

Combine rhubarb, raspberries, 1/2 c. flour & sugar in large bowl. Spoon 1 Tb flour onto each chilled tart crust, spread to 1 inch from edge. (The flour will help minimize the filling from leaking, but these will still leak a little bit.) Then spoon 1/2 c. filling onto flour and spread to 1 inch from edge. Begin folding edges together over the filling, using a dab of water on each fold to help the crust stick together. Brush crust lightly with water & sprinkle with sugar. Transfer tarts to baking sheet (I would recommend covering the baking sheet with aluminum foil and spraying with cooking spray). Place all tarts into the refrigerator to chill for 30 minutes. Bake at 400* for 30 minutes, turning once halfway through bake time. Then, turn oven down to 350* & continue baking until golden brown, about 10-12 minutes.

You can find Martha's recipe & preparation methods at

http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/individual-rhubarb-and-raspberry-tartlets

Enjoy!

Norwegian Cream Cones

Also referred to as Norwegian "Krumkake"

It is birthday season! Happy birthday to all of my friends & family celebrating birthdays this week! I am going to a birthday party later today & decided to make something unique!

Cones:

1/2 c. sugar

4 Tb butter, softened

1 large egg, room temperature

1/2 tsp. vanilla

1 c. flour

cream butter & sugar together. add egg & vanilla & whip until

light & creamy. Beat in the milk and flour until smooth.

Let stand 30 minutes.

Filling:

1 c. whipping cream

6 Tb. powdered sugar

zest of 1 orange

whip cream until foamy, then add sugar & zest & continue whipping until stiff.

Although I have changed the recipe a bit, the original recipe for these cones is from this lovely book my Mom sent to me from Duluth, MN. Petite Sweets by Beatrice Ojakangas

Once the batter has rested for 30 minutes, spray iron with cooking spray & spoon 1 tsp. of batter onto hot krumkake iron. Let cook about 30 seconds or until golden.

Work quickly to set cone roller on top of cone and roll into the cone shape.

Let it rest while wrapped around the cone roller until set.

Once the cones have cooled, fill with whip cream. I put a few chocolate chips in the bottom of my cones to stop whip cream from dripping out the bottom. And added a few sprinkles on top to give the Norwegian cream cones a birthday look!

Yum! Happy Birthday!

Strawberry Scones

Happy Mother's Day!

Here is a recipe for a lower-fat, light and flaky Strawberry Scone!

Ingredients:

2 c. all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 c. sugar

1/3 c. butter cold

6 oz (3/4 c.) yogurt, orange or vanilla

(if using vanilla yogurt, add 2 tsp. orange zest)

4 Tb. milk

1 c. fresh or frozen strawberries, diced

Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt & sugar. Cut in butter in tiny pieces (it may help to cut butter into tiny pieces on a cutting board first, then add to flour mixture) into the flour mixture. Then add yogurt & milk & fold until the mixture starts to come together. Then fold in strawberries. The mixture will still be crumbly. Turn out onto a floured surface and form into 2 balls. Flatten each out by pressing gently with your hand until about 1 inch thick. Cut into desired shapes & place on sprayed cookie sheet. If you have sparkling sugar, sprinkle the top of scones before baking. Bake at 350* for 20 minutes, turning halfway through baking.

*Although I have changed the recipe slightly & the directions entirely...The original recipe for these scones came from bakingbites.com "Strawberry Sunrise Scones"

Spicy Chocolate Chip Cookies

I am happy to welcome guest bakers Grace & Lars to the blog!

I hope you enjoy their recipe for Spicy Chocolate Chip Cookies...

Cinco de Mayo Style!

Ingredients:

1 c. ripe avocado

1 c. packed brown sugar

2 large eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

2 c. all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper (ground)

12 oz. chocolate chips (dark or semi-sweet)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350*.

Lightly spray 2 large cookie sheets with cooking spray.

Using a mixer, beat avocado & sugar in a large bowl until smooth.

Beat in eggs one at a time, then add vanilla.

Sift in the next 6 ingredients, then beat just until blended.

Mix in Chocolate chips.

Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls onto sheets,

spacing 1 1/2 inches apart.

Gently flatten with a spoon.

Bake cookies until golden brown and soft to touch.

About 10-12 minutes.

Let stand for 3 minutes, then transfer to racks to cool.

!Delicioso!