pão e queijo

Last Minute Thanksgiving Recipe (Cranberry-Pear Compote)

 

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

 

I hope your day is filled with blessings, good company, and delicious food.

 

Here's a little recipe that will fill you with a warm feeling.  

 

 

Cranberry and pear compote

Adapted from Rosemarried

Makes about 3 cups

 

12 oz fresh or frozen cranberries (thawed if frozen)

¼ cup water

⅓- ½ cup brown sugar

1 ripe pear, peeled, cored, and diced

2 sticks whole cinnamon

Zest of one orange

½ tsp ground nutmeg

5 whole cloves

 

Place the cranberries, along with the water and brown sugar in a medium saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally.  As the mixture heats up, the cranberries will pop and thicken the sauce.  You can help speed the process up a little by crushing the cranberries against the sides of the pan.  Cook about 5-10 minutes, until the cranberries have broken down and the mixture has thickened slightly.

 

Add the diced pear, cinnamon sticks, orange zest, nutmeg, and whole cloves.  Reduce heat slightly and allow mixture to simmer gently for about 5 more minutes, or until the pears have broken down some and it has reached desired consistency.  Taste and mix in more sugar if necessary (cranberries are pretty tart/ bitter, I ended up mixing in some more sugar at the end).  Remove cloves and cinnamon sticks before serving.

 

[My Favorite] Chocolate Chip Cookies

I need to talk about something really important with you guys today.

 

 

I mean, really important.

 

Do you mind?

 

I just wanna talk cookies.

 

The thing is, chocolate chip cookies are easy.  They are ubiquitous, everyone claiming to have the "best chocolate chip cookies ever."  That's a pretty big claim.

 

Yet as simple as they are, we often find ourselves munching into a pretty crappy cookie.  Dry?  Hard? Crumbly?  Dull?  These are not adjectives that you want your taste buds to shout as you chow down.  

 

Rather, you want to sink your teeth into a cookie thats crispy exterior gives way to a chewy middle filled with oozing dark chocolate.  It should have a satisfying crunch as you work your way from the outside to the center.  Although it is sweet, there should be a hint of good quality salt in there.  Your taste buds will notice the cookie's multidimensional flavor as it moves around the tongue: sweet, salty, complex.  There are different textures at play as well, leaving you wanting another of these goodies.

 

One other thing: cookies taste better if you share them.  I know this because my mother told me so.  I broke my no-sugar kick to bake them for one of her classes, they were delightful.  

 

CIA Chocolate chip cookies (AKA the best chocolate chip cookies I've ever made)

Adapted from Baking at Home with the Culinary Institute of America

I made 33 three-inch cookies (Could make more or less depending on size)

 

2 ½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp kosher salt

2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup sugar

¾ cup packed light brown sugar

2 eggs (use local, humane & pasture raised eggs)

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

2 cups bittersweet chocolate chips or chunks

 

Preheat the oven to 375F with rack in the center.  Line cookie sheets with parchment or silicone baking mats.

 

In a small mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt until well combined.

 

In a stand mixer, using the paddle attachment, cream the butter with the two sugars on medium speed until lighter in color and fluffy, about 3-5 minutes.  (This will take longer if you are using a hand mixer).  Add the eggs one at a time, mixing between additions and scraping down the bowl as needed.  Add the vanilla extract and mix in.  On low speed or by hand, stir in the dry ingredients until just combined.  Follow with the chocolate chips, mixing until just incorporated.  Do not over-mix.  Scrape down the bowl as needed.

 

Using a cookie scoop, ice cream scoop, or two spoons, form dough balls and place on prepared cookie sheets with a few inches of room in between.  I put 12 on each half sheet.  Moisten your hands slightly and pat down the dough balls into nice flat-ish circles.  Cook in preheated oven for 10-13 minutes, depending on size of cookies, until they are golden brown around the edges and puffy in the center.  I like to only bake one sheet in the oven at a time so I don't rotate the cookie sheets; if you don't do this, rotate them as needed.  Let cookies cool a few minutes on baking sheets before transferring to wire racks to cool completely.  

 

Fall and apple pie

Fall is a nostalgic time.

 

 

The leaves change color, and eventually fall to the frozen ground, leaving the trees that were once green bare.  

 

Life is paused, while a whirlwind of grey snow coats the earth.  We go into hibernation, recreating life outside indoors.  

 

The plants are dug up before the frost and brought inside.  We take advantage of the short hours of daylight.  We are drowsier, and consume more food.  

 

Fall is the transition time, between the vibrant colors of summer, the bursts of flavor, and the seemingly eternal cold, the winter where we realize summer has been lost and won't come again for a while.  

 

 

It is fall that reminds me of the countless apple pies I made with my dad as a child.  He would pop me up to sit on the counter while he executed recipes without measuring cups.  Somehow the pie would turn out spectacular, and we would always exclaim: "You make the best pie, daddy!"

 

There's something magical about pie, a warmth and giving.  The aroma floating through the heated home, while the sheep fleece grows long due to the cold nights outside.  The making of the pie… pie is always made with such love.  And the sharing, sitting down to a warm slice with family, laughing and remembering.  

 

Naturally sweetened apple pie

Adapted from the Green Market Baking Book

 

Double piecrust:

2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

Large pinch of salt

1 ½ sticks unsalted butter, cold, and cut into small pieces

Up to ⅓ cup ice-cold water

  

In the bowl of your stand mixer, using the paddle attachment, combine the flour and salt until well blended.  Add the pieces of cold butter (the colder the better!) and continue mixing on low speed until the mixture resembles coarse sand with some small pea-sized butter pieces left.  With the mixer still on, add the ice water very slowly until the mixture is able to just clump together when squeezed.  It should be nor wet/ mushy, nor dry/ crumbly.  Divide the dough into two pieces, one slightly larger than the other.  Roll into balls with your hands, wrap each in plastic wrap, and refrigerate at least 30 minutes or an hour.  In a pinch, you can freeze the pastry for quicker results.

Note: you can do this with your food processor pretty much the same way.  By hand, add the butter to the flour/salt mixture, and cut in using knives, your hands, or a pastry blender.  

 

Pie:

1 recipe double piecrust

8 medium to large apples, chopped into ½ to ¾-inch pieces

⅓ to ½ cup pure maple syrup, depending on the sweetness of the apples

1 tsp ground cinnamon

Other ground spices, to taste

1 TBSP cornstarch or other thickener (arrowroot, instant tapioca, etc.)

Milk or egg to brush on the crust 

 

In a large sauté pan, combine the apples, syrup, cinnamon, cinnamon (and other spices you'd like to add), and cornstarch.  Stir to combine and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the apples have softened and cooked down a little, about 10-15 minutes.  Set aside and let cool.

Preheat the oven to 350F with rack in the center.  (See note).

Remove the larger of the two dough balls from the refrigerator and roll out to a circle big enough to cover the bottom and sides of your pie dish on a well floured work surface.  Brush off the extra flour and carefully place in the pie dish.  Put the dish in the fridge or freezer while you roll out the other crust.  Roll out the second crust to just larger than the diameter of the pie dish.  Fill the pie with the cooled apple mixture, and place the second piecrust on top.  PInch the edges to seal and make a decorative edge if you wish.  Cut a couple of slits in the top crust to allow steam to escape while baking.  Brush the top crust with a little milk, cream, or egg to give it color and shine.  If you want, you can put the entire pie in the freezer for a few minutes to create a flakier crust.  

Bake in preheated oven for 35-40 minutes, or until the crust is light golden and the apples are soft. 

A note about the cooking temperature: to create a flaky crust, you want to have a cold piecrust before it goes in the oven, and a hot preheated oven.  For this reason, I generally bake the pie at 400F for the first ten minutes, before lowering the temperature to 350F for the remaining baking time.

 

Pumpkin picking and celebrating fall (Spiced one-bowl pumpkin bread)

 

 

When you're a blogger, sometimes you compare yourself to other bloggers.

 

I've noticed prettier blogs than mine, with artistic photographs or ones that make me want to grab a dish right from the screen of my computer.  There are bloggers that post every day, or diligently maintain foodie friendships through social networks.  

 

All of those things I admire.

 

But in comparing myself to other bloggers, I realize that I don't get very excited about most holidays.  My family was never one to hang spiderwebs on the porch for halloween, make our house into a "hot dog hut" (as my mom calls it) for Christmas, or post Easter decals on the front door.  We enjoy family traditions like a special Christmas breakfast, being truly thankful not just on Thanksgiving, and watching the fireworks for the Fourth of July.  

 

Halloween is one of those "holidays" I really don't get excited about.  I love fall, the harvest season, pumpkin and apple picking, the cooler weather and the changing of the leaves.  But Halloween to me seems foolish, almost, for adults to celebrate.  

 

To celebrate the season, I've been trying out different pumpkin recipes.  We LOVED this pumpkin bread.  Omitting the sweets fest I had in NY from our memory, this bread keeps in line with my family trying to omit processed sweeteners from our diet.  The honey keeps it delicious, but doesn't make it saccharin-sweet like the cup of sugar found in most quick breads.  

 

 

Spiced one-bowl pumpkin bread

Adapted from Cookie + Kate

  

⅓ cup vegetable oil or other cooking oil

½ cup honey (local)

2 eggs (use free range organic)

1 cup organic pumpkin purée

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

1 cup white whole wheat flour (I use KAF)

¾ cup unbleached all-purpose flour

½ tsp salt (I use kosher)

½ tsp ground cinnamon, plus more for topping

½ tsp ground ginger

½ tsp pumpkin pie spice

1 tsp baking soda

¼ cup hot water

½ cup chopped walnuts, optional

2 TBSP finely chopped crystallized ginger, optional

 

Preheat oven to 325F with rack in the middle.  Grease a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan and set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the oil and honey until mixed well.  Add the eggs and incorporate.  Stir in the pumpkin purée and vanilla.  Add in the flour, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and pumpkin pie spice, and mix until just combined and smooth.

Add the baking soda to the hot water and mix until dissolved.  Add to the batter and stir until just combined.  

Scoop the batter into the prepared pan and smooth with a spatula.  Sprinkle cinnamon lightly down the center of the loaf and, using a knife, swirl for a marbled effect.  

Bake for 55 to 60 minutes in preheated oven.  A tester inserted in the center of the loaf should come out pretty clean, although the bread will continue to bake while cooling.  It should spring back slightly when touched.  Cool on wire rack at least 15 minutes before enjoying. 

 

Bittersweet (Chunky honey-sweetened applesauce)

 

These past few days have been uncharacteristically summery.  As my mom likes to say, her favorite season is Indian Summer.  The rising temperatures outside make us strip our sweatshirts and open the windows, that squeak open in relief, screens were already replaced with glass in preparation for winter.  We've had one last glimpse of summer, an adios, or as I prefer to see it, an hasta luego.  

 

Tina, our yoga instructor, says that winter can be a sad time, a time that represents death, letting go of summer, and watching it wane away.  We wait with anticipation as the nights get chillier, piling on more layers each week.  

 

Indian Summer has left us bittersweet, craving comfort food, but at the same time missing the eternal evenings when the sun never sets.  

 

I've decided to make applesauce with the Cortlands I bought at Owen's; they turned out to not be suitable for pies.   Dad and I had been to the orchard a couple days ago, and although we arrived before opening hours, the amiable owner opened the door for us, greeting us on the fresh morning.  

 

 

First, I pick out the prettiest apples with firm, shiny flesh.  Then I place the apples on the scale, in sets of two because they are large and my scale won't fit them all.  Two make about a pound.  

 

I place them in the colander with care, caressing the red and green, gently removing dirt.  Cold, I then move them to my cutting board, the one mom bought me at King Arthur Flour last summer.  It seems ages ago.  I methodically peel them (y-peelers work best), appreciating the crisp sound as the blade cuts away at the skin.  Apple foam oozes out, and soon my hands are sticky; I don't mind.  

 

In one swift motion, my apples are cored and cut into eighths with the slicer-corer.  I plunk them quickly into the water that awaits them in my new stockpot.  They splash, finding a different home.  One by one, the fruits disappear from the cutting board, no longer the colorful produce of fall.  

 

They simmer and spit, swimming in a hot frothy bath.  The house is filled with an incredibly intense apple aroma.  I feel like I've been doing this my entire life.

 

At last, off comes the cover to the stockpot, steamy air hissing upwards and apples bubbling and puffy.  A quick stir with a long-handled spoon and they're mush, delicious mush.  In go the cinnamon and ginger, sprinkled, and then swirled, leaving a muddy trail behind them.  The honey I'm using was crystallized, but melts generously in the warm mixture.  The smell of spices penetrates my nostrils and I'm urged to bring the sweet sauce to my mouth; alas, it is to hot to try, but I don't mind waiting.   

 

Chunky honey-sweetened applesauce

Makes just shy of 3 quarts

Adapted from Canadian Living

 

6 lbs sauce apples (see here for apple types; I used 12 large Cortlands)

2 cups water (or substitute natural apple juice)

½ cup honey, or more to taste (buy local honey; I used local wildflower honey)

1 TBSP ground cinnamon, or to taste

1 scant tsp ground ginger, or to taste

 

Peel apples, core, and cut into 8 equal pieces (I find one of those apple slicer-corers are helpful here).  In a large saucepan (I used 8 qt), bring apples and water to a boil over medium heat.  Reduce heat to low, cover saucepan, and simmer about 20-25 minutes until mushy.  

 

For chunky applesauce, just stir up the apple mixture to break up the larger pieces (this is pretty easy).  If you want a smoother applesauce, you can use a potato masher, a food mill, blender, etc.  Stir in the honey, cinnamon, and ginger, adjusting honey and spices to taste.  

 

I used quart jars to store the applesauce in the freezer; you can keep it in the fridge up to 5 days or can the applesauce if you wish.  

 

*Note: for smaller batches, you can easily halve this recipe.

 

Smooth transitions (Pumpkin scones with maple glaze)

Yesterday I offered to help my mom with some preparation for her classes, and she responded by saying she didn't want to ask me because I have a life; to which I responded that I don't.  

 

Leaving a place I had called home for four and a half years wasn't easy, although the decision wasn't as hard as I thought it would be.  Now, after having been back in the states and staying with the 'rents for just over two months (not including surgery time before), I'm happy to say I've had a soft, cushioned landing.  I have needed this gentle downtime, a vacation, picking up the pieces, to recover.  

 

Most of the time, I'm OK with not really having a life.  I'm not gonna lie-- the highlight of my day is cooking dinner for my family; of my week, going to the farmers' market.  I have wacky sleeping and eating schedules, I spend too much time looking at food blogs and doing things related to food, and most of the time I wear pajamas around the house.  I live vicariously through books and movies.  I'm transitioning back into this part of the world slowly, but surely.  And I'm comfortable.  

 

On top of having to transition from a foreign country back to my homeland, I had to adjust to the life of a handicapped person for some time.  This couldn't have been done without the help and support of my physical therapists and office where I attended P.T. on a triweekly basis.  They guided me through a process that otherwise would have been a lot harder to take, especially because I was so active before my knee injury.  Because of this, out of gratitude I decided to make these special women a fall favorite- pumpkin scones with maple glaze.  They're so yummy, C. even asked for the recipe… I hope you're reading this, and make them at home!  Thanks again!

 

Pumpkin scones with maple glaze

Scone recipe adapted from Brown Eyed Baker

Makes 8 scones

 

Scones

2 cups all-purpose flour

7 TBSP sugar

1 TBSP baking powder

½ tsp salt

1 tsp ground cinnamon

¼ tsp ground ginger

6 TBSP cold butter, cut into small pieces

½ cup puréed pumpkin (use organic or homemade when possible)

3 TBSP whole milk (you can substitute half-and-half or cream)

1 egg (use free range organic when possible)

 

Glaze

3 TBSP pure maple syrup

½ cup powdered sugar

Vanilla sanding sugar or festive sprinkles, for finishing

 

Preheat the oven to 425F with rack in the middle.  Line a baking sheet with parchment or a silicone baking mat.

To make the scones, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and ginger in the bowl of your stand mixer.  Mix on low speed with the paddle attachment for about a minute, or until well mixed.  Add the pieces of cold butter into the mixture and blend until only small pieces of butter remain but most of the mixture is uniform and has the texture of sand. (You can do this by hand in a large mixing bowl with two knives, a pastry blender, or a fork).

In a separate, small mixing bowl or measuring cup, mix together the pumpkin purée, milk, and egg.  Fold the wet ingredients into the dry ones, and form the dough into a ball.  Pat the dough into a circle about 1 inch thick on a floured work surface.  Use a knife, bench knife, or pizza cutter to first mark the dough with an "X" and then another one, as if forming an asterisk.  You'll end up with 8 triangular pieces.  Place the scones on the baking sheet and bake in preheated oven 14-16 minutes or until slightly darker in color and baked through.  Cool completely on wire rack before icing.

To make the glaze, combine the maple syrup and powdered sugar in a small bowl by drizzling the syrup slowly into the powdered sugar and mixing with a fork.  Drizzle over cooled scones (I find doing this over a piece of wax paper, parchment, or foil makes for easy cleanup) and top with sprinkles or sanding sugar to finish.  

 

Yes! Gluten-free fudgy brownies

As we speak, I'm in Boston getting acquainted with my (I hope!) future stomping grounds.  

 

But, I was feeling nice and didn't want to leave my poor readers alone, so I set up a special mid-week post for you guys!

 

And what better than brownies?  You guys know it's one of my (many) weaknesses.  But this time, they're gluten-free brownies.  STOP! Before you go anywhere because you're turned off by the whole "GF" bit, don't.  These brownies don't taste an ounce like the dry, crumbly, tasteless and lifeless gluten-free brownies you are familiar with.  What's even better, I received the best compliment from my family (including my mom, the GF lady of the house): "You would never know they're gluten free."

 

That's right, folks.  No gluten free flours (so tedious) or xanthan gum here.  No weird oils, just good 'ol pantry staples: chocolate, butter (of course), sugar, eggs, cocoa powder, and… cornstarch!  But just a little to hold the deal together.  They're ooey and gooey, they're fudgy, they're just like real brownies.  So what are you waiting for?  Here's a mid-week perk-up from me to you!

 

David's gluten-free brownies

Adapted from David Lebovitz

 

6 TBSP unsalted butter, cut into pats

8 oz bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chips or chopped

Pinch of salt

¾ cup sugar

2 large eggs, at room temp

1 TBSP unsweetened natural cocoa powder

3 TBSP cornstarch

1 cup walnuts, toasted and chopped (optional)

 

Line the inside of an 8 or 9-inch square baking pan with foil, so that two sides are also covered (to act as handles to lift the brownies out later).  Lightly grease the foil using nonstick spray.  Preheat the oven to 350F with rack in the middle.

In a medium saucepan over low heat, melt the butter, chocolate, and salt, stirring frequently, until smooth and combined.

In a small mixing bowl, sift together the cocoa powder and cornstarch.  Whisk well to combine if necessary.  

Remove the butter mixture from heat and stir in sugar, then the eggs, one at a time, whisking between additions.  Add the chocolate mixture and whisk vigorously for about a minute, until the batter is no longer grainy.

Add the nuts if using.  Scrape the batter into the prepared baking pan.  Bake for about 25 minutes for a 9-inch square pan, or 30 minutes for an 8-inch square pan, or until the brownies feel just set in the center (don't over-bake!).  Remove from oven and let cool completely before lifting the sides of the foil to remove brownies from pan and cutting them.  

 

What Costa Rica taught me in terms of cooking (Tea-infused Asian pear tarte tatin)

 

A few years ago, while living in Costa Rica, I made a list of all the foods I could not buy there.  It was frustrating because I was still learning (and of course still am, to some extent) the ins and outs of the kitchen.  Perhaps I had no idea that you could substitute plain yogurt for sour cream (I don't care for sour cream, and Costa Rican natilla really isn't sour cream at all, I don't think), or that you could make your own buttermilk substitute.  The list embraced everything from unbleached flour to almond paste, greek yogurt and vegetable stock to sherry vinegar.  Once in a large supermarket, after asking an employee where I could find the CousCous, he laughed and repeated "CousCous," shaking his head as if it were funny.  

 

I went on hunts for tahini, common spices, shallots, ricotta cheese, and phyllo dough.  Most of the hunts came to no avail; however, when I did end up finding the precious loot, I was generally exuberant for at least a week.  But after some time passed, I learned how to make my own ricotta and vegetable stock, to give up hope on not ever eating vanilla yogurt again, and resigned myself to the fact that imported Chilean blueberries that tasted like cardboard cost eight dollars for a dinky box.  My adventures were endless, but I learned how to make useful substitutions in the kitchen.  

 

I also learned how to not waste food: once, my ex-boyfriend's mom took a tupperware with some leftover shrimp from 8 or 10 days before out of the fridge and asked me to sniff it to see if it was still OK.  It didn't smell too yummy, so I told her it would be best to throw it away.  She felt very bad about wasting it- and I could only wish that Americans would have the same attitude towards wasting.  

 

Along the way, I learned how to make my own fresh juices using the ripe produce available.  If you ever go, you will be served fresh cas, blackberry, passionfruit, and other juices at almost every meal- they are wonderful!  Although I admit I never got into the bi-daily habit of eating rice and beans, I learned simple techniques and shortcuts in the kitchen.  I learned to cook more instinctively and make do with what I had on hand, although I did not realize this until I came back to the States.  

 

If you had known me before I lived on my own in Costa Rica, you would have thought correctly that I didn't care for cooking.  You would have thought that I had a not-so-secret despise for leftovers, and had irregular eating habits (that hasn't changed completely).  But living on my own, I had to either learn to cook, or enjoy mac n' cheese from a box five nights a week.  And when I ventured out and started cooking and baking, I realized I was good at it.  And that it was much, much better than any of my other common prepared options.  Sure, it took me two years to find tofu, it wasn't until the very end that I found shallots, and goat cheese was hard and expensive, but Costa Rica taught me something very important: to be grateful.  

 

Now that I'm back in the land where you can purchase just about any food item, I still find myself improvising and substituting.  I still feel elated when I spot a goodie I could not have found before, and my sense of adventure has risen because there is so much available.  The kitchen is a very symbolic place, where warm energy and love wafts through the air.  Where you learn to cook is very special, and the memories in the kitchen determine much of how you view food.  I'm happy to have had to learn to cook simply, improvise, and use what I had on hand.  Where did you learn to cook?  

 

Tea-infused Asian pear tarte tatin

p&q original

  

1 sheet puff pastry from 17.3 oz box, or homemade

3 medium-large or 4 smaller Asian pears, peeled, cored, and quartered (lengthwise)

Juice of ½ a lemon

1 ¼ cup sugar, divided

1 tsp your favorite loose tea (I used one from Tealuxe (Boston) called Unity Blend)

6 TBSP unsalted butter

 

Thaw puff pastry on counter without unfolding for about 20 minutes.  Unfold and place on parchment-lined baking sheet; stick in the fridge while you prepare the rest of the recipe.

Preheat the oven to 425F with rack in the center.  Gently toss the peeled, cored, and quartered pears in a medium bowl with the lemon juice and ¼ cup of sugar.  Let sit 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the caramel by melting the butter over medium heat in a 9 or 10-inch ovenproof skillet (preferably cast iron).  In a small bowl, combine the remaining 1 cup of sugar with the loose tea until well mixed together.  When butter is melted, add the sugar to the pan.  Stir almost constantly until the sugar melts and the mixture turns golden brown and caramelized.  Remove the skillet from heat and stir to cool slightly (it will keep cooking, we don't want it to darken too much).   

Remove the pears from their bowl with a slotted spoon, leaving liquid behind.  Place, round side down, into the caramel in a circle shape with stem ends facing the center, filling the pan with just one layer of pears.  Remove puff pastry from the refrigerator and place over the skillet, trimming edges as needed.  Press down onto the pears and cut four small steam holes near the center.  Bake for 25 minutes or until the pastry is golden and puffed.  

Have a small bowl nearby and ready.  When you take the tatin out of the oven, carefully pour the loose juices into the small bowl. Let the tart sit a minute, then carefully invert the pan onto a serving platter.  Return the loose juices to the skillet, if you wish, and reduce them over medium heat before pouring them back on the tatin or reserving them for another use.  

 

Meet your blogger (Rocky road cookies AKA brownie cookies with walnuts and marshmallows)

Hi, I'm Sarah.  Have we met?

 

So I figure it's been a year, a month, and a couple of weeks since pão e queijo started, and I'm happy because more readers are joining us (check out my Facebook page here).  But I think we need to get a little cozier… this should be interactive, you know?  

 

So maybe you know I have an obsession with apple desserts, hate winter, and lived in Costa Rica for a while (ahem, four and a half years).  Wanna know more?

 

I found a fun questionnaire and decided to answer it for you guys:

1. What's your middle name?  Elizabeth.
2. How big is your bed?  Double, although my real bed in CR was a queen.
3. What are the last 4 digits in your cellphone number?  I don't have one here yet… does that make me a loser?  (Used to be 3487).
4. What was the last thing you ate?  Artichoke and provolone artisan ravioli from the Farmers' market, with our homemade cherry tomato sauce… delicious!
5. Last person you hugged?  Probably my mom.  Or my kitty (if that counts), Mrs. Newt LongJohn Bacon Squeegie.
6. Favorite type of food?  Mediterranean, Indian, Mexican, Middle Eastern… um, can't decide?
7. Who was the last person you talked to on the phone?  Andrea on Skype!
8. Do you want children?  Maybe someday…
9. Hair color?  Brown
10. Do you wear eyeglasses/ contacts? Yes, both.  I've got pretty bad vision.
11. Favorite holiday?  Probably Christmas for the holiday spirit and family traditions.
12. Favorite season?  Early fall, when the weather is still beautiful but the air and leaves are changing.
13. Have you ever cried over a girl/ boy?  Stupid question!  Of course, probably too many times to remember.
14. Last movie you watched?  Food, Inc.  Watch it- it'll change your life.
15. What books are you reading?  I just got a bunch of Anthony Bourdain's books out of the library.
16. Piercings?  One in each ear, normal ones!
17. Favorite college football team?  I hate football.  Let's not even go there.
18. Dogs or cats?  Usually dogs (big ones), but Mrs. Newt LongJohn Bacon Squeegie is the bomb.
19. Favorite flower?  Pretty much anything but roses.  I love magnolias, bird of paradise, day lilies, tulips…
20. Do you like to travel by plane?  I used to not mind it, but after a scary turbulence issue back in July, I think I'll pass on flying for a while.
21. Right-handed or Left-handed?  Right.
22. Are you 18?  Man, this makes me feel old!
23. What do you have handy at your bedside?  A Bible, Burt's Bees, eye mask for sleeping, foot cream for putting on before going to bed, Vitamin E for the scars on my knee, a notepad & pen for random ideas!
24. What are you afraid of?  A lot of bugs, cockroaches, fires, criminals, um… I could go on.
25. What's your favorite color?  Sea foam green.
26. Stuck on a deserted island and could take one thing?  An endless supply of brownies.
27. Where did you last go on vacation?  The one that counts I guess is to different beaches & volcano in Costa Rica with my friend, N.
28. What 3 things can always be found in your refrigerator?  Heavy cream, yummy cheeses, veggies.
29. Coffee or tea?  Tea.
30. What's your favorite movie of all time?  Hard one!  I have so many… I generally prefer art house, foreign cinema, and drama.  No chick flicks for me, thanks!
31. Do you prefer to read fiction or nonfiction?  I'm gonna surprise myself a little here, but I would have to say nonfiction.
32. What was your favorite book as a child?  Anything from the Nancy Drew series… poor dad, he read us ALL of them.
33. What's your favorite kind of music?  I like alternative, ambient, electronica.  
34. Would you rather have the power to be invisible or the power to read minds?  Be invisible… too cool!  Also, I'd want a "shut off" feature on the reading minds thing… I imagine one could become a bit paranoid or overloaded with information.
35. Shoe size?  7.
36. Eye color? Blue!
37. Favorite perfume?  Tous Touch or Calvin Klein In2You.
38. Last restaurant you ate at? Blue Water Grill.
39. What was your first vehicle?  Not exactly mine, but a 2-door Honda Civic.
40. Have you ever had a surgery?  Yep, a few!  Most recently a repair of my meniscus.
41. Do you believe in karma?  No.
42. Do you believe that aliens exist?  Nope.  Maybe other life forms, though…
43. Do you believe in soul mates?  I think so, at least in kindred spirits.
44. If you were an activist what would you protest against?  Monsanto, fast food, GMOs, not having the freedom of knowing what's in our food.
45. What is your favorite outdoor activity?  I like walking, white water rafting, canopy, gardening…
46. What is your least favorite mode of transportation?  Buses, especially in CR!
47. If you could learn to do anything, what would it be?  Beautiful photography, speak fluent Portuguese, learn the art of French pastry.
48. If you won the lottery what's the first thing you would do?  Go to Greece (and other Mediterranean places), do culinary travel, eat lots, and then buy myself the perfect and perfectly equipped kitchen.
49. If you could choose anyone, who would you choose as your mentor?  Dorie Greenspan or Ruth Reichl. 
50. What chore do you absolutely hate doing?  Dusting, it's so tedious.  

 

So… you're now 50 questions closer to knowing me!  Anything else you'd like to know?  

 

<3 Yours truly

And now for the amazing brownie cookies, the chewiest around... 

 

Rocky road cookies (AKA brownie cookies with walnuts and marshmallows)

Adapted from A Cozy Kitchen 

Makes about 30 cookies, depending on size.  Probably more if you don't eat the cookie dough :D

 

1 cup All-purpose flour

½ cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder

½ tsp baking soda

½ tsp salt

8 oz semisweet chocolate (i used good chocolate chips; if you use a block of chocolate, chop it to about chocolate chip size), divided

1 stick unsalted butter, cut into pats

1 cup sugar

2 large eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup mini marshmallows, plus additional for garnish

¾ cup walnuts, chopped

Preheat oven to 325F and line a half sheet pan with parchment or a silicone baking mat.  (Or more than one if you are planning on baking all the cookies).  In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt until well combined.  Melt 4 oz of the chocolate with the butter in a small heatproof (glass or metal) bowl set over a pot of simmering water.  (I like to use a large measuring cup).  

 

Transfer the chocolate and butter mixture to your stand mixer bowl and add the sugar, eggs, and vanilla.  Mix on medium speed until combined, scraping down the bowl as needed.  With the speed on low, slowly mix in the flour mixture until just combined.  Then fold in the remaining 4 oz of chocolate, the marshmallows, and walnuts.

 

Refrigerate the dough for 30 minutes to an hour, until slightly firm.  Using a 1 ½ TBSP cookie scoop, make balls of dough and place them on the lined cookie sheet, leaving a couple of inches of space between each one (I put 12 on a cookie sheet).   Bake in the preheated oven about 15 minutes, or until the cookies are still slightly pouffy in the center but crispy around the edges.  Carefully pull the cookies out of the oven and quickly stick a few marshmallows, pressing down lightly, in the tops of the cookies.  If needed, return to the oven (oven off) for a minute to melt the marshmallows.  Let cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes to harden up.  Transfer to wire rack and let cool completely.  

 

Apple tart with spiced apple butter, crystallized ginger, and streusel topping

Oh, hi there!

 

What am I doing, you ask.

 

Oh, nothing.  I just finished a piece of this divine apple tart.  You see, I'm mildly obsessed with apple desserts.  I just love how the apples get all tender and juicy in the oven.  They blend perfectly with flaky puff pastry, and the spices take it up a notch. 

 

Apple tarts are good.  Very good.  But… there's usually a little something missing, and I think I've found it:  spiced apple butter.  It boosts the flavor even more and gives the tart a texture that I just love.

 

Don't believe me?  Try it yourself!

 

 

Another plus: this tart is super easy to make, and looks pretty impressive, if you ask me!

 

Apple tart with spiced apple butter, crystallized ginger, and streusel topping

pão e queijo original

1 sheet puff pastry from 17.3 oz box

3 small apples, cored and thinly sliced (skin on)

½ packed cup brown sugar

1 TBSP crystallized ginger, finely chopped

3 TBSP apple butter (click here for recipe)

About 3 TBSP streusel topping, optional (click here for recipe)

 

Thaw the puff pastry on the counter without unrolling, for 20 minutes while you preheat the oven.  Preheat oven to 415F with rack in the middle.  Prepare a half sheet with parchment or a silicone baking mat (you'll want to line the pan; the apple butter oozes out of the tart).  

 

Prepare the apples and combine them with the brown sugar and crystallized ginger in a medium mixing bowl and mix well.  

 

When puff pastry is at least partially thawed, unroll the 3 sections.  Using a knife, cut along the folds, creating 3 long pieces of puff pastry.  Slather about 1 TBSP of apple butter on each section, leaving a small border.  Place the apple slices covered in the brown sugar mixture, overlapping them, down the length of each puff pastry section.  Sprinkle with about 1 TBSP streusel topping each.  Bake in preheated oven for about 25 minutes or until the pastry is golden and puffed (check towards the end to make sure it's not burning.  Also check to make sure the puff pastry is cooked enough when you take it out of the oven).  

 

Variation: you could crumble these baked gingersnaps to put on top of the tarts before baking.