Sour Cherry Almond Pie

If you've never experienced the joy of sour cherry season, you're not alone. Available for few brief blink-and-you'll-miss-them weeks at the beginning of June, sour cherries (also called pie cherries, or tart cherries) are the lesser-known cousins of the sweet cherries we all know and love from the late summer. Prepping for a four month stint overseas last June, I managed to miss the entire sour cherry season and vowed to make up for it this year.

While you may find sour cherries available at your local farmer's market this time of year, I was lucky enough to get some hands-on picking experience at Hollin Farm in nearby Delaplane, VA. A beautiful plot of rolling hills just 1 hours from DC, Hollin Farm had strawberries, cherries and a few early raspberries on offer as well as a few early summer veggies for picking. It's also conveniently adjacent to several local wineries if you feel the need to stop off for a quick tasting on the way home, like we did. :)

While I debated for awhile what to do with the quarts of strawberries I'd picked, I knew immediately that these cherries were meant for a pie. I also figured it was about time to try my hand at making a crust from scratch again. I usually go with store-bought crusts, since mine never seem to measure up in taste or texture despite all of the hard work and heartache.  This time I decided to try a recipe from one of my new favorite cookbooks, Alana Chermila's The Homemade Pantry.

My first lattice top pie!

Folks, we may have a winner :)  Flaky but not too flaky and neutral enough in flavor not to overwhelm the pie, I was a big fan of this crust.  I would only note however, this recipe calls for vinegar as the only liquid, but there was no way this crust was ever coming together without a little cold water. I'm not sure exactly how much I added but it was at least 5 tablespoons, so you'll have to experiment.

I have to say I absolutely loved this pie and already can't wait for next year's sour cherry season!

Basic Pie Crust
     from The Homemade Pantry
1 cup (2 sticks) cold, unsalted butter
2 1/4 cups (12.5 ounces) all-purpose flour
1/3 cup water

2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
1/2 teaspoon salt

1. Cut the butter into half-inch squares and combine with the flour in the bowl of a stand mixer. Using your hands, toss the mixture to coat the butter in the flour. Put the bowl in the freezer. In a measuring cup, combine one-third cup water, the vinegar, and salt. Stir until the salt dissolved and put the measuring cup in the freezer. Freeze both mixtures for 10 minutes.


2. Take the mixing bowl out of the freezer and blend the mixture on low speed with the paddle attachment until it starts to become the texture of crumbly meal. take the measuring cup out of the freezer and, with the mixer still running on low speed, slowly pour the wet mixture into the bowl. The dough will be crumbly at first, then after 10 or 20 seconds, it will come together in a ball. Stop the mixer


3. Turn the dough out onto the counter and press it together into a large disc. Cut the dough into two equal parts, wrap each piece in waxed paper, and press each into a disc. refrigerate for at least two hours, and up to three days.


4. Grease a 9-inch pie dish with butter and lightly dust with flour. Take the dough out of the refrigerator 15 minutes before you are ready to roll it out. Unwrap the dough and place one of the discs on a lightly floured counter. Starting from the center, roll the dough into a circle about 12-14 inches in diameter and 1/4" thick.


5. Fold the crust in half then fold that semicircle in half again so that you have a quarter of a circle. Line up the corner of the quarter with the center of your pie dish and unfold the quarter into a semicircle, then into a full circle.


6. Fill the crust with your pie filling. Repeat the rolling process with the second disc of dough, and either lay it on top of the filling, or cut in strips to form a lattice. Brush top crust with 1 Tablespoon milk and dust with remaining 1 Tablespoon sugar. Use your fingers to crimp the edge of the dough along the circumference of the pie dish.




Sour Cherry Pie

     adapted from Epicurious
1 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar
3 tablespoons quick-cook tapioca (can substitute cornstarch)
1/4 teaspoon salt
5 cups whole pitted sour cherries (about 2 pounds whole unpitted cherries)
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1/4 cup sliced almonds (optional)
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 tablespoon (about) milk

1. Position rack in lower third of oven and preheat to 425°F. Whisk 1 cup sugar, cinnamon, tapioca (or cornstarch, if using), almonds (if using), and salt in medium bowl to blend. Stir in cherries, lemon juice, vanilla and almond extracts; set aside.

2. Transfer filling to dough-lined dish, mounding slightly in center. Dot with butter. Top pie with remaining crust or lattice strips as directed below. 

3. Place pie on rimmed baking sheet and bake 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 375°F. Bake pie until filling is bubbling and crust is golden brown, covering edges with foil collar if browning too quickly, about 1 hour longer. Transfer pie to rack and cool completely.

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Martha Monday: Raspberry Custard Tart

I actually made this tart for a friend's Easter dinner this year--even though I may have jumped the gun a little, as raspberry season is finally almost here and this would be a great, refreshing tart recipe to celebrate the early summer.  I especially love that the crust is a super easy phyllo pastry--So long, time-intensive crust baking on hot summer days!

Raspberry isn't usually a fruit I would associate with Easter, but this tart was listed in Martha's recommended Easter dessert recipes, so that must make it legit :) This recipe does take quite a few raspberries, so feel free to substitute any other summer fruit if raspberries aren't on sale at your local grocery, or you don't have easy access to bulk berry picking.

A couple of notes: I wasn't able to find créme fraîche, so I went with a pastry cream recipe for the filling rather than a strict custard and I honestly couldn't even tell the difference. I would recommend making sure your custard is really set after baking (mine was still a little jiggly) and also let the tart sit in the fridge for a little while before serving if you have the time, otherwise it doesn't keep its shape as well during serving. I also decided to brush the berries with a little melted apricot jam to make them shine a little bit more, but this is completely optional.

My fancy shmancy pie weights :)

Really proud of myself for actually cooling the custard in an ice bath...which I usually skip out of sheer laziness

Raspberry Custard Tart
1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed
1 cup créme fraîche
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
4 cups raspberries (about four 6-ounce containers)

1. Roll out pastry sheet to a 12-by-14-inch rectangle. Line a 10-inch ceramic tart dish with pastry, pressing it into bottom and up side of dish. Trim edge, leaving 1/2 inch to hang over rim of dish. Refrigerate dough 20 minutes.

2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Prick dough all over with a fork. Generously line shell with parchment, and fill with pie weights or dried beans. (Parchment should drape over rim of dish to prevent shell from overbrowning.) Bake shell 35 minutes. Remove parchment and weights, and bake shell until pale golden brown, about 2 minutes more. Let shell cool 5 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 degrees.

3. Meanwhile, make the filling: Whisk together creme fraiche, sugar, vanilla, salt, eggs, and flour in a medium bowl until smooth.

4. Pour filling into tart shell, and bake until custard is set, about 20 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack 30 minutes. To serve, top tart with raspberries.

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Blackberry Crumb Bars

For regular readers of this blog, you’ll know that May heralds the arrival of my favorite social event of possibly the entire year: The Virginia Gold Cup Steeple Chase (and terrier race). An homage to floppy hats, fascinators, sundresses and seersucker in the style of the Kentucky Derby, this day filled with lawn drinking, people watching and, of course, horse racing is something I look forward to every year.

In addition to the critical details of planning the perfect attire, unsurprisingly I also spend weeks debating the perfect dessert to bring. Usually I, of course, lean towards cupcakes, celebrating with Derby-worth flavors like Mint Julep and Lemon Iced Tea. But the past two years I’ve come to realize that, sadly, perhaps cupcakes aren’t the most picnic-friendly food. So this year I decided to embrace the finger foods and went with crumb bars. Which can only mean one thing…BLACKBERRIES!

It’s no secret by now that blackberries are by far my favorite fruit, and I can’t help but whip up one of my signature blackberry pies whenever they’re on sale at the grocery.  One would think that crumb bar recipes would be pretty standard, but apparently this is not the case. I scoured dozens of recipes to find one that was not too crumb-heavy, and used both blackberry jam as well as whole blackberries to boost the sweetness and blackberry flavor. And, let me tell you, this recipe from Rumbly In My Tumbly is beyond drool-worthy. Trust me. Plan ahead, because when blackberries hit your local farmer’s market this summer, these will be the star of any pool party or BBQ you take them to.

Blackberry Crumb Bars make their Gold Cup debut

A couple of notes:

I love that these came together very quickly, leaving me plenty of time to also throw together a batch of lemon bars (can we also talk about how there is a dearth of good lemon bar recipes out there?) But I do recommend refrigerating them for several hours if you have the time to help them keep shape once you slice them. You could also substitute just about any fruit/jam combo for these bars, and the cream cheese drizzle frosting is optional if you’re trying to cut sugar but, believe me, it adds a lot. 

Blackberry Crumb Bars

1 cup white sugar
1 Tablespoon of fresh lemon zest (about 1 medium-sized lemon)
1 teaspoon baking Powder
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup (2 sticks) of butter, Cold and cut into pieces
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups fresh blackberries
1 1/4 cups of blackberry jam
1/8 cup white sugar
3 teaspoons cornstarch

Frosting
3 ounces of cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 - 2 1/2 cups of powdered sugar
1 teaspoon lemon extract *optional
1-2 Tablespoons of cream or milk

1. Preheat the oven to 375 F. Line a 9x13 inch pan with foil and butter/spray the foil.

2. In a large bowl, combine the lemon zest and 1 cup sugar. Using your fingertips, rub the zest into the sugar until it becomes moist and fragrant. (I used my food processor, and just pulsed the sugar and lemon together a few times) Add the flour, baking powder, and salt.

3. Use a fork or pastry cutter to blend in the butter, or use your finger tips to incorporate the butter. But work quickly, you don't want the heat from your fingers to melt the butter too much. (Again, I just used my food processor and pulsed it a few times). Stir in the egg. Dough will be crumbly and coarse, like thick wet sand.

4. Pat half of dough into the prepared pan.

5. In a separate, large bowl, stir together the 1/8 cup of sugar and cornstarch. Gently mix in the blackberries and jam.

6. Carefully sprinkle/spread the blackberry mixture evenly over the crust (leave about a 1/4-inch border around the edges of the pan so the berries won't burn.)

7. Crumble remaining dough over the berry layer. Bake in preheated oven for 30-45 minutes, or until top is slightly brown.

8. In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Slowly sift in the powdered sugar. Start to add a little bit of the cream (don't add it all at once.) Add as much or as little of the powdered sugar and cream as needed. The drizzle should not be too thick, you want to be able to shake it onto the bars in a zigzag patten with a whisk or fork.

9. Drizzle the cream cheese mixture over the top of the warm bars.  Cool completely before cutting into squares.

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Pistacia Vera

Even though I try to keep up with bakery developments in my home town, luckily my parents are always on the lookout for new sweet spots to try out for whenever I come to visit. This was the case on my last trip home--even though my visit was a surprise, my mom didn't miss a beat and dropped several hints that there was a place in Columbus' German Village called Pistacia Vera that she thought I might like.

I know what you're thinking--German Village?? For those who haven't had the pleasure of visiting Columbus, Ohio, German Village sparks the same reaction in many Columbusites that Georgetown invokes in some here in D.C. "It's out of the way!" "It's crowded!" "It's so hard to park!"All valid points. But Pistacia Vera is more than worth the trip to this quaint cobblestoned neighborhood.

Billing itself as a "dessert boutique," Pistacia Vera might as well call it like it is--a patisserie. I was amazed walking into the adorable shop, with a case full of pastries that could have come straight from Paris.

In addition to the traditional galettes, financiers, palmiers and (my all time favorite) cannelés there are, of course...macarons! Can you tell I just can't get enough of these things? :) Pistacia Vera whips up traditional flavors like pistacio, coconut and nutella as well as amazingly delicious, unique flavors like Black raspberry Rose, Cassis Chocolate Bergamot, and Yuzu Bergamot.

In addition to phenomenal pastries, Pistacia Vera also offers a small brunch menu from 7am-2pm daily--be sure to get there early to snag one of the few tables in the light-filled dining room. If Columbus isn't on your radar any time soon, never fear--Pistacia Vera has an online boutique! Their macarons, nougat, toffee, cookies and coffee are all available to order.

If you go:
Pistacia Vera
541 South Third Street
Columbus, OH 43215
(they have a parking lot across the street!!)

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Mastering Macarons

It's funny how sometimes the things that should be easiest in life are always the hardest. Take the humble macaron; although often having only three measly ingredients, these persnickety cookies have been confounding chefs for centuries. Simply one too many mixes of the batter, or uncooperative humidity in your kitchen and your cute, round cookies will turn into dry, flat wafers.

The first time a friend and I made macarons they came out perfectly.  I mean perfect. I was buoyed by our success and didn't see what all the fuss was about. I was cocky. So, a couple of months later when I planned to make macarons for a cherry blossom-themed dinner party, I didn't think twice. Big mistake. The curse of the macaron reared it's ugly head and, while still delicious, mine came out flat and chewy.

So before attempting my next batch of macarons, I decided it was time to get some help from the professionals. Enrolling in a "Mastering Macarons" class at my local Sur La Table, our class spent an instructive three hours with chef Monya Maynard learning the secrets of "macaronnage" and "macaronner." Which is French for, "how you mix the dry stuff" and "how you mix the wet stuff." What was most helpful about this class was actually getting to SEE what the macarons should look like at each stage. Often, I think we are too preoccupied with the recipe, and don't see what's really happening (Deep, I know).

For example, standard wisdom calls for mixing the macaron batter exactly 25 times. No more, no less. Clearly this is unrealistic, and Chef Maynard showed us exactly what the batter should look like (drizzle a little bit off the back of a spoon and it should disappear into the rest of the batter within 10 seconds) regardless of how many times you stirred it to get to that point.

Similarly, most recipes will tell you to allow the macaron cookies to rest 30 minutes before baking. But, as we learned in class, this amount of time will vary based on the temperature and humidity in your kitchen. Essentially, the top of the cookie needs to dry in order to form the telltale macaron "foot", which could take up to an hour. Because of the conditions in our kitchen classroom, we even had trouble getting our chocolate macarons to set. Instead of setting our macarons by the clock, we learned to look for a matte finish to tell that they were no longer sticky.

In addition to all of these helpful tips, we also got a copy of what I consider to be macaron gold...Behold: The Template. By slipping a copy of this sheet under parchment paper, you get perfectly sized macarons every time!! While you could make one of these on your own with a pencil, some quarters, and a hell of a lot of patience, I'll let you in on a little secret...you can get your very own template here from honeyandsoy. You're welcome.

When it comes down to the simple things in life, I guess you just need to know what to look for. And a good template.

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Homemade Blackberry Pop-Tarts

Let me start by saying that if you're looking for a healthier alternative to store-bought Pop-Tarts, these are not the breakfast pastries you seek. While they don't have any preservatives or fake sugars, they do have butter...lots of butter. If you are, however, looking for a toaster pastry that is infinitely tastier and more rewarding, then look no further. 

I really have no excuse for buying a toaster pastry press...which I guess is a fancy way to say "square cookie cutter" because that's really all this is.  I bought this while Williams Sonoma was having a sale, so I figured $6.95 wasn't too much of a splurge if it meant finally having a go at recreating one of my favorite breakfast treats (can I get a shout out for Brown Sugar Cinnamon?).

You could absolutely make these with any square cutter that you have, or even just a knife and a lot of patience. Where the press did come in handy however, was helping to seal down the edges of the pastry more than you could have with finger or fork crimping alone. But, as I've mentioned before, I'm realizing that with hand pies, leaks are simply a way of life if you want to have a decent amount of filling in your pastry. And, not to be out done by the Apple Butter Hand Pies, these toaster pastries were no different, so be sure to line your baking sheet with foil or parchment for easy clean up.

A couple of notes: As for filling, frosting and decorations, you're limited only by your imagination. I went with a simple blackberry jam because it's my favorite, and a confectioners'-sugar-and-milk frosting because it was quick and easy, but the possibilities are endless.

 

Homemade Pop-Tarts
     from Williams Sonoma, makes 8
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons sugar
2 sticks cold, unsalted butter, cut into 1/2" dice
6-8 Tablespoons ice water

1/2 cup fruit preserves or jam

1 egg, beaten with 1 teaspoon water

1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
2 Tablespoons milk

1. In a food processor, pulse together the flour, salt and sugar until combined, about 5 pulses. Add the butter and process until the mixture resembles coarse meal, about 10 pulses.

2. Add 6 Tablespoons of the ice water and pulse 2-3 times. The dough should stick together when squeezed with your fingers but should not be sticky. If it is crumbly, add more water 1 teaspoon at a time, pulsing twice after each addition.

3. Turn the dough out onto a work surface, divide in half and shape each half into a disk. Wrap the disks separately in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or up to overnight.

4. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. On a lightly floured surface, roll out 1 dough disk into a rectangle 1/8" thick. (If using a toaster pastry press) use the outer ring of the mold to cut shapes out of the dough. Spread 1 Tablespoon of preserves onto each of 4 pieces of dough, leaving a 1/2" border. Brush the edges with the egg mixture.

5. Top each with a plain piece of dough and (if using) replace the inner ring of the mold inside the outer ring, place the mold on top of the pastry, and press the inner ring down to seal the edges. Transfer the pastries to a prepared baking sheet and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Repeat with remaining dough disk and preserves.

6. Preheat the over to 350 degrees. Bake the pastries until golden, about 25 minutes, reversing the positions of the baking sheets halfway through. Let pastries cool on the sheets for 10 minutes before moving to a wire rack to cool completely.

7. For the icing: in a bowl, stir together the confectioners' sugar and milk. Frost and decorate as desired.

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Mad Men Vintage Gelatine Mold

Yes, I am one of those people: a complete Mad Men fanatic. When I finally heard the news that Season 5 would be premiering after seventeen long months, I knew immediately that a 1960's themed dinner and viewing party would be in order. Actually, I knew that a Jell-o mold would be in order, and that a party would have to be thrown to accommodate it.

Being somewhat unfamiliar with popular foods from that era, my relatives were more than happy to reminisce and provide suggestions, "Cocktail weenies!" "Rumaki!" "Wedge salad!" "Tang!" Luckily, at Christmas my mother gifted me my grandmother's circa 1953 Better Homes and Gardens cookbook. So, not only did I have a Jell-o mold recipe, but I had a legitimately vintage recipe that Betty Draper could be proud of.

At first I was a little worried, flipping through the pages and not finding Jell-o recipes in any of the dessert categories. Then I found it. An entire cookbook section devoted to Gelatine Salads. Needless to say, while I don't think I will be trying the recipe for "Luncheon Salad" of jellied tomato soup anytime soon, this recipe for a basic fruit-filled Jell-o mold fit the bill. As with most mid-mod recipes, this one is quick and easy with few ingredients. I've included the original recipe below, but since advances in modern technology have brought us such wonders as Melon, Margarita and Blackberry Fusion Jell-o, feel free to mix it up a little bit.


Fruit Gelatine Mold
1 3-ounce package lemon-flavored gelatine
1 cup hot water
1 cup pineapple syrup and water
2 oranges, diced
1 cup pineapple, spoon-sized cubes
1 banana, sliced
1 apple, diced
1/2 cup broken California walnuts

Dissolve gelatine in hot water. add pineapple syrup; chill til partially set. Add fruits and nuts; chill until firm. Serve on crisp lettuce. Makes 6 servings.

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