A co-worker owns a sprouted almond company, Crack-Nuts, and he was kind enough to bring me a few flavors to try. I used the Maple Cinnamon kind in these muffins.

INGREDIENTS

2 1/4 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla
12 cherries, pitted
1/4 cup crushed almonds

DIRECTIONS

Preheat an oven to 375 degrees F. Grease or line 12 muffin cups.

Sift together the flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the melted butter, egg, buttermilk, and vanilla.

Pour the buttermilk mixture into the dry ingredients and stir just until mixed (the batter will not be smooth). 

Scoop the batter into the prepared muffin tins half way and then sprinkle a little bit of crushed almonds.  Cover with the rest of the batter and then add the pitted cherry on top. Bake in the preheated oven until golden and the tops spring back when lightly pressed, about 18 minutes.

Flourless cake that is perfect with some olive oil ice cream and a cup of tea.

175 g blanched hazelnuts
125 ml olive oil, plus more for greasing
2 peaches cut into thin wedges
2 tablespoons honey
1 lemon (zest of all and juice of 1/2)
130 g corn meal
1 tsp baking powder
3 eggs
200g sugar

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 340 degrees F. Put nuts on baking sheet and bake for 5 minutes until golden. Set aside to cool. Lightly grease the base and sides of a 23 cm springform pan with a little olive oil and line with parchment paper.

Arrange the peach wedges on the base of the pan.  Stir together the honey and lemon juice and pour over the peaches.  Set aside.

Once the hazelnuts are cool, pulse in a food processor until finely ground. Put in a large bowl and mix in the corn meal, baking powder, lemon zest and a good pinch of salt.

In another large bowl whisk the eggs and sugar with electric beaters until light and fluffy.  Very slowly trickle in the oil beating as you go until fully incorporated.  Fold in nut mixture and then scoop over peaches and bake for 1 hour until it comes out clean.  Leave to cool in the tin.

Olive Oil Ice Cream

Sweet and Savory like all the best desserts.

INGREDIENTS

550 ml whole milk
170 ml heavy cream
130 g sugar
6 egg yolks
1/4 tsp flay sea salt plus extra when serving
60 ml extra virgin olive oil

DIRECTIONS

Heat the milk, cream and sugar in a small heavy pan, stirring over a low heat until about to start simmering.  Beat in the egg yolks in a large bowl, using a wooden spoon.  Pour in the hot milk mixture and stir immediately to combine.

Give the pan a quick rinse and return the mixture to the pan.  Cook over a low heat, stirring continuously for about 4-5 minutes until it thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon.  Don’t let it boil or the eggs will scramble.  Remove from heat and pass through strainer. Stir in the salt, cover and leave to cool.  Chill for at least three hours before putting in ice cream machine.  After about 30 minutes in the machine, drizzle in the olive oil.

I got these recipe from Waitrose.com

 

Pretty sure I subconsciously bake some scones since my English friends arrive today.

INGREDIENTS

500 grams of self-rising flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon cardamom
50 grams sugar
4 oz cold butter
300 ml of buttermilk
1/2 cup golden raisins
1 beaten egg + a little water for wash

INGREDIENTS

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Place flour, sugar, cinnamon, and cardamom in a large bowl and mix to combine by hand.  Crumble in the butter until you have a slight even crumb (it is fine if they are not the same size.  Make a well in the center and add the buttermilk.  Move the bowl in a circle with one hand and toss the flour mixture over the milk again and again.  Add the raisins and gently mix in. The key is to gently handle the mixture and not to compress it too much.

Once the flour and milk have blended, pour out mixture onto a lightly flour counter. Push together ingredients and form a circle of the dough. Press down gently to until you have desired thickness, about 1″ high.  Use a biscuit cutter dipped in flour (each time) to cut out each scone.  Place on cookie sheet and  brush gently with egg wash.

Cook for approximately 15 minutes until golden on top. Let cool on a clean dry tea towel on a wire rack.

It has been too long since I’ve made this Nigella Lawson treat.  I don’t mess with her recipes.

Cake

• 1 ¾ sticks soft  unsalted butter
• 1 cup superfine sugar
• 2 cups almond meal
• ¾ cup fine  polenta (or cornmeal)
• 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
• 3 large eggs
• zest of  2 lemons (save juice for syrup)

Syrup

• juice of  2 lemons
• 1 cup confectioners’ sugar

 Directions

1. Line the base of a 9inch springform cake tin with baking parchment and grease its sides lightly with butter.
2. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
3. Beat the butter and sugar till pale and whipped, either by hand in a bowl with a wooden spoon, or using a freestanding mixer.
4. Mix together the almonds, polenta and baking powder, and beat some of this into the butter-sugar mixture, followed by 1 egg, then alternate dry ingredients and eggs, beating all the while.
5. Finally, beat in the lemon zest and pour, spoon or scrape the mixture into your prepared tin and bake in the oven for about 40 minutes.
6. It may seem wibbly but, if the cake is cooked, a cake tester should come out cleanish and, most significantly, the edges of the cake will have begun to shrink away from the sides of the tin. remove from the oven to a wire cooling rack, but leave in its tin.
7. Make the syrup by boiling together the lemon juice and confectioners’ sugar in a smallish saucepan.
8. Once the confectioners’ sugar’s dissolved into the juice, you’re done.
9. Prick the top of the cake all over with a cake tester, pour the warm syrup over the cake, and leave to cool before taking it out of its tin.

I’m terrible of with getting fillings to rest in the middle of the cake, but I’m okay with that.  This recipe makes two loaves. One to keep and one to give away.

INGREDIENTS

1 pound butter, softened
3 cups sugar
6 eggs
4 cups flour
3/4 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon almond extract
1 cup strawberry jam

Glaze
2-4 tablespoons milk
2 cups powdered sugar

DIRECTIONS

Grease and flour two loaf pans and set aside.  Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Beat butter until creamy and the color turns a much lighter yellow. Usually takes about 5-8 minutes. Add sugar 1 cup at a time until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time. Add vanilla and almond extracts.

Add flour alternately with milk beginning and ending with flour. Stir gently but batter should be smooth. Pour half the batter between the two loaf pans and bang down on counter to level batter.  Use a 1/2 cup of jam in each pan down he middle of the batter and leaving a border of batter. Cover equally with the rest of the batter and smooth top.

Bake for an hour and 45 minutes. Let cool and glaze (or don’t glaze) by whisking powdered sugar and milk to desired consistency.

I worked with this recipe.

There is a lot going on here.

INGREDIENTS

1 cup butter, softened
2/3 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups flour
1/2 strawberry jam
1 cup chocolate
Sliced almonds for garnish

DIRECTIONS

Cream butter and sugar. Add extract. Gradually blend in flour.

Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Roll into one-inch balls and place one inch apart on un-greased cookie sheets. Use the end of a wooden spoon and make an indentation and fill with jam.

Bake for 15-18 minutes. Cool completely.

Temper chocolate. Cover jam with dollop of melted chocolate. Garnish with almonds and let set.

Because nothing beats a classic.

INGREDIENTS

2 3/4 cups flour
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 stick or 8 ounces unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 3/4 cups sugar, plus more if needed
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon, plus more if needed
2 eggs

DIRECTIONS

Preheat the oven to 400°.

Sift together flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt; set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine butter and 1 1/2 cups sugar. Beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Scrape down sides of bowl. Add eggs, and beat to combine. Add dry ingredients, and beat to combine. At this point, I chilled the dough for at least an hour before scooping it.

Once dough has chilled, in a small bowl, combine remaining 1/4 cup sugar and the ground cinnamon. Use a small ice-cream scoop to form balls of the dough, and roll in cinnamon sugar. Place about two inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Bake until the cookies are set in center and begin to crack (they will not brown), about 10 minutes, rotating the baking sheets after five minutes.

Thanks Smitten Kitchen.

My adorable neighbor, Mason, brought me some fresh figs from his garden.  When I walked into the kitchen and saw the walnuts from the bread I made yesterday, I just put them together. Oh, and then I saw some dried, sweetened oranges in my cabinet from Trader Joe’s….a recipe was born.

INGREDIENTS

3 eggs
2 1/2 cups sugar
2 cups ripe figs, mashed
3/4 cups melted and cooled butter
3 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 cup chopped walnuts
Trader Joe’s Sweetened and Dried Orange Slices

DIRECTIONS

Heat the oven to 350 F. Grease and flour two 9-by-5-by-3-inch loaf pans.

In a mixing bowl with an electric mixer, beat the eggs. Add the sugar and beat well. With the mixer on low speed, add mashed figs and vegetable oil.

Sift together flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.

Add the flour mixture to the first mixture alternating with the buttermilk. Beat until well blended.

Fold in chopped walnuts

Bake in the preheated oven for about 1 hour, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

I worked with this recipe.

My second recipe from La Cucina Italiana today.

INGREDIENTS

1 cup whole milk
1 tablespoon sugar
1/4 ounce (1 packet) of active dry yeast
3 cups flour
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
Extra-virgin olive oil for brushing
3/4 cup walnut pieces

DIRECTIONS

In a small saucepan heat milk over medium heat until warm; remove from heat. In a large bowl, stir together warm milk, sugar, and yeast; let stand until foamy, about 15 minutes.  If mixture doesn’t foam, start over.

Add flour, butter, and salt to milk mixture; mix together to form soft dough. Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic about 5 minutes. Brush a large bowl with oil, the turn dough in bowl to coat. Cover with a clean, damp dishtowel and let rise in a draft-free place at warm room temperature until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.

Punch down dough and transfer to a clean surface. Knead in walnuts and form into a round loaf. Transfer to a payment lined baking sheet. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise until doubled inbuilt about 1 hour.

Heat over to 400 degrees F with rack in middle.  Using a shark knife, score load with 3 shallow slashes. Bak until bread is golden and sounds hollow when tapped, about 25 minutes. Cool break completely on wire rack before slicing.

Recipe from La Cucina Italiana.

Glad I found an old issue of La Cucina Italiana.  This is even better than its American cousin.

INGREDIENTS

1 cup Aborio rice
2 2/3 cups whole milk
1 vanilla bean, split and seeds scraped
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
3/4 cup + 1 tablespoon sugar
2/3 cup heavy cream

DIRECTIONS

Bring a medium saucepan of water to a boil; add rice and cook for 15 minutes then drain.

In a saucepan, combine drained rice, 2 cups milk, 1 cup water, vanilla bean and seeds, and salt. Bring to a simmer and cook 10 minutes, then stir in sugar and continue cooking until rice is tender. 10 to 15 minutes more. Remove pot from heat; remove and discard vanilla bean, then stir in remaining 2/3 cup milk and cream. Transfer rice mixture to a blender and mix until pudding is fairly smooth.

Transfer ric pudding to a bow and chill in refrigerator at least 2 hours or overnight. Add some whipped cream on top when serving.

Recipe from La Cucina Italiana.