Chocolate, cherry, and almond cookies made with love.

2 ¾ cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon baking powder

1 ½ cups sugar

1 cup butter

4 oz almond paste

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla

½ cup pitted cherries, chopped

½ cup chocolate chips

 

INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat oven to 375 degrees

In a small bowl combine flour, baking soda, and baking powder.

In a large bowl, cream butter, sugar and almond paste (crumble paste between your fingers) together until light and fluffy.

Beat in the egg and the vanilla.

Gradually mix in the flour then add the cherries and chocolate chips.

Cover and refrigerate for 10 to fifteen minutes.

Cook for approximately 10 minutes until golden brown.

Cool on rack

 

 

Blueberry crumble bars.  Basic and beautiful.

INGREDIENTS

1 ½ cups all-purpose flour

½ teaspoon baking powder

⅛ teaspoon salt

1 stick cold salted butter (cubed)

1 large egg

1 pint blueberries

¾ cup sugar

⅛ cup lemon juice

2 teaspoons cornstarch

DIRECTIONS

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Butter a 9×9″ glass baking dish and set it aside.

Combine the flour, ½ cup sugar, salt and baking powder in a mixing bowl. Add the butter and the egg, and then use a fork, your fingers, or a pastry cutter (if you have one) to incorporate the butter into the dry ingredients. The mixture is good to go when it reaches a coarse crumble.

Press ½ of the crumb mixture into the bottom of the baking dish.

In another bowl, whisk together the lemon juice, ¼ cup sugar and cornstarch. Add the blueberries and gently toss them to coat.

Layer all the blueberries on top of the crumb mixture in the baking dish. Sprinkle the remaining crumb mixture on top – it should be enough to almost cover the blueberries.

Bake the blueberry crumble bars for 45 to 50 minutes, or until the blueberries are bubbly and the top is golden brown.

Let the bars cool completely before cutting.

I got the recipe here.

 

This will make 2 half pints of the most delicious lemon curd you have ever spooned on toasts, mixed into yogurt or eaten straight out of the jar. I quadrupled this recipe to make my batch and it worked just fine. If you skip roasting the lemons, it will still be amazing.

 INGREDIENTS

6 egg yolks

1 cup sugar

3 meyer lemons, roasted then juiced (approx. ½ cup). Strain to remove seeds

1 stick of butter, cut into chunks

INSTRUCTIONS

Roasting Lemons:

Zest whole lemons. Then, cut them in half, sprinkle some sugar on the top and put under the broiler for 5 minutes keeping an eye on them the entire time.

Curd:

In a small, heavy bottom pot over medium heat, whisk together the egg yolks and sugar.

Add the lemon juice and switch to stirring with a wooden spoon.

Stir continually for 10-15 minutes, adjusting the heat as you go to ensure that it does not boil.

Your curd is done when it has thickened and coats the back of the spoon.

When you determine that it’s finished, drop in the butter and stir until melted.

Position a fine mesh sieve over a glass or stainless steel bowl and pour the curd through it, to remove any bits of cooked egg. Whisk in the zest.

Pour the curd into two prepared half pint jars, leaving 1/2 inch of headspace. Cover and leave to cool.  Refrigerate.

I worked with this recipe.

 

 

Couldn’t think of a better pancake to start our Saturday.

INGREDIENTS

¾ cup milk

1 tablespoon vinegar

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 egg

2 tablespoon butter, melted

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons white sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon poppy seeds

1 teaspoon lemon zest

DIRECTIONS

Stir the milk, vinegar, and lemon juice together in a bowl; let stand 10 minutes to curdle. Whisk in egg, butter, and vanilla extract.

In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, poppy seeds, and lemon zest until well combined. Pour the milk mixture into the flour mixture and whisk a few times until the batter is mostly free of lumps.

Heat a skillet over medium heat and spray with cooking spray. Pour 1/4 cup of batter per pancake into the skillet and cook until bubbles appear on the surface, about 2 minutes. Flip the pancakes over with a spatula and brown the other side, about 2 more minutes.

Vic gave me a bunch of grapefruits from his garden. He is one of my best friends. This is one of my best cakes.

INGREDIENTS

1 ½ cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon kosher salt

1 cup plain whole-milk yogurt

1 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar

3 extra-large eggs

1 tablespoon grated grapefruit zest (approximately one large grapefruit)

½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract

½ cup melted butter, cooled

1/3 cup freshly squeezed grapefruit juice

Glaze:

1 cup confectioners’ sugar

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed grapefruit juice

DIRECTIONS

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease an 8 1/2 by 4 1/4 by 2 1/2-inch loaf pan. Line the bottom with parchment paper. Grease and flour the pan.

Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt into 1 bowl. In another bowl, whisk together the yogurt, 1 cup sugar, the eggs, grapefruit zest, and vanilla. Slowly whisk the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. With a rubber spatula, fold the butter into the batter. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 50 minutes, or until a cake tester placed in the center of the loaf comes out clean.

Meanwhile, cook the 1/3 cup grapefruit juice and remaining 1 tablespoon sugar in a small pan until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is clear. Set aside.

When the cake is done, allow it to cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Carefully place on a baking rack over a sheet pan. While the cake is still warm, pour the grapefruit-sugar mixture over the cake and allow it to soak in. Cool.

For the glaze, combine the confectioners’ sugar and grapefruit juice and pour over the cake.

I got the recipe here.

This cookie is the result of a one night stand between a brownie and a shot of espresso.

INGREDIENTS

3 cups gluten-free powdered sugar

¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 tablespoon finely ground espresso

1 teaspoon kosher salt

2 large egg whites

1 large egg

4 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped

DIRECTIONS

Place racks in lower and upper thirds of oven; preheat to 350°. Whisk powdered sugar, cocoa powder, espresso, and salt in a large bowl, then whisk in egg whites and egg; fold in chocolate. Spoon batter by the tablespoonful onto 2 parchment-lined baking sheets, spacing 2” apart.

Bake, rotating sheets once, until cookies are puffed, cracked, and set just around the edges, 14–16 minutes.

Transfer baking sheets to wire racks and let cookies cool on pan.

I worked with this recipe.

I took and old classic and added candied blood oranges.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup granulated sugar
• orange zest, from one whole orange + 2 tablespoons of fresh juice
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon pure almond extract
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled, plus more to grease the pan (1 stick)
• Candied Blood Orange slices from 1 orange (Made in advance-see recipe below)
• powdered sugar, for garnish (optional)

DIRECTIONS

Candied Orange Slices (Made in Advance)

Brown butter, nuts, and the sweet/salty topping make these impossible to ignore.

INGREDIENTS

1 cup butter (melted and browned)

1 cup light brown sugar

1/2 cup white sugar

2 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

3 cups quick-cooking oats

1 3/4 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup chopped semi-sweet chocolate

1/2 cup chopped white chocolate

1 cup chopped walnuts

Mixture of 1 teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon turbinado sugar (sprinkle before baking)

DIRECTIONS

Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat; cook, swirling the pan frequently, until the butter is browned, about 5 minutes. Pour browned butter into a bowl and set aside to cool.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

Beat browned butter, brown sugar, and white sugar together in a large bowl until smooth and creamy. Beat one egg into the butter mixture until smooth; add second egg and vanilla extract and beat again until smooth.

Mix oats, flour, baking soda, and salt in a bowl; add to the browned butter mixture and stir until combined completely. Stir chocolate and walnuts into the dough. Use a small ice cream scoop to drop dough onto baking sheets. Sprinkle with a dash of salt and turbinado sugar mixture.

Bake until edges and bottoms are golden brown, about 15-18 minutes. Cool on sheets for 10 minutes before transferring to wire cooling racks to cool completely.

I worked with this recipe.