SAVORY CREPES FOR A LIGHT DINNER

Posted in Breakfast & Brunch, Pizzas & Small Dishes by sallybr

When I lived in Paris, I had crepes often. Once back in the US I made them at home every once in a while. However, I am the first to admit, not often enough. It is such a simple meal to put together, and yes, it can be light if you don’t go overboard on cream sauces and cheese. Our version is quite austere, so feel free to change it to your liking.

SAVORY CREPES
(from The Bewitching Kitchen)

1 cup milk
2 eggs
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
dash of nutmeg
1 cup all-purpose flour

fillings:
sauteed mushrooms
ham
cheese
tomatoes

To a blender, add all ingredients for the crepes except the flour. Blend for a couple of minutes, then add the flour and blend again until smooth. Place it in the fridge for 2 hours if you have the chance.

Pour 1/3 cup batter on a non-stick crepe pan (or small skillet), and cook on both sides. I like to brush a little oil before the first crepe, and work carefully with the flame to cook them to a light brown without browning too much. Place the crepes over a plate separated by parchment paper until time to assemble them. They can sit in the fridge for hours or even overnight.

Place a crepe on a surface, add your fillings to half the area, fold the other half over, then fold again to form a sort of triangle. Bake in a 350F oven for 10 minutes.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: With this meal, we’ve decided that crepes will be part of our regular rotation. The batter can actually sit in the fridge for a day or so, making it even simpler to get them going. The possibilities for fillings are endless, as you can imagine. Salmon with cream cheese and dill, sautéed shrimp, chicken breast in a cream sauce. We will quite likely stick with our versions, and serve a little something on the side. Like this delicious zucchini-sesame soup…

And of course, the icing on the cake…. my lunch next day!!!!

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16May2024

VANILLA DONUTS WITH STRAWBERRY GLAZE

Posted in Desserts, Desserts, Sweets by sallybr

As those who follow my blog might know, every Friday I donate a box of sweets for a homeless meal in our town. Some items are mandatory: decorated cookies, regular cookies and chocolate-covered Oreos come to mind. Then, I like to include some variety. Little tartlets, brownies, cupcakes. Or… donuts!

VANILLA DONUTS WITH STRAWBERRY GLAZE
(adapted from several sources)

1 + 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 large egg
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup grape seed oil
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup water

for the glaze:
1 + ¼ cups powdered sugar
2 tablespoon freeze-dried strawberries, crumbled
2 tablespoon whole milk
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
sprinkles to decorate (optional)

Heat the oven to 375 F. Spray a 12-cavity donut pan with cooking spray and set aside.

Whisk together the flour, sugar, salt, baking powder and baking soda in a large bowl. Whisk together the egg, buttermilk, oil, vanilla and water in a medium bowl. Whisk the wet mixture into the dry mixture and stir to combine. Fill a piping bag with the batter and pipe the batter into the donut pans, filling each cavity halfway, as the batter will expand quite a bit.

Bake until a toothpick inserted into a donut comes out clean, about 15 minutes. Cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Remove to a rack and cool completely.

Make the glaze: Whisk the sugar and dried strawberries in a shallow bowl. Slowly stir in milk and vanilla extract to make smooth, pourable glaze. Dip each donut in the glaze and place back on cooling rack. Add sprinkles before the glaze sets. Allow glaze to set for 30 minutes before serving.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: This is a very simple recipe and produces donuts that are soft and delicate. Make sure not to fill the pan more than halfway. The glaze is also quite straightforward. It relies on freeze-dried strawberries that these days are available in most grocery stores. I do have a harder time finding freeze-dried raspberries… Those could go perfectly here also.

Plump, soft, sweet, with a little sharpness of the strawberry, these are a crowd-pleaser!

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11May2024

MINI-TURKEY LOAVES WITH MUSHROOMS

Posted in Poultry by sallybr

I make turkey loaf often, one of those dishes in constant rotation. My default recipe is this one, but this time I wanted to change things around and make them in cute individual portions. They cook faster and it makes dinner feel a little more special. Not easy to make brown food look good, but here we go… The pan I used to bake them is available here.

MINI-TURKEY LOAVES WITH MUSHROOMS
(from The Bewitching Kitchen)

1 + 1/2 pound ground turkey
8 ounces cremini mushrooms, chopped in the food processor
1 medium shallot, finely chopped
1 tablespoon oil
3/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 tablespoons ketchup
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup almond flour
1 egg, lightly beaten

for coating:
1/4 cup ketchup
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
2 tsp brown sugar
1 tsp white vinegar

Heat oven to 350F.

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Add the shallot and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened; about 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook until they release their moisture and start to brown. Season lightly with salt and pepper. Reserve to cool. You can make this a couple of days in advance and keep in the fridge.

In a large bowl, combine the ground turkey, the sautee vegetables and all other ingredients. Divide the mixture in small portions that will fit in a small loaf pan, you can also use large muffin tins. Bake for 25 minutes, then make the coating glaze by mixing all ingredients in a small bowl. Brush the surface of the little loaves, increase heat to 400F and cook for an additional 10 minutes or so. Internal temperature should be 170F. Let the loaves rest for 10 minutes before removing from the pan.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: These will most certainly be at our table often. It is great to have a turkey loaf that cooks faster and looks so adorable on the plate. It also warms up nicely for leftovers next day. I often make turkey burgers with mushrooms but use them raw in the patties. They do release a lot of moisture during grilling, so I might try sautéing them to dry a bit first. These loaves ended up super moist and flavorful. We enjoyed them with broccoli and sweet potato fries.

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7May2024

HAWAIIAN BREAD ROLLS

Posted in Breads by sallybr

I have always flirted with the idea of baking these from scratch. This type of bread is popular in Brazil, although they don’t go as Hawaiian, they are just called pão doce, which translates as “sweet bread”. The shape, size, and taste is very similar, but the Brazilian concoction originates from Portugal. I adapted a recipe from Molly Yeh, the key component in this dough is pineapple juice, so go get some right away!

HAWAIIAN SWEET ROLLS
(adapted from Molly Yeh’s Girl Meets Farm)

390 grams all-purpose flour (about 3 cups)
2 + 1/4 tsp instant yeast (1 package)
1 + 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon ground turmeric
160 grams pineapple juice, slightly warmed warmed (about 2/3 cup)
2 tablespoons light brown sugar
1 tablespoons honey
1 large egg plus 2 yolks (egg white saved for egg wash later)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 tablespoons (56 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus more for the pan
Flaky salt, for sprinkling

Add the flour, yeast, kosher salt and turmeric to a mixer fitted with the dough hook and mix on low to combine. Add the pineapple juice, brown sugar, honey, whole egg and yolks and vanilla. Increase the speed to medium and mix to form a somewhat stiff, shaggy dough, about 3 minutes. With the mixer running, add the butter, 1 tablespoon at a time, allowing each to fully incorporate before adding more. Once all of the butter is added, mix on medium-high to make a smooth, glossy, somewhat-wet dough, 10 to 12 minutes. Oil a large bowl and add the dough, turning to coat. Cover and let rise until doubled in size, about 2 hours.

Punch the dough down and divide into 12 equal pieces. Butter a quarter sheet pan. Form each piece into a ball and roll on the counter encased in your palm to tighten up the ball. Lay the balls in a 3-by-4 grid in the buttered pan. Cover loosely and let rise until puffed but not quite doubled, about 1 hour.

Heat the oven to 350F. When the rolls have risen, beat the reserved egg whites with a splash of water and brush over the rolls. Sprinkle with flaky salt. Bake until puffed and a deep golden brown; start checking at 20 minutes. Cool in the pan on a cooling rack for 10 minutes, then remove to cool completely sitting on the rack.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: These are not only adorable to look at but dangerously delicious. Soft, not too sweet (I cut the sugar a bit from her original recipe), and the salt on top should not be omitted. They go well with pretty much anything, savory or sweet. What is even more important in our case, is that they freeze well, and defrost quickly. So after enjoying a couple on the day I baked them, I placed them in a bag in the freezer and whenever convenient, in a few minutes we had a delicious Hawaiian roll ready for us…

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3May2024

A DUET OF SPRINGTIME MACARONS

Posted in macarons by sallybr

The recipe used for the shells is my default that you can find here. Simply divide the batter in three portions and use the colors of your choice. For the Ruby Red Ganache Macarons, I used yellow, green and plain batter. For the Neapolitan Version I used brown, pink and plain. I added a small amount of cocoa powder to the brown component. Decorations were all made with fondant and a silicone mold, later painted with luster powder and vodka.

RUBY RED GANACHE AND JAM MACARONS

220g ruby red chocolate
80g heavy cream
pinch of salt
mixed fruit jam (store bought is fine)

Heat the cream in a small saucepan until bubbles form around the edges. Pour over the chocolate, add a pinch of salt, cover and let sit for five minutes. Whisk gently at first, continue whisking until the chocolate is fully dissolved. If necessary, place in the microwave at 50% power for a minute. Reserve at room temperature for 1 hour or place in the fridge for 30 minutes before using.

Fill the shells with a small dollop of jam and a circle of ganache around it. Proceed as normally, keeping macarons overnight in the fridge to mature.

The jam is a nice contrast with the sweetness of the ganache and the shells. We love this brand of jam, or I should say Phil loves it, I don’t eat jam that much, prefer to use it in recipes such as this one…

Moving on…

STRAWBERRY GANACHE MACARONS

230g white chocolate, finely chopped
80g heavy cream
1/4 tsp strawberry natural flavor (I used Olivenation)
a drop of pink food color
1 tbs strawberry jam (store bought is fine)

Heat the cream in a small saucepan until bubbles form around the edges. Pour over the chocolate, cover and let sit for five minutes. Whisk gently at first, continue whisking until the chocolate is fully dissolved, then add the jam. If necessary, place the bowl in the microwave at 50% power for a minute. Reserve at room temperature for 1 hour or place in the fridge for 30 minutes before using.

Fill the shells with a small dollop of ganache and keep the macarons overnight in the fridge to mature.

ENJOY!

to print both recipes, click here

Adding a little drop of pink food gel is a good idea, otherwise the ganache tends to have a pale brownish color. Ganache fillings pair well with fruit, so both recipes today take this approach, and they are perfect for Springtime.