July 28, 2009 in Desserts
The 2009 Blueberry Festival continues. No, that’s not a typo in the title. Try it if you’re skeptical! It’s a bit like a raspberry square, with graham crumbs standing in for the oats, and macerated blueberries – with a few extra flavors – instead of the raspberry jam. I found that macerating the berries about half an hour or so before starting the rest was plenty of time, but you could do this step even earlier if necessary.
June 29, 2009 in Desserts
I LOVE using frozen puff pastry. It is an amazing substance. It will instantly transform an amateur pastry maker like myself into a top-notch pastry chef. But it is spendy and doesn’t keep well, and a little on the oily side.
For about a year now I have been tinkering with a homemade dough that doesn’t take an entire day to make and still has that rich, buttery flaky layered texture that is the puff pastry hallmark. I won’t bore you with all the variations, but I made about 30 versions, trying to get the balance of ingredients just right to maximize flavor and texture.
I FINALLY FINISHED IT THIS WEEKEND!
My sister Sandy is a culinary student who has a pastry certificate. She was here this weekend and gave it her stamp of approval! She was impressed with the texture given how little time was invested in making it. It only takes 5 minutes of prep time. No, seriously, 5 MINUTES! I am NOT making that up!
These little small discs are great for making individual tarts by spreading with a little pudding or flavored cream cheese and topping with fresh fruit.
***Stayed tuned for my next post in a few days for “Red, White and Blueberry Tarts,” made with this pastry just in time for the Fourth of July***
So, here it is in all its flaky buttery glory!
5 MINUTE HOMEMADE PUFF PASTRY
1 1/2 cup unbleached all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
8 ounces cream cheese, cold
8 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold
1 tablespoon cold water
1 teaspoon lemon juice
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Cut butter into very small cubes and place in freezer for at least 1o minutes. Place flour and salt in a food processor. Cut cream cheese into small cubes and add to food processor. Add frozen butter cubes to food processor. Pulse in 1-second pulses for about 8 to 10 pulses, until small crumb stage.
Turn processor on and stream in the water and lemon juice, just for a few seconds until the dough begins to come together in a ball. Flatten dough into a small disc, wrap in plastic wrap and then refrigerate for 4 to 24 hours.
Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and let stand about 20 minutes, until soft and cool to the touch. Roll out to 1/4 inch thickness. Fold dough over itself in thirds. Roll out to 1/4 inch thickness again.
Cut into shapes as desired and bake on a baking sheet with parchment paper. Bake near top of of oven for 15 to 18 minutes, depending on size of shapes, until light golden brown, watching closely the last few minutes so as not to burn.
– posted by Donna
c – Copyright 2009 by Donna Kelly -
Commercial use with permission only
June 19, 2009 in Desserts, Frugal Tips
Peaches on the Grill
One of my greatest discoveries this summer is grilled fruit. This is soooooo easy you can even send one of your older kids out to the grill with a bowl full of fruit lightly sprayed with oil and some tongs and let then throw them on the grill!
So many fruits turn out great when grilled – I think peach halves are my very favorite. They taste fab and make a delicious frugal topping for ice cream. I also like eating them the same way my grandma ate plain peaches – sliced into a bowl with a little milk and a sprinkle with sugar. Yum!
For extra flavor, I use a balsamic reduction glaze: 1 cup of balsamic vinegar with 1/4 cup brown sugar simmered until reduced slightly. Brush on the fruit and then use the extra glaze as a drizzle later.
– posted by Donna
June 17, 2009 in Desserts, Gluten Free
Summer marches on! With strawberries overflowing everywhere I turn, I thought this would be a perfect – and incredibly cheap and simple – way to celebrate. Talk about both fabulous and frugal; all you need besides the strawberries (which are of course the most affordable right now) and water (free) is sugar (though you can substitute another sweetener if you prefer). I whipped up a batch, and then went crazy making 4 more.
I realized only after the fact that two of the pairs I made look almost identical: the Cappucino and Earl Grey tea are both creamy beige, and the Raspberry Lime Rickey and Strawberry Balsamic are both, well, bright red! At least the Ginger Peach is unique. Anyway, I assure you that the flavors are much more varied than their looks.
The Cappucino and Earl Grey versions are also so cost effective – I generally have both on hand in the pantry, along with sweeteners, so if you’re like me, all you need is the cream. The raspberry and peach were both made using frozen fruit I had on hand, and I luckily had one lime left, and a hunk of ginger in the freezer (the best way to store leftover ginger – you can grate it directly from frozen with your microplane and it lasts forever).
You MUST try at least one of these, or a few – or all 5 if you get possessed by the process like me.
STRAWBERRY BALSAMIC
1 1/2 cups water
½ cup sugar
4 cups ripe strawberries, hulled
2-3 teaspoons balsamic vinegar (optional)
Bring water and sugar to a boil in a small saucepan; stir to dissolve the sugar. Let cool to nearly room temperature. Puree the remaining strawberries in a food processor and stir into simple syrup.
Transfer to a shallow container and place in freezer. Every half hour to 45 minutes, using a fork, stir the granita, scraping the bottom and sides so that it freezes evenly. You’ll have to repeat this process about 5-6 times, over about 3 hours or so (every freezer being different).
Note about the balsamic: I think this would also be terrific both in taste and presentation with a drizzle of balsamic reduction syrup on top, if you have any on hand. If not, do try mixing a few teaspoons in as above.
ICED CAPPUCINO
3 cups strong brewed coffee
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup cream or half & half
½ teaspoon cinnamon
Put hot coffee in a bowl. Â Add sugar and stir to dissolve, then add cream or half & half and cinnamon. Let cool a bit, to about room temperature.
Transfer the mixture to a shallow pan, place in the freezer, and follow the rest of the above instructions, stirring mixture with a fork approximately every 30-45 minutes.
EARL GREY GRANITA
3 cups strongly brewed Earl Grey tea (I used 5 bags)
1/3 cup sugar
½ cup cream or half & half
Follow instructions for coffee mixture above. Note: this took the longest of all 5 varieties to set up for some reason – if it doesn’t seem to be freezing at first, just be patient. It may take an hour or so for it to start to crystallize
RASPBERRY LIME RICKEY
1 cup water
1/3 cup sugar
2 ½ cups raspberries
1 lime – juice and zest
Follow instructions for strawberry granita, adding the lime juice and zest (best procured using a microplane) to the berries in the food processor. You might want to reserve a little zest for garnish, as the vibrant colors together are so purty. Here they are hanging out in the food processor together, just before being blitzed.
GINGER PEACH GRANITA
1 cup water
1/3 cup sugar
2 cups sliced peaches
1-2 teaspoons fresh grated ginger (start small & add more to taste)
Again, follow the instructions for the strawberry granita. Keep in mind that you can vary the thickness; this one in particular got a bit sticky as it was freezing. Not that this is necessarily a bad thing, you just may want to avoid it getting TOO thick.
My freezer is stocked and my weekend guests are stoked! All best enjoyed poolside, of course.
– posted by Anne
April 5, 2009 in Desserts, Entrees, Healthy Fare, Side Dishes
Julia Child was right: the best recipes are often the simplest.
Case in point: crepes.
For years I shied away from crepes, thinking they were a too-fussy, too-demanding French food. All that changed a few days ago. I went to my friend Michelle’s house. Michelle was born and raised in France and still lives her life with a wonderful European flair. When we arrived at her house, she had set up a “crepe bar.” There was a pile of about 3 dozen thin-as-paper crepes, and then sliced fruits, whipped cream and a few sauces. We took the crepes and folded them, made a pile of them on our plates and then added toppings. I was marveling at the elegant simplicity of this, and then she shared with me the secrets of crepes.
It turns out they are frugal, easy to make and store, and incredibly flexible. Once every week or two, Michelle makes 5 dozen crepes and stacks them and stashes them covered in her fridge. Her family feasts on them for breakfast, lunch, dinner and all snacks in between! They sit patiently awaiting for up to two weeks in the fridge for some lucky hungry person to happen by. Wow! They DO NOT stick together, as I had thought they would, but just peel off one at a time from the pile. They can be folded with a little ricotta inside and then topped with a million different things- perfect for leftover bits of meat and cheeses and a drizzle of a pan sauce, or with sliced fruits for a quick delicious dessert. I especially like the folded presentation – rolling is more time intensive and fussy.
So, crepes will become a new standby at the Kellys’ – they are equally fabulous and frugal!!!
Crepes take only about a minute per crepe to cook – this recipe makes about 24. It is well worth the time to make a huge batch and then stash them in the fridge for almost instant meals!
I made a wonderful ricotta filling — it can be either sweet (I added a little powdered sugar) or savory (you could add a bit of garlic powder or other savory seasonings). It is fluffy and delicious!
RICOTTA-STUFFED FOLDED CREPES
2 cups 2 percent milk
4 large eggs
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups all purpose flour
2 tablespoons melted butter
2 tablespoons cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 cups ricotta cheese
2 tablespoons powdered sugar*
2 tablespoons corn starch
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon lemon zest
6 large strawberries
Blend in blender the milk, eggs, salt, flour and butter. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours, up to 24 hours.
Heat a small skillet to medium heat. Spray with a little non-stick cooking spray. Pour 1/4 cup of batter into center of pan and then roll pan until bottom is evenly coated with batter. Cook about 1 minute, until top of crepe looks dry. Turn over and cook another minute or so until cooked through and lightly browned. Repeat for 24 total crepes.
Process in food processor all remaining ingredients except strawberries until light and fluffy, about 1 minute. Hull the strawberries and then slice strawberries lengthwise into four slices.
To assemble, spread 2 tablespoons of ricotta mixture on one half of each crepe. Fold each crepe in half and then in half again. Place on a serving platter and then top the folded crepe with strawberry slices. Dust with powdered sugar or drizzle with chocolate sauce as a garnish if desired.
*Omit the powdered sugar for a savory filling
–posted by Donna
