Peach-Raspberry Crostata

This recipe came from Sarah Foster's Casual Cooking. I own all three of the Foster's Market cookbooks and they're all fantastic. The recipes are always fresh and easy to execute.

This crostata dough was particularly good. Adding egg yolk and milk made the dough a little more tender than a pure short crust, but it still was really really crispy. The filling had a hint of ginger and cinnamon, and enough cornstarch to keep the crostata from becoming too liquidy.

Peach Raspberry Crostatas
For the crust:
2 cups all purpose flour
3 T sugar
1/4 tsp kosher or sea salt
2 sticks cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes
1 large egg yolk
3-4 T ice water or milk (i used milk.)

For the filling:
2 pounds peaches, peeled, pitted, and thinly sliced
1 cup fresh raspberries
1/3 cup sugar plus extra for sprinkling
3 T cornstarch
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp kosher or sea salt
4 T unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces (I omitted this.)
1 large egg
1-2 T milk

To make the crust, stir the flour, sugar, and salt together in a large bowl. Add the butter and blend it in with the flour using a pastry blender or two knives in a crisscrossing motion until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Whisk the egg yolk and 3 T of milk together in a small bowl and add it to the flour mixture. Stir until the dough just comes together and starts to form a ball, adding the remaining milk if necessary. Dust your hands lightly with flour and press the dough together to form a fat, round disk. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and place it in the refrigerator to chill for at least 1 hour or overnight.

Lightly grease 2 baking sheets or cover with parchment and set aside.

To make the filling, combine the peaches, raspberries, sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, ginger, and salt in a large bowl and stir gently to mix.

Remove the dough from the refrigerator and cut it into 8 equal size pieces. Lightly flour the work surface and roll each piece into a 6 inch round. Place the rounds onto prepared baking sheets.

Scoop the filling and juices into the center of each round, dividing it evenly and leaving a 1 inch border around the edges. Place a piece of butter on top of the fruit, if you like. Folkd the dough over the fruit all the way around to form an edge.

Whisk the egg and milk together to make an egg wash. (I usually strain this to avoid ugly lumpy bits of egg.) Brush the edges of each tart and sprinkle with sugar. Put the tarts in the fridge and chill for about 30 mins.

Preheat the oven to 375. Bake the tarts for 40-45 minutes, rotating the sheets halfway through, until the crusts are golden brown and the fruit is bubbling. Cool the tarts slightly and serve warm. (I like a little dollop of vanilla ice cream on top :))

Blueberry Hand Pies

Lately i've noticed the growing popularity of the hand pie. People hail it as "a gourmet pop-tart." I decided to try some hand pies because they looked so darned cute.

I used this recipe for the crust, and a recipe from The Foster's Market Cookbook for the filling.

The crust is different. It is flaky, but not nearly as crispy as i'd like. My favorite crust recipes either combine butter and shortening or use tons of butter. In retrospect, I wish i'd have used my favorite crostata dough.

I baked them at 400 degrees for about 15 minutes. They did leak some blueberry filling, but not much.

Honestly, hand pies aren't my favorite. They take a long time to make, and you really can't fit much fruit in them. I'd much rather have a crisp or a big slice of berry pie. Still, if you are a big crust or pop-tart fan, these could be your new favorite thing.

Back from a week in NYC.

I'll have a real update soon- promise.

I'm also going to try and be more disciplined about posting the recipes of what I make, per your requests.

Anyway, I was in Manhattan last wednesday through this tuesday. Most of my time was spent eating and walking, and i'm happy to say I found some fantastic places worth your time. Here's a summary of the damage I did:

1) Once Upon A Tart was fantastic. I've had their cookbook for years. I recommend the Pear Ginger Raisin muffins, but many people swear by the scones and cookies etc. They usually open around 8 and it's great to enjoy a coffee and pastry at one of the tables in front of the store.

2) Balthazar, despite being very busy all the time, makes a -fabulous- breakfast. Some of the more delicious looking things were pastries, quiches, granola, omlettes...pretty much everything. I highly recommend the smoked salmon and the side order of fried tomatos. I saw plenty of people picking up beverage and pastry from the small boulangerie and eating it on the benches outside.

3) Chikalicious was just great. The service, atmosphere, and food were all fantastic. I hear it can get very busy (long lines) but I went right at opening on sunday and got right in. My dessert tasting menu included kiwi gelee with cantaloupe sorbet, lavender marinated kiwis with yogurt sorbet and crispy kataifi, and a petit four plate with a coconut marshmallow, lemon-poppyseed shortbread, and a chocolate/nib pudding bite. All of the desserts looked fantastic- particularly the ganache filled raspberries. They were the hugest berries i'd ever seen. The iced tea was great too, and some of the other cocktails I saw looked really pretty.

4) I always try and hit Payard when i'm in New York. The pastries are quite good, though the service can be a little snooty. I love their canneles and croissants in particular as well as the orange-carrot tart. Just watch out and make sure the pastry you've ordered hasn't been sitting in the case for days.

5) Ceci Cela was recommended to me by a good friend. Unfortunately, i've been there three times and each time it was -awful.- You could taste that the (rather pricy) pastries had been sitting in the case for far too long. Soggy crusts, blandish pastry, and horrible horrible service. I've been ignored by staff there so many times. It's a pity really because everything always looks so pretty. Honestly, unless they make major changes I won't be going back.

6) Thomas Keller's Bouchon Bakery in the Time Warner Center was nice too. I wish i'd had a chance to try more. I only had time to order a few things to go. Their macarons are fantastic. Though not as crunchy as I might have liked, they were substantial, huge, and packed with flavor. I had caramel and pistachio and they were amazing. It's worth a try, but again, keep an eye out for things that have been in the case too long.

7) Cafe Sabarsky on 5th ave and 86th street is a hidden treasure. I don't think i'd have found it without a friend's recommendation. It is a viennese style cafe that features excellent service, food, and desserts. I went back three times during my trip and managed to sample the apple strudel, streuselkuchen, sachertorte, quark cheesecake, chocolate feuillete, and several cups of espresso. It's fabulous.

8) Tom Colicchio's 'wichcraft wasn't really anything special. It's a good place to get good, fast eats though.

9) 'ino is my favorite place for sandwiches and bruschetta. I've probably had the best sandwich/bruschetta of my life there. I went three times during this trip.

10) I went to an Italian pastry place on Bleeker street called Cafe Bruno, i think. It was pretty good, but I don't really remember it. Many of the cookies tasted similar and were a little stale :(

11) Sfoglia was one of the best dining experiences i've had in a long time. Good lord, GO THERE ALREADY. The bread they serve is out of this world. We had a delightfully spicy and moist roast chicken along with strawberry-basalmic spaghetti, a beet and bean salad, and some antipasto. The restaurant is beautiful and the service is fantastic. It is much easier to get in for lunch than dinner. I wish I could have gone back...

12) Lupa is one of those places I didn't know was popular until after I ate there. It was also UTTERLY FANTASTIC and reasonably priced. We all tried the tasting menu which included a huge assortment of antipasto, good focaccia, two pasta courses, a meat course, a cheese course, and dessert. There were good olives, amazing prosciutto, a baccala salad, a beet salad...curly pasta with AMAZING asparagus ragu, ricotta gnocchi with a fennel sausage sauce, fish with a meyer lemon sauce, spicy chicken diavolo, roast port shoulder, goat cheese, sheep cheese, cow cheese...panna cotta and tartufi that were to die for...I highly recommend it. Zagat calls it "Babbo on a budget."

13) I also made two trips to Kitchen Arts and Letters. It's the best cookbook store i've ever been to, and Matt has given me excellent cookbook and restaurant recommendations. They answer their email, they will ship you anything you like, and generally, if you tell them your favorite cookbooks they'll be able to make you an educated recommendation. They also have rare and out of print things. If you ever need help finding a restaurant to your taste that isn't too touristy, you should give them a call.

Wow...I ate a lot of food last week O.o

I'm probably heading back in July. I have a few places left on my curiosity list including:
Hearth
P*ONG
Good sushi
Good dim-sum
...More bakeries.

Feel free to make recommendations.

Melting Moments

I'd never heard of Melting Moments until recently. They remind me a little of rosketti- a simple chamorro corn starch cookie that melts in your mouth. Mexican wedding cookies also have that similar crumbly, sandy texture.

These are from Donna Hay's Modern Classics 2. The best part is they're incredibly simple and fast to prepare. They're filled with a simple lemon frosting.

Melting Moments
adapted from Donna Hay
175g (about a stick and a half) butter, softened
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup all purpose flour, sifted
1/4 cup corn starch, sifted
60g butter (about half a stick), softened
2 tsp lemon juice
2 tsp lemon zest
1 cup powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350.
Cream the butter, sugar, and vanilla until smooth.
Add the flour and cornstarch and mix until it comes together.
Put the batter in a bag and with a fluted tip and pipe 1" circles onto parchment lined baking sheets.
Bake 12-14 minutes until golden brown.

For the frosting, cream the butter, sugar, lemon juice and zest.
When the cookies are cool, sandwich them together with some frosting.
Makes about 16 sandwiches.

Apricot Ice Cream

Apricots have such an unfortunately short season. Maybe that makes them more special; I remember my mother bringing plastic bags loaded with apricots from various farmers' markets. I would usually eat 4-6 at a time.

This is Apricot Ice Cream from The Perfect Scoop. David Lebovitz has made another brilliant combination of tangy, creamy, and fresh flavors.

I recommend eating this right after it is churned, as it seems to freeze just a tad hard.

The flavor of fresh apricots is heavenly though.

My Job.

I work at the cafe on an old millionaire's estate. Pittsburgh piano trio performed a few weeks ago and we made ten trays of pastry. Two came back, mostly finished off. It's a good feeling when you work hard and everyone eats everything.

Kumquat Poundcakes, Revel Bars and More!

Kumquat Poundcake from Hidemi Sugino's Dessert Book.


Oatmeal cookie type bar with thick chocolate ganache in the middle.




Chocolate covered Ice Cream! Lemon/soft gingersnap, green tea, panforte, and turron.




Kumquat Compote in process.


Apple and almond pudding from Bill's Open Kitchen.


Orange and Buckwheat Crepes filled with nutella and oranges.


Pierre Herme's Lemon Tart.

Roasted Banana Ice Cream

I'm officially hooked on David Lebovitz's The Perfect Scoop.

So far, i've made the following flavors: salted butter caramel, turron, eggnog, honey-lavender, and roasted banana. I'm looking foward to trying green tea, panforte, gianduia, and many others!

I really love that this book introduces some flavors that are familiar, but different. I'd never think to make a roasted banana ice cream. This recipe was incredibly simple (no cream or egg yolks!) and bursting with flavor. I'd recommend smothering it with chocolate sauce or using it to make chocolate covered bon bons.

Honestly, the Turron ice cream stole my heart. I didn't take a photo because I ate it all. Turron is a spanish nougat often studded with toasted almonds, pistachios, and candied orange peel. David's recipe also adds honey, a touch of orange flower water, and orange zest. It is DIVINE. It reminded me of being in Sevilla.

Tonight is my senior cello recital. Think good thoughts for me!

David Lebovitz's "The Perfect Scoop"

My new ice cream maker is getting plenty of work. After trying several recipes by Alice Medrich and Emily Luchetti, i've moved on to David Lebovitz's new book The Perfect Scoop.

Let me tell you- David really knows his textures. I tried his recipes for Salted Butter Caramel Ice Cream and Honey Lavender Ice Cream. Both have a really silky, meltingly soft consistency that holds up in the freezer. I highly recommend the caramel ice cream (the recipe is available on his blog.)

I'm really looking foward to trying more flavors like Turron, Eggnog, and Hazelnut Stracciatella...

Anyway, both The Perfect Scoop and A Passion for Ice Cream are great. I don't even want to think about how much heavy cream i've been going through.

Photo Dump: Why I've Been Absent

Here are some of the things i've made recently:









I am struggling to prepare for my senior cello recital and graduation. For a while, my posts may be a little brief and erratic. When things calm down a bit, i'll definitely post more recipes and tidbits from work.

The aforeposted pictures are: toasted coconut, chai, mint chip, and blueberry sourcream ice creams, coconut tapioca pudding with lime gelee, and orange cardamom biscuits.