Blueberry Danishes

When living at my last apartment near the heart of downtown I would often take advantage of an early rise and walk to one of my favorite coffee shops  to snag a blueberry danish and a piping hot coffee. I'd cram a napkin in my pocket, balance the danish in one hand and carefully hold the coffee in the other to avoid spills, and make my water to the water. Now, no matter where I am, when I find myself with an opportunity to snag a fresh danish and a hot coffee I'm instantly transported to memories of the cool, quiet mornings that I spent walking blissfully around the city.

Somehow, after all those mornings spent making my way to various shops to indulge in a pastry and caffeine, I never tried to recreate it in my own kitchen. Now that I live further from those shops, my indulgences are few and far between. I recently hosted a brunch, and realized this was an opportunity to try my own hand at making a blueberry danish, and I'm sure glad I did. I'm almost afraid to tell you how easy it was to do, because once you know the truth you'll be trying to bribe people to come over for brunch every weekend, just so you can make these delights. I mean, you can make them for yourself, but be warned that you'll probably try to eat them all... they're sinful, to say the least.

Makes 12 danishes

Ingredients:

• 8 oz. cream cheese, softened
• 1/3 cup sugar +  1 tablespoon for sprinkling
• 1 tablespoon vanilla
• 1 quart fresh blueberries  (4 cups)
• 1 package puff pastry, thawed  (I used Tenderflake, 397 grams)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
2. Mix the cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla until smooth.
3. Dust a flat work surface with flour, then roll out half of the package of puff pastry into a large rectangle, about 10x15". You want the pastry to be about 1/8" thick, like the thickness of a kitchen towel. 
4. Cut the pastry in half lengthwise, then into thirds crosswise to make 6 squares. Pierce each piece with a fork randomly around the surface, about 4-6 times. Fold each corner in to make a diamond shape, no need to be perfect with this part - just fold and go! 
5. Place the pastries evenly apart on one baking sheet. Spoon 2 tablespoons of the cream cheese mixture in the middle of each pastry, then top with a heaping pile of blueberries (about 1/3 cup each). 
6. Repeat steps 3-5 with the remaining puff pastry and bake them all for 15-20 minutes (mine took the full 20 minutes, but every oven is different so I strongly recommend you peek in at the 15 minute mark. The pastry will be puffed and light golden, and you shouldn't see any exposed raw dough from the top. 
7. Remove the danishes from the oven and let them cool for at least 5 minutes before serving. 

Notes: You can change out the blueberries for whatever is fresh or in season, such as strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, peaches -- any tender fruit will do. If you use a firm fruit like pears or apples I recommend that you slice and cook them down first (you can saute or roast apples/pears beforehand).

Cookies 'n Cream Ice Cream

This is the first type of ice cream that I made with my ice cream maker last summer, and it's been a go-to ever since. It amazingly easy to put together and requires very little effort - the only thing required for success is preparation and patience. The ice cream base should sit at least 8 hours in your fridge to ensure the sugar dissolves and the mixture is properly chilled, and then for optimal texture I recommend that you plan to leave it in your freezer to set for at least 6 hours (overnight is even better!).  This is a really great dessert item you can bring to a dinner party because it goes great along most baked goodies like brownies or cake, and even works as a standalone dessert because it's so rich.  This ice cream makes people fight over the last spoonfuls straight from the container, and it  will convert anyone who isn't sure if homemade ice cream is da bomb.


Serves 8-10
Ingredients:

• 3 cups heavy cream
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 20 Oreo cookies

Special equipment:Ice cream maker

Directions:

1. Mix the cream, sugar, and vanilla in a large bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for  8-24 hours. 
2. Once the cream base has chilled, place the Oreo cookies in a large ziploc bag, pressing the air out and sealing. Use a mallet or rolling pin to roughly crush the cookies into small pieces, aim to have the pieces no bigger than a quarter.
3. Pour the cream base into your ice cream maker and process according to manufacturer's instructions (mine took 30 minutes of churning total). When the ice cream is 5 minutes from being done in the machine add the salt and cookies. 
4. Scoop the ice cream into containers, then place them in the freezer to set up for at least 6 hours (overnight is best!). 
5. Serve immediately after removing from the freezer. The ice cream should keep for 3-5 days. 

Roasted Garlic Baba Ganoush

I'm a dips and spreads kinda gal - I like to have something I can dunk into, smear over, or spoon onto whatever delicious morsel I'm about to consume. If there's a way I can incorporate roasted garlic into said dip/spread, even better. If you're reading this and thing, Me toooo!, then read on my friend, it only gets better.  This recipe is great to have on deck for a dinner party or backyard barbeque for a few reasons: it can be made the day before so all you have to do to get it ready is remove it from the fridge. It also goes great with pretty much anything - dip veggies in it, spread it on a burger, smear it on grilled pork chops, pop it in a veggie wrap, dollop it next to chorizo sausage, serve it with roasted veggies or herby quinoa... really. I could go on and on.  The lemony pop that it brings keeps it light and fresh tasting, and it pairs well with richer foods like the aforementioned sausage or burgers.

Ingredients:

• 1 large eggplant
• 1 tablespoon tahini
• Juice from one medium lemon
• 1 scallion, thinly sliced
• 3 bulbs garlic
• Olive oil, about 1 tablespoon

Directions:

Roasted Eggplant & Mixing Bowl:

1. Set your oven to max broil (mine is 525 F). Prepare a baking sheet by lining it with foil and lightly greasing it. Set aside. 
2. Slice the eggplant into 1/2 inch thick rounds, and lay it them on the baking sheet. Broil for 20 minutes or until rounds are a deep golden color, flipping every 5 minutes. 
3. While your eggplant is roasting you can mix the tahini, lemon juice, and scallion in a medium bowl. If you have a food processor, place these ingredients in there instead! I have an immersion blender so a bowl is where I'll be headed.
4. When the eggplant is done roasting, remove it from the oven. Carefully lift opposite ends of the foil together and crimp them together (the eggplant will slide around, just be sure it stays on the foil). Bring the other ends in and crimp the foil packet closed to trap the moisture as the eggplant cools. Let it rest for about 20 minutes. You can start on the Roasted Garlic at this time.
5. After the eggplant has cooled you can unwrap the eggplant from the foil packet, then gently peel back the skin from each round and add the eggplant to your tahini mix. The eggplant should fall away from the skin quite easily at this point so don't be afraid of this step - it's quite fun! Set the bowl aside to wait for the roasted garlic.

Roasted Garlic & Finishing up: 

1. Preheat the oven to 400 F. Slice the top 1/4 inch off the top of each garlic bulb, then place the bulbs together on a sheet of foil large enough to wrap around them (roughly the same size as a sheet of paper). Drizzle the bulbs with olive oil, then wrap the foil around them bulbs snugly (like a Tootsie Roll). Place the garlic pack in the middle of the oven and roast for 45-60 min. I like to check my garlic at the 45 minute mark, and if the bulbs are not golden and almost popping out of their little pods then I put it back in for 15 minutes more. 
2. Once the garlic has roasted remove it from the oven and let it rest for about 15-20 minutes. Once it has cooled you can unwrap the bulbs and use a knife to pop out each head into your eggplant mixture.
3. Use your immersion blender or food processor to puree the ingredients together until it is a smooth consistency. Or if you're feeling wild, you can use a fork and mash roughly here and there for a chunky baba ganoush (this works best when you're using this as a side rather than a dip).  You're done! Enjoy!

I like to prep this a day in advance so the flavors have time to mingle, so at this stage I would put it in a sealed container in the fridge until I was about 15 minutes away from serving. It's also delicious warm! So do whatever the heck you want and eat it however the heck you want. Get it girl. 

Nutty Granola

I took some time away from posting recipes over the holidays in order to focus my attention on friends and family, which left me without anything new to post this month -- until now! I like to have some variation of oats for breakfast each day, and this is one that has made repeat appearances for some time. I like to make my own granola so I can control what goes into it and even more specifically the ratio of ingredients, and this granola is all about the nuts. Yes, all about nuts.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup rolled oats
• 1 tablespoon coconut oil, melted
• 1 tablespoon raw honey
• 1/2 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 cup mixed nuts, roughly chopped (almonds, cashews, hazelnuts - any nuts you want!)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 325 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 
2. Mix all ingredients except the nuts in a bowl, then spread evenly on the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until oats are lightly golden, stirring halfway through. 
3. Let the granola mix cool for 10 minutes on the sheet, then transfer to a bowl and mix in the nuts. Once granola is completely cool package it up into jars or portioned tupperware. 

You can eat the granola as is, or with a splash of milk (I'm partial to almond milk). You can add in berries or dried fruit, sprinkle in chia seeds with the milk, make it your own. 

Pecan Chocolate Chunk Bars

It's been a while since I've posted, and I have a myriad of lame excuses so we can skip them for now. Basically, life is grand and I'm happy to finally have time to share recipes I've been stock piling for some time!

This recipe was recommended by a friend and to be honest it was more like a command than a recommendation. Each time we spoke after she shared the recipe she'd ask if I'd made the recipe, and at the time I was thinking, I'll get to it! Yeesh! It's a bar recipe, no big deal.  Ha. No big deal? More like stop everything you're doing and make this bar right now deal.

Original recipe here.

Makes 30ish bars (depends how generous you're cuts are)

Ingredients
Crust:

• 1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup cold butter, cut into 1/2 pieces
• 1/4 cup brown sugar

Filling:

• 3 eggs
• 3/4 cup golden corn syrup
• 3/4 sugar
• 2 tablespoons melted butter
• 1/2 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 package large chocolate chips/chunks (just shy of 2 cups)
• 1 1/2 cup pecan halves

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line a 9x13" pan with parchment paper and set it aside.
2. Blend the flour, butter and sugar in a medium bowl with a pastry cutter or forks, until you have a crumbly mixture. Press it into the prepare pan and bake for 12-15 minutes until lightly golden.
3. Beat the eggs, corn syrup, sugar, butter, and vanilla until combined, then stir in the chocolate and pecans. Pour the filling over the crust, then bake for 25-30 minutes.  
4. Let the bars cool in the pan for about 20 minutes, then use the overhang of the parchment to lift the bars out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Cut into bars and eat your heart out.

Apple Butter

I can remember a time when I was growing up when my mom and her friends made a very large batch of apple butter in our home, and what stuck with me most was that it took a very long time and that it was scary good. I probably exaggerated in my mind just how labor intensive it was, because 99% of the time it takes to create this delicious treat is spent waiting while the slow cooker does all the work. One thing I did get right is that apple butter is just darn delicious.

I feel bad for apple butter, in the same way I feel bad for oatmeal cookies -- it doesn't look or sound glamorous but when you try it you realize that it's absolutely scrumptious. You can spread it on toast or a fresh baked biscuit (hello extra gym time), eat it with a soft cheese and water crackers, alongside pork or chicken. Or you can eat it with a spoon straight from the jar. That's always a good option.

Ingredients:

• 5 lbs apples (I used 8 Granny Smith and 6 Fuji)
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• Juice of one medium lemon
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar

Special items for canning:

• Water bath (large stock pot)
• Tongs
• Canning jars, seals, and rings
• Funnel, wide-mouthed

Directions:

1. Peel, slice, and core the apples and place them in your slow cooker. Sprinkle the sugar and cinnamon over top, then evenly pour the water, lemon juice, and vinegar over the apple slices. Use a large spoon to mix everything up. Cook on low heat for 10-12 hours. 
2. Transfer the apples to a blender and blend the apples until smooth, then return the apple butter to the slow cooker. Place the lid back on off-kilter so the steam can escape, and cook for an additional 4-5 hours, until it the apple butter has thickened (similar to the consistency of a hearty tomato sauce).
3. If you do not want to can the apple butter you can store it in the fridge for 2-3 weeks, or in the freezer for up to one year.

Canning instructions:

1. When the apple butter is almost done, prepare the jars for canning.
2. Place your jars in the bottom of a large pot, then fill the pot with water up to a couple inches past the tops of the jars. 
3. Boil the jars and the lids for 15 minutes, then use tongs to remove them. 
4. Use a funnel to spoon the hot apple butter into the jars, leaving 1/2 inch of headroom. Place the seals and screw on the lids, then return the jars to the water bath and boil them for 15 minutes. 
5. Use tongs to remove the jars of apple butter and place them on a counter top or surface where they won't be disturbed. Leave until the lids pop to seal and the apple butter has cooled, approximately 6-8 hours. Once the lids pop to seal you loosen the rings to prevent rusting. You will hear the seals popping as the contents cool, and you can also test it later by pressing on the center of  the seal - if it doesn't budge it's sealed, if it pops in and out it's not. Any jars that didn't seal can be kept in the fridge for 2-3 weeks.
6. Store your canned apple butter in a cool, dark and dry place for up to one year. Once opened, the apple butter will keep in your fridge for 2-3 weeks.

Simple Potato Salad

As the days grow hotter I try to avoid turning on my oven and instead stick with meals that can be prepared either entirely without heat (hooray for sandwiches!) or with minimal stove-top cooking. I love potato salad because it can be re-purposed into upcoming meals in so many ways. You can mix it with scrambled eggs for brunch, mash it with a little paprika and cumin and serve it with grilled chicken, chop some hard boiled eggs and dill pickles for a classic take on the potato salad, throw it in a wrap with salsa, beans, and veggies, or even eat it the same way as you prepared it for a couple days, it's tasty as is. This particular potato salad is mayo-free, too, which allows you to add other sauces later on without worrying about over-doing the sauciness (think barbeque sauce, salsa, tzaziki, hummus, etc.). That's right. This potato salad not only sets you up with a delicious side for this meal, but other meals to come as well.  And on hot summer nights, it's always a bonus to have dinner ready to grab straight from the fridge. Yep. It's pretty great.

The recipe I used is this German Potato Salad recipe from Bon Appétit. Sometimes I like only the bare bones of a recipe, and other times I come across a gem like this and I stick close to the original. The only deviations I made from the original recipe are as follows:

• I skipped the toasted caraway seeds because I do not have any on hand
• I only used 1 tablespoon of chopped fresh dill. I prepped the called-for 2 tablespoons of dill, mixed 1 tablespoon into the potatoes and tasted it and I felt that that was plenty "dilly". Obviously everyone has their own preferences, so I encourage you to make your own decisions (I hope this is already standard practice for you!). 

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds small waxy potatoes, halved or quartered to even size (I used golden baby potatoes)
• 1/4 cup olive oil  (If you have an infused olive oil such as garlic or oregano this would be a good time to try it!)
• 1/2 chopped yellow onion
• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
• Salt & Pepper to taste (I used 1/2 tsp smoked salt and 1 tsp cracked pepper)
• 4 scallions (green onions), sliced thinly
• 1+ tablespoons fresh chopped dill

Directions:

1. Place the potatoes in a large pot and cover with cold salted water. Cook until fork tender, roughly 20 minutes. Drain the potatoes and set aside in a large bowl. 
2. Meanwhile, heat a medium-size pan over medium heat. Add the oil, then the chopped onion. Cook until onions are translucent and slightly golden, about 5-8 minutes. 
3. Remove the pan from the heat and add the vinegar, then toss in the potatoes. Add the salt, pepper, scallions, and dill, mix gently with a large spoon until all potatoes are evenly coated.You can serve this warm, or cover and refrigerate up to 3 days.