TWD: Cornmeal Shortbread Cookies

Valerie of Une Gamine dans la Cuisine chose Cornmeal Shortbread Cookies for this week's Tuesdays with Dorie recipe.

This was a perfect recipe for Easter week because it was simple and the cookies were delicious.


They were buttery with just the right amount of sweetness, plus they had an added crunch thanks to the cornmeal. I really loved them and was glad I only made 1/4 recipe.

The only change I made to the recipe was to bake them for shorter than called for - only about 17 minutes, so they would stay a wee bit soft.

Thanks Valerie for a great pick and thanks Dorie for another fantastic recipe. Please check out Valerie's blog (link in the first paragraph above) or Dorie Greenspan's book "Baking, from My Home to Yours".

TWD: A Tourtely Apple Tart & Strawberry Rhubarb Double Crisp

We've had a run on totally awesome Tuesdays with Dorie recipes the past two weeks. This week, Jeanette of The Whimsical Cupcake chose A Tourtely Apple Tart. Before that, Sarah of Teapots and Cakestands chose Strawberry Rhubarb Double Crisp.

Both were so good, both made me want to eat the whole thing BY MYSELF.


The apple tart was interesting in that we cooked the apples down first, almost to a "thick applesauce" stage. The tart shell was like a shortbread cookie, so light and sandy.


Almost like a giant apple-filled cookie. TEEE-riffic!

The only downside... my overly browned edges. Next time I will cut the blind baking down to half or maybe even eliminate it all together.

Moving on to the rhubarb crisp...


(Be still my rhubarb-loving heart.)

I was over the top in love with this crisp. Even though I consider myself a rhubarb purist and usually scoff and anything "strawberry rhubarb", I have to say this dessert might have made me a convert. I think it helped that the rhubarb was the star of the show, not giving way to the usual attention hog in strawberry rhubarb desserts, the strawberries.


This crisp will definitely make an appearance in my kitchen again.

Great job, Jeanette and Sarah, on the fabulous picks. If you'd like to see the recipes, check out their blogs (see links in first paragraph of this post), or check out Dorie Greenspan's book "Baking, from my Home to Yours".

TWD: Coffee Ice Cream Tart

This week, Jessica of Domestic Deep Thought of the Day chose Coffee Ice Cream Tart for Tuesdays with Dorie.

I changed this up a bit and used vanilla ice cream and peanuts rather than coffee ice cream and almonds.


I was really surprised at how good this tasted. It was seriously delicious. I LOVED the peanut butter flavored ice cream and the sandy, sweet tart crust.

Sorry, but I gotta go! I have about a week's worth of work to do by noon tomorrow!!! I can literally feel an ulcer growing in my gut LOL.

Look for the recipe on Jessica's blog (link in first paragraph) or Dorie Greenspan's book "Baking, From my Home to Yours".

TWD: Pecan Powder Puffs

Tianne of Buttercream Barbie chose Pecan Powder Puffs for this week's Tuesdays with Dorie recipe. Oh, except that mine were ALMOND Powder Puffs. They were awesome. And crumbly. I loved them. If you'd like to see the recipe, please check out Tianne's blog (see link in first paragraph) or find yourself a copy of Dorie Greenspan's book, "Baking, From my Home to Yours".

Daring Bakers: Meringue Coffee Cake

The March 2011 Daring Baker’s Challenge was hosted by Ria of Ria’s Collection and Jamie of Life’s a Feast. Ria and Jamie challenged The Daring Bakers to bake a yeasted Meringue Coffee Cake. These are a close cousin to cinnamon rolls, but with a few twists (literally!).

Before the fillings are layered on the rolled out dough, meringue is slathered on.

Then comes the filling, which can be anything you chose really. I decided to follow the recipe, which included a light sprinkling of cinnamon sugar (just enough!), chopped pecans, and chocolate chips.

The dough is rolled up jelly-roll style and arranged in a ring.

The dough is cut through in various places. These slits can be as shallow or deep as desired.

The rings are allowed to rise, then brushed with egg wash and baked. And voila!!

These were very tasty and I loved the addition of chocolate chips. They were different from regular cinnamon rolls in that the filling seemed to melt into the bread, which was not a bad thing. I'd like to try this was a really generous layer of cinnamon and sugar and see what happens.

Thanks to Ria and Jaime for a great challenge! It was enough to bring me back from a long hiatus from daring bakers (I'm half surprised I haven't been kicked out).

If you'd like to see the recipe, click on the links in the first paragraph to either Jamie's or Ria's blogs.

TWD: Honey Nut Brownies & Citrus Currant Sunshine Muffins

Ruh roh! Somehow two Tuesdays have gone by without me posting my Tuesdays with Dorie treats. I baked them... just didn't post them!

Anyway, this week, Suzy of Suzy Homemaker chose Honey Nut Brownies and last week, Lauryn of Bella Baker chose Citrus Currant Sunshine Muffins.


First up, the brownies... from the discussion forum I heard that these "brownies" tasted more of honey than chocolate. Those that baked early advised using a honey you really like because the honey flavor was front and center. Sadly, I'm not in love with the honey I have on hand, so I used Lyle's Golden Syrup instead. Lyle's is, I believe, a British product and tastes of caramel and has a consistency much like honey. I figured it would be a perfect match. I also increased the chocolate by half again, and used cashews to add another level of tastiness.


I must say... boy, were these ever good! Wow! I couldn't stop myself from cutting off a hunk every time I walked by. I'm glad I only made 1/2 batch! Now I need to find a good honey and try them as intended.

Moving on to the Citrus Currant Sunshine Muffins, they were aptly named because the day I made them the sun came out after what has seemed like forever! I get so tired of these grey, gloomy, Ohio winter skies, I just crave sunshine so badly this time of year.

Enter the muffins...


I even took them outside, risking a too-bright picture because it was so nice to see some sun.

These tasted lightly of orange and lemon and were nice and soft.


Next time I let the clouds get to me, I'm going to bake another batch of these and see if they will work their magic again on those nasty clouds.

OK, that's all folks. If you'd like to see the recipes, please check out Dorie Greenspan's book "Baking, from My Home to Yours", or click on the links in the second paragraph for Suzy and Lauryn's web sites.

TWD: Corniest Corn Muffins

Jill of My Next Life chose Corniest Corn Muffins for this week's Tuesdays with Dorie recipe.

I was thinking about an old co-worker as I made these. (I'll call him Joe, to protect the innocent.) Joe was Irish, like, from-Ireland Irish, complete with an adorable Irish accent.

Joe had this thing about corn.


And it wasn't "A Good Thing", as Martha would say. It was a bad thing.

Joe despised corn. The mere mention of corn would send him off on a tirade (and this from a normally mild-mannered fellow). According to Joe, during the potato famine period in Irish history, a lot of people were starving, but somehow they got ahold of some corn. According to Joe, corn has no nutritional value, and so it didn't solve the famine problem and people were still starving.

My husband also worked with me at the time and he was witness to at least one lecture on the evils of corn. Nowadays, every so often, one of us will say to the other "remember how Joe used to get so upset when someone mentioned corn?".

I think Joe just might have approved of these muffins, though. They were just barely sweet, hearty muffins, chock full of corn. I haven't made cornbread many times, but when I have it usually turns out crumbly. These muffins weren't crumbly at all. I think these will be the "corn muffins" I turn to if I'm ever in need of a good recipe.

Thanks, Jill, for a great pick. Please check out Jill's site (at the link above) if you'd like to see the recipe, or see Dorie Greenspan's book "Baking From my Home to Yours".