TWD: Alsatian Apple Tart

Jessica of Cookbook Habit chose Alsatian Apple Tart for this week's Tuesdays with Dorie recipe. I'm so happy this recipe was finally chosen. I came so close (twice!) to choosing this but I got lazy both times and opted for cookies instead. So, thanks Jessica!


This tart was really simple to make. Sliced apples were placed in an unbaked tart shell and a custard mixture was poured over top. Then bake and eat! I had to add a couple of shakes of cinnamon to the custard first though (apples without cinnamon is grounds for a flogging in my book).

Anyway, it was fantastic! Seriously loved it.

OK, that's it for this week. If you'd like to see the recipe, checkout the link in the first paragraph or Dorie Greenspan's book "Baking, From my Home to Yours".

TWD: Mini Madeleines plus some Catch Up

Di of Di’s Kitchen Notebook chose Mini Madeleines for this week's Tuesdays with Dorie recipe. (Valerie of Une Gamine dans la Cuisine also chose Fall Butternut Squash Pie, but it seems my childhood experiences of being made to "clean my plate" have scarred me for life when it comes to squash. Needless to say, I didn't make the pie.)

Madeleines are a cake-like cookie, baked in a special pan. They are famous for sticking to the pan and for being prized for the little hump formed on the tops if you "do it right". Sadly, mine were hump-less, but happily they didn't stick to the pan.


I'm also going to share some recipes I've made but haven't blogged about over the past few months.

Last week, Nicole of Cookies on Friday chose Far Breton. A French dessert, it's 80% custard, 20% cake. I used dried cranberries and cherries rather than the prunes and raisins called for in the recipe. I thought it looked like bacon-covered quiche.


It was definitely eggy! I liked it but then, I like eggs.


In mid-October, Hindy of Bubie’s Little Baker chose Ginger Jazzed Brownies.

These spicy little guys had both ground ginger and fresh ginger for a double whammy of ginger. As usual, when mixing spices with chocolate, I couldn't decide if I liked them or not. But they were interesting and something different.


Going all the way back to August, Margie of Tea and Scones chose Golden Brioche Loaves.

I actually made this a loooong time ago when we made one of the bread puddings (can't remember which, though). The brioche by itself was really nice. Come to think of it, I should make it again.


Also in August, Gaye of Laws of the Kitchen chose Tropical Crumble.

This was an unusual crumble made with bananas and mango. I wasn't really sure I would like it, but with the first bite... true love!! It was kind of weird, but the taste reminded me a lot of banana baby food. I remember when my kids were babies, when banana baby food was on the menu it would be - a bite for you, a bite for me, a bite for you, a bite for me... (gee, that sounds terrible, doesn't it?) I love that stuff!


I made 1/2 recipe and it fit in two mini pie pans.

Too bad I didn't have this recipe before. My poor kids would have been better fed!


Another August recipe, Caitlin of Engineer Baker chose Cornmeal and Fruit Loaf.

For me, this was just OK. One by-product of baking EVERY single recipe in a baking book is that you find out what you like and what you don't. I've found out that I'm not a huge fan of muffins, biscuits, or quickbreads. I mean, they're OK and I'm not likely to turn down banana bread, but you won't find me chosing them over cookies and pie.


Whew! That's about it. If you'd like to see the recipes, check out Dorie Greenspan's book "Baking, from my Home to Yours", or click on the links (i.e. click on the names of the desserts) above.

TWD: Flip-Over Plum Cake & Cocoa Almond Meringues

Becky of Project Domestication chose Flip-Over Plum Cake for this week's Tuesdays with Dorie recipe.

Yah, I know, those don't look much like Plum Cake, do they? That's cause they're not. After baking the cake, sharing it with friends and family and enjoying it very much, I can't believe I forgot to take a picture of it!! Duh. Anyway, the cake was fanTAStic. It almost seemed to be more of a crumble than a cake, but whatever, it was GOOD.

Just so I would have a picture to post, I made the Cocoa Almond Meringues, chosen by Mike of Ugly Food for an Ugly Dude back in August.


YUM! they were light and crumbly and melt in your mouth good. Not to mention a little chewy inside.

Thanks to Becky and Mike for two very good picks. If you'd like to see the recipes you can visit the links above or check out Dorie Greenspan's book "Baking, From my Home to Yours".

Daring Bakers: (Chocolate) Croissants

If you saw the movie, "It's Complicated", then you might remember the scene that inspired my friend Monica to ask our little baking club to try Chocolate Croissants. (Coincidentally, Croissants just happen to be this month's Daring Bakers challenge.)

If you didn't see the movie, it goes something like this: the owner of a gorgeous bakery pops into the silent bakery late at night after shmoozing with her handsome new (boy)friend over dinner and drinks. They casually decide to make croissants. It is simple and sexy, and apparently done sans mess. Apparently, it only takes about 10 minutes.


Ha! I don't think so. Maybe in the movies it's short and sweet, but in real life, it is just a tiny bit more complicated (harhar). You might even say a labor of love (again with the harhar).

But the results are just as decadent (and sexy) as in the movies.


They are fantastic, which they well should be because it's a major effort. Although, to be fair, they're not hard, just time consuming.

We decided to make ours chocolate, in keeping with the movie theme. We tried rolling rectangle as well as triangle shaped pieces of dough. Even though the triangles looked prettier when baked, the chocolate to croissant ratio was better with the rectangles... the pointy little ends were skimpy on chocolate.

Thanks so much to Sarah for a great pick this month. (And now for the required blurb----> The Daring Bakers go retro this month! Thanks to one of our very talented non-blogging members, Sarah, the Daring Bakers were challenged to make Croissants using a recipe from the Queen of French Cooking, none other than Julia Child!)

For the recipe, I'm going to pass you along you mamaliga, who's got the recipe and some really fantastic how-to pictures as well. Here you go ---> click here for the recipe.

TWD: Salt and Pepper Cocoa Shortbreads

Wow, has it really been three months since I've blogged? Chalk it up to a long and busy summer. Thanks to an extra goofy school year schedule, the kids got out of school in late May and didn't go back until Sept. 6. (Pretty sure someone was conspiring against us stay home moms, but I have yet to prove it.)

I barely baked at all this summer, aside from the occasionally requested batch of chocolate chip cookies. Good thing too, because I would have probably been hitting the baked goods hard come August.

Blah, blah, blah... anyway, back to baking. This weeks Tuesdays with Dorie recipe, Salt and Pepper Cocoa Shortbreads, was chosen by Tianne of Buttercream Barbie.


Salt definitely has it's place in baking, but pepper? Weirdly enough, you couldn't really taste the pepper even though there seemed to be quite a lot (especially when any-at-all seems like a lot... for cookies!) It was more of a warm mouth-sensation punctuated by a little kick in the back of your throat. They were very good, with the crumbly, dry texture you expect with good shortbread, and just the right amount of chocolate.

I say, bring on the pepper! Thanks for a great pick, Buttercream Barbie. If you'd like to see the recipe, please check out Tianne's blog (link in first paragraph) or Dorie Greenspan's book "Baking, From my Home to Yours".

TWD: Chocolate Biscotti

I feel like I won the lottery this week! and I kind of did. Believe it or not, after three years of baking, chopping, caramelizing, and mixing, all of the Tuesdays with Dorie (TWD) bakers have had a turn picking the weekly recipe and we're (kind of) starting over. Instead of going back to the beginning of the list, however, Laurie, founder of TWD, has opted for a "pick a name out of the hat" approach and so I get to pick this week. YEAH!!

I have to take a moment to applaud Dorie for a really fabulous baking book. After making 150 or so of the recipes from this book, I feel qualified to say that this is one of the best baking books EVER. The recipes are consistently good, the directions clear and precise, and there's so much variety. Bravo to Dorie!

There were still plenty of tempting recipes to choose from and I went with the Chocolate Biscotti.

Dorie's directions first call for mixing the ingredients and rolling halves of the dough into 12" logs, then flattening them out. I opted for a lazier approach and dropped hunks of the batter into loose rows.

I dipped my fingers in some cocoa powder and nudged, prodded, and coaxed the cookie dough into flattish logs. Then I sprinkled on some sugar, as directed.


Next came the first round of baking, about 25 minutes.


The baked logs were allowed to cool slightly and then sliced.


Next, the slices are placed cut-side-up back on the baking sheet and then into the oven they go for their second round of baking. Here's my secret, though, I only bake about half of them the second time. I leave some on the racks to cool because I think they're just perfect at this point.


Then all that's left to to kick back and enjoy! These biscotti were perfectly chocolate and just plain delish. If you noticed, I left half of them plain and half of them had chopped pistachios and dried cherries added. Either way, they were awesome!

Chocolate Biscotti

Reproduced with permission from "Baking, From my home to yours", by Dorie Greenspan.

2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tablespoons instant espresso powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 stick (6 tablespoons) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup chopped almonds, blanched or unblanched
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped, or 3/4 cup store-bought mini chocolate chips
sugar, for dusting

Getting ready: Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment or silicone mat.

Sift together the flour, cocoa, espresso powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt.

Working with a stand mixer, preferably fitted with a paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar together on medium speed until pale, about 2 minutes; the mixture may be crumbly. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, add the eggs and vanilla and beat for another 2 minutes; don't worry if the mixture looks curdled. Reduce the mixer speed to low and mix in the dry ingredients in 3 additions, mixing only until a dough forms. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Mix in the chopped nuts and chocolate, then turn the dough out onto a work surface and knead in any dry ingredients that might have escaped mixing.

Divide the dough in half. Working with one half at a time, roll the dough into 12 inch long logs. Flatten both logs with the palm of your hand so that they are 1/2 to 1 inch high, about 2 inches across and sort of rectangular, then carefully lift the logs onto the baking sheet. Sprinkle each log with a little sugar.

Bake the logs for about 25 minutes, or until they are just slightly firm. The logs will spread and crack - and that's just fine. Remove the baking sheet from the oven, put it on a cooling rack and cool the logs for about 20 minutes. (Leave the oven on.)

Working with one log at a time, using a long serrated knife, cut each log into slices between 1/2 and 3/4 inch thick. Stand the slices up on the baking sheet - you'll have an army of biscotti - and bake the cookies again, this time for just 10 minutes.

Transfer the biscotti to a rack to cool.

TWD: Blueberry Brown Sugar Plain Cake

Cindy of Everyday Insanity chose Blueberry-Brown Sugar Plain Cake for this week's Tuesdays with Dorie recipe.

Simple, cinnamony, with a big hit of blueberry; this was a perfect snacking cake.


Perfect for this time of year too, with fruits becoming more plentiful (and cheaper!) in the stores.

I would definitely make this again.

Thanks so much to Cindy for a great pick and Dorie for a great recipe. If you'd like to see the recipe you can visit Cindy's blog (link above) or Dorie Greenspan's book "Baking, From my Home to Yours".