Monday, December 10, 2012
Peppermint Twist Cheescake
Ingredients:
1 box chocolate wafer cookies (I used gluten-free chocolate cookies) shopping list
1/4 cup sugar
1 stick butter
2 pounds cream cheese, room temperature
1 cup sugar
4 large eggs
1/4 cup half and half
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon peppermint extract
1/3 cup peppermint mints, red and white candy canes or round candies, crushed
1 cup sour cream
3 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon peppermint extract
peppermint mints, additional, crushed for decoration
Crust: Wrap outside of a 9" springform pan with aluminum foil. Process cookies and sugar in food processor until fine. Add butter and blend thoroughly. Press into bottom and up sides of pan. Refrigerate crust while making filling.
Filling: Preheat oven to 350 F. Beat cream cheese in large bowl until smooth. Add sugar and beat until well-blended. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating after each addition. Add half & half and the extracts. Stir in crushed candy canes. Pour filling into crust.
Bake until filling is set in center and edges are puffed, about 50 minutes. (Took considerably longer for me...maybe another half an hour or so.) Transfer to rack and cool 10 minutes. Maintain oven temperature.
Topping: Stir sour cream, sugar and extracts in small bowl to blend. Pour mixture over hot cheesecake, covering completely. Return cheesecake to oven and bake until top begins to set, about 8 minutes. Transfer to rack; cool completely. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Serve: Using small knife, cut around sides of pan to loosen cake. Remove sides of pan and garnish just before serving with additional crushed peppermint candy canes.
NOTE: I didn't use the topping as there wasn't enough room in my pan for it. Didn't miss it! Delicious without the topping. (Does that make this a diet recipe if you leave off the topping? LOL) Also, sprinkle the crushed peppermint candies just before you serve it or they will melt and not be as pretty. It will taste just as good though!
Saturday, December 8, 2012
Tomatoes as deserts
http://soursaltybittersweet.com/content/case-tomatoes-dessert-and-four-recipes-fresh-tomato-juice-tomato-curd-shortbread-squares-and
The Case for Tomatoes as Dessert and Four Recipes: Fresh Tomato Juice, Tomato Curd, Shortbread Squares, and Candied Basil
Posted by Margot | Filed under: bar cookies basil candy curd dessert improvising pastry recipe seasonal shortbread tomato tomato juice
AUG
28
2010
The Legal Exception: Green Tomato Pie
When the Supreme Court decided in Nix v. Hedden that tomatoes couldn’t be legally considered a fruit because they weren’t customarily eaten for dessert, there was only one real exception: green tomato pie. The green tomatoes left on the vine at the end of the growing season aren’t especially palatable, at least when they’re raw. They’re hard, and contain substantially less of the sugar, acids, and aromatic compounds that give ripe tomatoes their distinctive flavor. Thanks in part to the 1991 Academy Award-nominated film based on Fannie Flagg's novel Fried Green Tomatoes and the Whistle Stop Cafe, many people are familiar with the idea that green tomatoes can be eaten breaded and fried. Fewer people know that green tomatoes are such a blank slate that they can just as easily be used in sweet preparations. Sliced or minced and cooked in a pastry crust with lots sugar and some cinnamon or other spices, tomatoes make a sweet-tart fruit filling reminiscent of apples. The dessert was common in the American South by the mid-19th C.
However, it specifically relies on tomatoes that don’t taste like tomatoes. While it might seem like ripe tomatoes would be the more obvious choice for desserts because they’re so much sweeter, the savory meatiness imparted by the high glutamate content makes the flavor seem inappropriate for sweet applications.
At Least It’s Not Raw Trout
Still, if there’s anything the age of salted caramel and bacon chocolate should have taught us, it’s the fact that sugar plays well with salty, meaty flavors traditionally confined primarily to savory appetizers and main dishes. Indeed, dessert ice cream made with traditionally-savory flavors has become one of the hallmarks of avant-garde cuisine. Smoked bacon and egg ice cream is one of Heston Blumenthal’s most celebrated creations—and, notably, served with a sweet tomato jam as part of the breakfast-themed dessert that’s a fixture on the menu of his three-Michelin-starred restaurant The Fat Duck. A San Francisco ice creamery named Humphry Slocombe recently profiled in The New York Times offers many savory-sweet flavors including foie gras, “government cheese,” and salted licorice. And the competitors on Iron Chef America have presented the judges with ice cream desserts using secret ingredients ranging from abalone to the infamous raw trout.
Tomato ice cream may sound like just another novelty or oddball flavor, but in fact, it may have preceded all this recent nouveau frippery, possibly even dating back to the very origins of ice cream in America. In the 18th C., when ice cream was still a relatively new invention and hadn’t yet become common in England or America, Benjamin Franklin got his first taste of the churned, frozen custard while visiting Paris. He liked it so much that he wrote in a letter home: “I am making an effort to acquire the formula so we may sample this lovely fare upon my return to Philadelphia.” French and American cookbooks from the era suggest that the most popular flavors back then were apricot, raspberry, rose, chocolate, and cinnamon, but it has been rumored that the flavor Ben Franklin liked best was tomato.
Given the lack of documentary evidence for the existence of tomato ice cream in the 18th C. and in light of the Nix v. Hedden decision, the Franklin rumor is improbable. However, after making something very akin to tomato ice cream last year for Battle Tomato, I feel like it’s not entirely impossible. Prepared with enough sugar, tomato is a perfectly plausible dessert flavor—like strawberry’s slightly funky cousin or a less-tart gooseberry. It’s a tiny bit peculiar, perhaps, but also really alluring, a savory-sweet combination reminiscent of salt-water taffy or yogurt-covered pretzels or anything else that simultaneously hits sour, salty, and sweet tastes. It can be really delicious.
Tomato Squares
When I was trying to figure out what kind of dessert to make for the housewarming party—something I hadn’t made in a while, something I’d only make for company—Brian suggested lemon squares. I’d just been thinking that basically any dessert you can make with lemons should also work with tomato, so I decided to put that to the test. Tomato juice may not be quite as acidic as lemon juice, but I thought it would be tart enough to set off the buttery richness of a shortbread crust and eggy curd filling, but I also hoped the bars might get a little extra something from the savory-ness of the tomato.
I started by making some fresh tomato juice using heirlooms from the garden, which turned out insanely good—perhaps the purest, richest tomato flavor I’ve ever tasted. I used about a cup of that in place of most of the lemon juice in my standard lemon curd recipe, which uses a basic cake-mixing technique to obviate the need for straining by coating the egg proteins in fat before adding the acid. That also turned out totally delicious—the first time I tasted it to see if I needed to adjust the level of sugar or acidity, I just kept going back for more. Just as I had hoped, the tomato added a totally new dimension to the curd, giving it a little oomph and intrigue. I put most of it in the refrigerator and then licked the pan clean. I used the curd to top the shortbread crust that Rose Levy Beranbaum recommends for lemon bars, which I like because it stays crisp even after being topped with a wet filling, cooked it until the curd was just barely set. The curd was more of a golden color, but as it cooked, the red pigments started to come through more. And voila: tomato squares!
Candied Basil Leaves
Thinking they looked a little plain on their own, I decided to garnish them with some candied basil leaves—like a sweet take on caprese salad. First, I tried the method suggested by a cookbook called Wine Mondays, which involved poaching the leaves in a sugar syrup with a high ratio of sugar : water and then baking them at a low temperature until they crystallize. Unfortunately, they discolored, probably because there was a hot baking stone still in the oven and I’m an idiot.
So I improvised a second batch by simply poaching the leaves in a 1:1 simple syrup, dredging them in some extra sugar to crystallize them, and drying them at room temperature on wax paper. That worked pretty well, although once I put them on the bars, they absorbed a little moisture from them and ended up soggier than I would have liked. If I ever decide to candy leaves again, I’ll probably use another method I’ve read about that involves brushing the leaves with raw egg white, dredging them in sugar, and then baking them at a very low temp (~150F) until they’re hard and dry.
Very similar to candied mint leaves—intensely sweet and herbal.
Please, Try This At Home
I’ve included all the recipes I used below, separated in case all you’re looking for is a good recipe for fresh tomato juice. If you want to try making tomato bars but this seems intimidating or tedious, there are lots of ways to simplify the process. You could use store-bought tomato juice instead of making your own, and probably should if you can’t get vine-ripened tomatoes from a garden or farmer’s market because at least canned and bottled tomato products are made with vine-ripened tomatoes at their peak, unlike the tomatoes you get at most supermarkets. If you don’t want to bother with a cooked tomato curd, I’ve included a recipe for an uncooked bar cookie filling below which you could use fresh or store-bought tomato juice in. Obviously, the candied basil leaves are optional. This doesn’t have to be a major undertaking.
You could also use tomato juice in place of citrus juice or fresh, ripe tomatoes in place of fresh fruit in any other dessert recipe. If using fresh tomatoes, you probably want to peel and seed them first to prevent them from watering down the recipe too much. I can imagine fresh tomatoes in place of peaches or cherries in a pie, or sweet cherry tomatoes caramelized on top of a tarte tatin. You could whisk tomato sauce or tomato paste into a standard cake, custard, or icing recipe or use slightly cooked-down tomato puree in place of applesauce or pumpkin puree in a muffin or spice cake. If you think the people you’re serving might be wary of tomatoes for dessert, you can always use the strategy Campbell’s used to sell its Tomato Soup Cake recipe to thousands of housewives during the Great Depression: call it “Mystery Cake” (or pie, or ice cream or whatever) and make people guess at the key ingredient. They’ll come to the realization that it’s delicious before they ever figure out that it’s tomato.
Recipe: Fresh Tomato Juice (from Simply Recipes)
(makes about 1 1/2 to 2 cups of juice)
Ingredients:
1 1/2 lbs tomatoes
2 T. sugar
1/2 t. salt
2 T. lemon juice
Method:
1. Core and chop the tomatoes roughly.
2. Place in a medium saucepan with as much of juice as you can get off the cutting board, and the rest of the ingredients.
3. Simmer for 25-30 minutes, or until the flesh is mostly broken down and very liquid.
4. Force through a fine mesh sieve or several layers of cheesecloth and discard the solids.
Recipe: Tomato Curd (adapted from Fine Cooking)
(makes about 4 cups, more than enough to fill a 6-layer cake, two 9” pies, or a 9x13 pan of bar cookies; halve to fill a two-layer cake, one 9” pie, or an 8x8 pan of bar cookies)
Ingredients:
6 oz. (12 Tbs.) butter, softened
2 cups sugar
4 large eggs
4 large egg yolks
1 cup tomato juice
1/3 cup lemon juice
Method
1. Using a stand or hand mixer or food processor, cream together the butter and sugar for at least 1 min or until the mixture is smooth and begins to lighten in color.
2. Add the eggs and egg yolks one at a time, beating after each addition and for 2 minutes after all the eggs have been added.
3. Add the tomato juice and lemon juice and beat until smooth. Mixture will likely look curdled or uneven.
4. Pour the mixture into a medium saucepan and place over low heat. Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture begins to look smooth.
5. Raise the heat to medium and cook, still stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens just enough to coat a spoon or spatula thickly enough that you can run your finger through it and see a trail. 170F on a candy thermometer—the mixture should not boil, but may begin to bubble gently at the edges and steam a little bit.
6. Chill until ready to use.
Recipe: Shortbread Squares (adapted from Rose Levy Beranbaum)
(fills a 9x13 pan; halve for 8x8)
Ingredients:
For the crust:
20 T. (12 oz) butter
4 T. powdered sugar
4 T. granulated sugar
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour or 3 cups cake/pastry flour
1/2 t. salt
For the filling:
approximately 4 cups of fruit curd, pastry cream, or cheesecake batter
OR
8 large eggs
2 c. sugar
1 t. baking powder
2/3 c. fresh lemon juice (or substitute 1/3 cup of any other juice, like guava or cranberry)
2 t. lemon zest
2 cups fresh or thawed frozen fruit (optional; omit for lemon bars; however, blueberries and lemon make a great combination)
powdered sugar for dusting
Method:
For the crust:
1. Preheat the oven to 325 F.
2. Cut butter into 1-inch cubes and chill.
3. In a food processor, process the granulated sugar for 1 minute or until very fine—sugar dust will probably rise from the food processor like smoke, that’s normal. Add the flour, powdered sugar, and salt and pulse to combine. If you don’t have a food processor, just whisk the dry ingredients together.
4. Add the chilled pieces of butter and pulse until it’s just a lot of moist, crumbly pieces and no dry flour particles remain.
If you don’t have a food processor, cut the butter into the dry ingredients with a pastry cutter or two crisscrossing knives.
5. Dump the crumbs directly into an ungreased 9x13 pan and gently press all over to make it a solid layer of shortbread dough.
6. Prick the dough all over with a fork—the dough may want to come away with the tines, I just use two fingers to hold the dough down on either side of the fork tines as I quickly pierce the crust.
7. Bake 30-40 min or just until barely browning at the edges.
For the filling:
If using a prepared filling, simply spread it over the top of the crust and then return to the oven for 25-35 minutes or until the filling just barely jiggles in the center when the pan is shaken.
If using the filling recipe above:
1. Whisk together the sugar and baking powder and then combine with the eggs and whisk until they are beaten well and the mixture is smooth.
2. Whisk in the lemon juice and zest.
3. Stir in the fruit, if using and pour the egg mixture over the shortbread crust.
4. Return to the oven and bake until the filling is just firm and does not move when the pan is gently nudged, about 25 minutes. Remove from oven and dust with powdered sugar.
Recipe: Candied Basil
whole basil leaves (about 20 large or 40 small)
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup sugar, divided
1. Combine 1/4 cup water and 1/4 cup sugar in a small saucepan over low heat and stir until the sugar is dissolved.
2. Remove the syrup from the heat and let cool to lukewarm (the bottom of the pan should be cool enough to touch).
3. Place clean, dry basil leaves in the syrup and let sit for 5-10 minutes.
4. Spread the remaining 1/4 cup sugar on a baking sheet. Toss the leaves in the sugar.
5. Place the leaves on wax paper and let them dry overnight or for at least 4 hrs.
Comment viewing options
Select your preferred way to display the comments and click "Save settings" to activate your changes.
green tomato pie
Submitted by P J Evans (not verified) on Wed, 09/01/2010 - 23:30.
My grandmother made green tomato pie one time while she was living with us (she would have been nearly 90 at the time). It was pretty tasty - she used raisins in it, as well as 'white' tomatoes*. It tasted like mince pie. (You can find recipes for the filling under names like 'mock mincemeat' in older cookbooks, and even some more recent ones.)
*'White' tomatoes are full-sized tomatoes, just before they start to ripen. They're actually a whitish green at that point, instead of really green.
reply
The Case for Tomatoes as Dessert and Four Recipes: Fresh Tomato Juice, Tomato Curd, Shortbread Squares, and Candied Basil
Posted by Margot | Filed under: bar cookies basil candy curd dessert improvising pastry recipe seasonal shortbread tomato tomato juice
AUG
28
2010
The Legal Exception: Green Tomato Pie
When the Supreme Court decided in Nix v. Hedden that tomatoes couldn’t be legally considered a fruit because they weren’t customarily eaten for dessert, there was only one real exception: green tomato pie. The green tomatoes left on the vine at the end of the growing season aren’t especially palatable, at least when they’re raw. They’re hard, and contain substantially less of the sugar, acids, and aromatic compounds that give ripe tomatoes their distinctive flavor. Thanks in part to the 1991 Academy Award-nominated film based on Fannie Flagg's novel Fried Green Tomatoes and the Whistle Stop Cafe, many people are familiar with the idea that green tomatoes can be eaten breaded and fried. Fewer people know that green tomatoes are such a blank slate that they can just as easily be used in sweet preparations. Sliced or minced and cooked in a pastry crust with lots sugar and some cinnamon or other spices, tomatoes make a sweet-tart fruit filling reminiscent of apples. The dessert was common in the American South by the mid-19th C.
However, it specifically relies on tomatoes that don’t taste like tomatoes. While it might seem like ripe tomatoes would be the more obvious choice for desserts because they’re so much sweeter, the savory meatiness imparted by the high glutamate content makes the flavor seem inappropriate for sweet applications.
At Least It’s Not Raw Trout
Still, if there’s anything the age of salted caramel and bacon chocolate should have taught us, it’s the fact that sugar plays well with salty, meaty flavors traditionally confined primarily to savory appetizers and main dishes. Indeed, dessert ice cream made with traditionally-savory flavors has become one of the hallmarks of avant-garde cuisine. Smoked bacon and egg ice cream is one of Heston Blumenthal’s most celebrated creations—and, notably, served with a sweet tomato jam as part of the breakfast-themed dessert that’s a fixture on the menu of his three-Michelin-starred restaurant The Fat Duck. A San Francisco ice creamery named Humphry Slocombe recently profiled in The New York Times offers many savory-sweet flavors including foie gras, “government cheese,” and salted licorice. And the competitors on Iron Chef America have presented the judges with ice cream desserts using secret ingredients ranging from abalone to the infamous raw trout.
Tomato ice cream may sound like just another novelty or oddball flavor, but in fact, it may have preceded all this recent nouveau frippery, possibly even dating back to the very origins of ice cream in America. In the 18th C., when ice cream was still a relatively new invention and hadn’t yet become common in England or America, Benjamin Franklin got his first taste of the churned, frozen custard while visiting Paris. He liked it so much that he wrote in a letter home: “I am making an effort to acquire the formula so we may sample this lovely fare upon my return to Philadelphia.” French and American cookbooks from the era suggest that the most popular flavors back then were apricot, raspberry, rose, chocolate, and cinnamon, but it has been rumored that the flavor Ben Franklin liked best was tomato.
Given the lack of documentary evidence for the existence of tomato ice cream in the 18th C. and in light of the Nix v. Hedden decision, the Franklin rumor is improbable. However, after making something very akin to tomato ice cream last year for Battle Tomato, I feel like it’s not entirely impossible. Prepared with enough sugar, tomato is a perfectly plausible dessert flavor—like strawberry’s slightly funky cousin or a less-tart gooseberry. It’s a tiny bit peculiar, perhaps, but also really alluring, a savory-sweet combination reminiscent of salt-water taffy or yogurt-covered pretzels or anything else that simultaneously hits sour, salty, and sweet tastes. It can be really delicious.
Tomato Squares
When I was trying to figure out what kind of dessert to make for the housewarming party—something I hadn’t made in a while, something I’d only make for company—Brian suggested lemon squares. I’d just been thinking that basically any dessert you can make with lemons should also work with tomato, so I decided to put that to the test. Tomato juice may not be quite as acidic as lemon juice, but I thought it would be tart enough to set off the buttery richness of a shortbread crust and eggy curd filling, but I also hoped the bars might get a little extra something from the savory-ness of the tomato.
I started by making some fresh tomato juice using heirlooms from the garden, which turned out insanely good—perhaps the purest, richest tomato flavor I’ve ever tasted. I used about a cup of that in place of most of the lemon juice in my standard lemon curd recipe, which uses a basic cake-mixing technique to obviate the need for straining by coating the egg proteins in fat before adding the acid. That also turned out totally delicious—the first time I tasted it to see if I needed to adjust the level of sugar or acidity, I just kept going back for more. Just as I had hoped, the tomato added a totally new dimension to the curd, giving it a little oomph and intrigue. I put most of it in the refrigerator and then licked the pan clean. I used the curd to top the shortbread crust that Rose Levy Beranbaum recommends for lemon bars, which I like because it stays crisp even after being topped with a wet filling, cooked it until the curd was just barely set. The curd was more of a golden color, but as it cooked, the red pigments started to come through more. And voila: tomato squares!
Candied Basil Leaves
Thinking they looked a little plain on their own, I decided to garnish them with some candied basil leaves—like a sweet take on caprese salad. First, I tried the method suggested by a cookbook called Wine Mondays, which involved poaching the leaves in a sugar syrup with a high ratio of sugar : water and then baking them at a low temperature until they crystallize. Unfortunately, they discolored, probably because there was a hot baking stone still in the oven and I’m an idiot.
So I improvised a second batch by simply poaching the leaves in a 1:1 simple syrup, dredging them in some extra sugar to crystallize them, and drying them at room temperature on wax paper. That worked pretty well, although once I put them on the bars, they absorbed a little moisture from them and ended up soggier than I would have liked. If I ever decide to candy leaves again, I’ll probably use another method I’ve read about that involves brushing the leaves with raw egg white, dredging them in sugar, and then baking them at a very low temp (~150F) until they’re hard and dry.
Very similar to candied mint leaves—intensely sweet and herbal.
Please, Try This At Home
I’ve included all the recipes I used below, separated in case all you’re looking for is a good recipe for fresh tomato juice. If you want to try making tomato bars but this seems intimidating or tedious, there are lots of ways to simplify the process. You could use store-bought tomato juice instead of making your own, and probably should if you can’t get vine-ripened tomatoes from a garden or farmer’s market because at least canned and bottled tomato products are made with vine-ripened tomatoes at their peak, unlike the tomatoes you get at most supermarkets. If you don’t want to bother with a cooked tomato curd, I’ve included a recipe for an uncooked bar cookie filling below which you could use fresh or store-bought tomato juice in. Obviously, the candied basil leaves are optional. This doesn’t have to be a major undertaking.
You could also use tomato juice in place of citrus juice or fresh, ripe tomatoes in place of fresh fruit in any other dessert recipe. If using fresh tomatoes, you probably want to peel and seed them first to prevent them from watering down the recipe too much. I can imagine fresh tomatoes in place of peaches or cherries in a pie, or sweet cherry tomatoes caramelized on top of a tarte tatin. You could whisk tomato sauce or tomato paste into a standard cake, custard, or icing recipe or use slightly cooked-down tomato puree in place of applesauce or pumpkin puree in a muffin or spice cake. If you think the people you’re serving might be wary of tomatoes for dessert, you can always use the strategy Campbell’s used to sell its Tomato Soup Cake recipe to thousands of housewives during the Great Depression: call it “Mystery Cake” (or pie, or ice cream or whatever) and make people guess at the key ingredient. They’ll come to the realization that it’s delicious before they ever figure out that it’s tomato.
Recipe: Fresh Tomato Juice (from Simply Recipes)
(makes about 1 1/2 to 2 cups of juice)
Ingredients:
1 1/2 lbs tomatoes
2 T. sugar
1/2 t. salt
2 T. lemon juice
Method:
1. Core and chop the tomatoes roughly.
2. Place in a medium saucepan with as much of juice as you can get off the cutting board, and the rest of the ingredients.
3. Simmer for 25-30 minutes, or until the flesh is mostly broken down and very liquid.
4. Force through a fine mesh sieve or several layers of cheesecloth and discard the solids.
Recipe: Tomato Curd (adapted from Fine Cooking)
(makes about 4 cups, more than enough to fill a 6-layer cake, two 9” pies, or a 9x13 pan of bar cookies; halve to fill a two-layer cake, one 9” pie, or an 8x8 pan of bar cookies)
Ingredients:
6 oz. (12 Tbs.) butter, softened
2 cups sugar
4 large eggs
4 large egg yolks
1 cup tomato juice
1/3 cup lemon juice
Method
1. Using a stand or hand mixer or food processor, cream together the butter and sugar for at least 1 min or until the mixture is smooth and begins to lighten in color.
2. Add the eggs and egg yolks one at a time, beating after each addition and for 2 minutes after all the eggs have been added.
3. Add the tomato juice and lemon juice and beat until smooth. Mixture will likely look curdled or uneven.
4. Pour the mixture into a medium saucepan and place over low heat. Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture begins to look smooth.
5. Raise the heat to medium and cook, still stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens just enough to coat a spoon or spatula thickly enough that you can run your finger through it and see a trail. 170F on a candy thermometer—the mixture should not boil, but may begin to bubble gently at the edges and steam a little bit.
6. Chill until ready to use.
Recipe: Shortbread Squares (adapted from Rose Levy Beranbaum)
(fills a 9x13 pan; halve for 8x8)
Ingredients:
For the crust:
20 T. (12 oz) butter
4 T. powdered sugar
4 T. granulated sugar
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour or 3 cups cake/pastry flour
1/2 t. salt
For the filling:
approximately 4 cups of fruit curd, pastry cream, or cheesecake batter
OR
8 large eggs
2 c. sugar
1 t. baking powder
2/3 c. fresh lemon juice (or substitute 1/3 cup of any other juice, like guava or cranberry)
2 t. lemon zest
2 cups fresh or thawed frozen fruit (optional; omit for lemon bars; however, blueberries and lemon make a great combination)
powdered sugar for dusting
Method:
For the crust:
1. Preheat the oven to 325 F.
2. Cut butter into 1-inch cubes and chill.
3. In a food processor, process the granulated sugar for 1 minute or until very fine—sugar dust will probably rise from the food processor like smoke, that’s normal. Add the flour, powdered sugar, and salt and pulse to combine. If you don’t have a food processor, just whisk the dry ingredients together.
4. Add the chilled pieces of butter and pulse until it’s just a lot of moist, crumbly pieces and no dry flour particles remain.
If you don’t have a food processor, cut the butter into the dry ingredients with a pastry cutter or two crisscrossing knives.
5. Dump the crumbs directly into an ungreased 9x13 pan and gently press all over to make it a solid layer of shortbread dough.
6. Prick the dough all over with a fork—the dough may want to come away with the tines, I just use two fingers to hold the dough down on either side of the fork tines as I quickly pierce the crust.
7. Bake 30-40 min or just until barely browning at the edges.
For the filling:
If using a prepared filling, simply spread it over the top of the crust and then return to the oven for 25-35 minutes or until the filling just barely jiggles in the center when the pan is shaken.
If using the filling recipe above:
1. Whisk together the sugar and baking powder and then combine with the eggs and whisk until they are beaten well and the mixture is smooth.
2. Whisk in the lemon juice and zest.
3. Stir in the fruit, if using and pour the egg mixture over the shortbread crust.
4. Return to the oven and bake until the filling is just firm and does not move when the pan is gently nudged, about 25 minutes. Remove from oven and dust with powdered sugar.
Recipe: Candied Basil
whole basil leaves (about 20 large or 40 small)
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup sugar, divided
1. Combine 1/4 cup water and 1/4 cup sugar in a small saucepan over low heat and stir until the sugar is dissolved.
2. Remove the syrup from the heat and let cool to lukewarm (the bottom of the pan should be cool enough to touch).
3. Place clean, dry basil leaves in the syrup and let sit for 5-10 minutes.
4. Spread the remaining 1/4 cup sugar on a baking sheet. Toss the leaves in the sugar.
5. Place the leaves on wax paper and let them dry overnight or for at least 4 hrs.
Comment viewing options
Select your preferred way to display the comments and click "Save settings" to activate your changes.
green tomato pie
Submitted by P J Evans (not verified) on Wed, 09/01/2010 - 23:30.
My grandmother made green tomato pie one time while she was living with us (she would have been nearly 90 at the time). It was pretty tasty - she used raisins in it, as well as 'white' tomatoes*. It tasted like mince pie. (You can find recipes for the filling under names like 'mock mincemeat' in older cookbooks, and even some more recent ones.)
*'White' tomatoes are full-sized tomatoes, just before they start to ripen. They're actually a whitish green at that point, instead of really green.
reply
Tomato Pie, Savory
Ingredients
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 prepared refrigerated piecrust
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 large onion, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon sugar
4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons heavy cream
1 tablespoon sour cream
1 tablespoon honey mustard
1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
4 green onions, cut into 2-inch pieces, including the green part
4 large red tomatoes, sliced into 1/4 inch slices, preferably home grown
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon coarsely ground pepper
1/2 cup fresh basil, cut in ribbons
2 cups shredded Gruyère or Swiss cheese
1.Preheat oven to 450
2. Sprinkle flour over counter or pastry marble and roll pie crust dough to fit a 7×11–inch rectangular baking dish, making sure dough comes up the sides of the dish. Poke bottom of crust with a fork in several places. Bake for 9 to 10 minutes or until crust is lightly browned.
3.Remove from Oven to cool. Reduce oven temperature to 400 degrees
4.In a cast iron or heavy skillet, heat butter and olive oil over medium heat until it begins to sizzle. Add onions and sugar. Sauté until onions are very brown and caramelized.
5.Add garlic and stir constantly for another 1 to 2 minutes or until garlic is cooked through and tender. Remove onions and garlic from skillet and set aside to cool.
6.In the bowl of a food processor, combine cream cheese, mayonnaise, heavy cream, sour cream, honey mustard, Parmesan cheese, and green onions. Process until well mixed. Transfer to a small mixing bowl; set aside.
7.In a cooled pie crust, layer half of the following ingredients: sautéed onions, cream cheese mixture, sliced tomatoes, salt, black pepper, basil and Gruyère cheese. Repeat layering using remaining ingredients.
8.Bake 35 minutes or until pie is bubbling and top is browned.
9.Remove from oven and cool fro 15 to 20 minutes before slicing
Details
Ready Time:
0 min
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)