June 30, 2020

Recipe: Triple Berry Muffins

Ingredients

2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour

1 tbsp baking powder

½ tsp baking soda

½ tsp Kosher salt

1 ½ tsp ground cinnamon

1 ¼ cups whole milk

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

½ lb 2 sticks unsalted butter, melted

1 cup fresh blueberries

½ cup chopped strawberries

½ cup raspberries

turbinado sugar for topping

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a muffin tin with liners.

Whisk together the dry ingredients: both flours, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon in a large bowl. In another bowl mix together both sugars, melted butter, milk, eggs and vanilla extract. Fold in the berries.

Place 1/3 cup batter in each muffin cup. Top with Turbinado (coarse sugar) Bake for 20-25 minutes. Insert a wooden skewer in the center and if it comes out virtually crumb free then the muffins are done. Let cool a few minutes then transfer the muffins to racks to cool completely.

~ Marla Meridith

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April 15, 2020

Recipe: Homemade Blueberry Pop Tarts

Ingredients

Pastry Dough

3 ¼ cups AP unbleached flour

1 tbsp baking powder

¼ tsp Kosher salt

¼ cup granulated sugar

8 oz unsalted butter

½ cup corn syrup

Fruit Filling

850 g fresh, frozen, chunks, sliced fruit

⅔ cup (75 g) light brown sugar or granulated sugar

¼ tsp ground cinnamon or ginger

1 pinch Kosher salt

2 tbsp (25 g) cornstarch

Egg Wash

1 large egg

2 tsp water

Glaze / Royal Icing

1 ¾ cups powdered sugar

34 tbsp milk

⅛ tsp Kosher salt

1 tsp any extract flavor (vanilla, lemon, orange, etc)

of color if desired

Directions

In a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, add the sifted dry ingredients. Add the butter and mix until it combines with the dry ingredients. Add the corn syrup and mix until a ball is formed. Let the dough rest for 2 hours in a cool place.

Make the filling while the dough rests. In a saucepot, bring the fruit to a boil. Combine the dry ingredients. Once the fruit has released its juices and has come to a boil, add the dry ingredients. While whisking, bring the mixture to a boil and hold at a boil for 3 minutes. Let cool.

Roll the dough onto a floured surface until it is 3 mm thick. Cut the rolled dough in half. Cut one half of the dough into the 3 x 5 inch rectangles. Cut the second half of the dough into 3¼ inch x 5¼ inch rectangles – these slightly larger rectangles will be the top of the pop tarts. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.

Place the bottom pop tart dough rectangles on a parchment or Silpat lined baking sheet. With a pastry brush, paint the egg wash around the outside edge of the dough. Put the cooled pop tart filling inside of the egg wash rectangle. Add the larger rectangle dough on top of the filling. On one side of the rectangle, press the two pieces of the dough together, fastening them with a fork. Brush the top of the pop tart with egg wash.

Combine the egg and water with a fork or a whisk.

Bake until a light golden brown 15-20 minutes. Let cool. Using a spoon, knife, brush, palette knife or hands, spread or dip the cooled pop tart. Let dry and enjoy.

~ Marla Meridith

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November 10, 2019

Recipe: Americana No-Bake Cheesecake

I love to make special desserts for the holidays, especially for July 4th. This Americana No-Bake Cheesecake will impress all your guests and it’s super easy to make ahead of time.

Ingredients

‘–for the crust

2 cups graham cracker crumbs (14 full sheets) you can also us ginger snaps or chocolate wafers

1/3 cup light or dark brown sugar

1/2 cup (1 stick) melted, unsalted butter

baking spray

for the filling

1 1/4 cups cold heavy whipping cream

3 (8 ounce) blocks full fat cream cheese, softened to room temperature

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 tbsp confectioners sugar

1/4 cup sour cream, at room temperature

2 tsp freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 tsp vanilla bean paste

for the topping

1 1/2 cups fresh raspberries

1/2 cup fresh blueberries

1/2 cup fresh blackberries

Directions

Prepare the crust: Pulse the graham crackers (or your preferred cookies) in a food processor until you have a consistent crumb. Pulse in the sugar and butter until well combined. Spray a 9″ or 10″ springform pan with baking spray. Press the crust into the bottom of the pan, using your palms to make sure it’s firmly packed. Refrigerate while you are making the filling, 15-20 minutes.

Prepare the filling: Whip the cream in a stand mixer with the whisk attachment until you have stiff peaks, about 5 minutes. Transfer the whipped cream to a bowl and place in the fridge.

In the same bowl, you don’t have to rinse it, beat the cream cheese and granulated sugar on medium speed until smooth and creamy. Scraping down the sides of the bowl with a soft rubber spatula as needed. On medium-high speed, beat in the confectioners sugar, sour cream, lemon juice and vanilla bean paste until smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Be sure that there are no lumps of cream cheese in the mixture.

Remove the bowl from the mixer and gently fold in the whipped cream being sure not to over mix, you don’t want to cream to deflate.

Scoop the cheesecake mixture over the crust. Smooth out the top with an offset spatula. Decorate with the berries.

Ingredients

Sweet Rolls Dough

3 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1 (1 /4 oz [7g]) package active dry yeast

1/2 cup whole milk

1/2 cup sour cream

6 tbsp unsalted butter, cut into cubes

1/3 cup granulated sugar

2 tsp salt

1 large egg, lightly beaten

Blueberry Filling

1 1/3 cups frozen, not thawed blueberries

1/3 cup light brown sugar

6 tbsp melted butter, divided into 4 and 2 tbsp

Blueberry Glaze

1 cup powdered sugar

1/4 cup frozen blueberries

2 tsp freshly squeezed lemon juice

top with fresh blueberries

Directions

In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk together the flour and yeast. Heat the milk, sour cream, sugar and salt in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir occasionally until just warm, about 3 minutes. You do not want it to simmer or boil. Add the milk mixture to the flour mixer. Beat with the dough hook. Add in the egg and beat until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl.

Remove the dough from the mixer bowl with lightly floured hands. Place in a large oiled bowl to rise. Cover and let rise at room temperature for about 90 minutes or until the dough has doubled in size.

For the filling: Mix together the blueberries, brown sugar and 4 tablespoons of the melted butter in a medium bowl.

For the glaze: Combine all ingredients in a food processor or blender and process until smooth. If you want an even smoother glaze you can strain it through a fine mesh sieve.

Assemble the rolls: Coat a 10 inch cast-iron skillet with vegetable oil or cooking spray. Once the dough has risen, place on a lightly floured work surface. Roll out the dough to a roughly 14×10 inch rectangle. Brush the dough with the extra 2 tablespoons of melted butter, all the way to the edges. Layer on the blueberry filling mixture evenly over the top.

Start to roll the dough from the long edge away from you. Seal the edge with some water or melted butter. Cut the log until you have about 10 1-inch tall slices.

Directions

~ Marla Meridith

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November 10, 2019