Recipe: Almond Pear Tart

This almond pear tart is so buttery and rich, it's the perfect accompaniment to a cup of tea on a rainy El Nino day.

Ingredients:----For the pears:4 cups water1 1/4 cups sugar1 1/2 t fresh lemon juice4 pears, pealed----For the crust:1/2 cup powdered sugar1/4 cup slivered almonds1/4 t salt9 T unsalted butter, room temperature1 egg yolk1 1/4 cups flour----For the filling:2/3 cups slivered almonds1 T flour7 T sugar6 T unsalted butter, room temperature1 egg
Recipe:For the pears: Bring 4 cups water, sugar, and lemon juice to boil in large saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring until sugar dissolves. Add pears. Reduce heat to medium and simmer until pears are very tender, turning occasionally, about 20 minutes. Cool pears in syrup. 

For the crust: Blend powdered sugar, almonds, and salt in a food processor until nuts are finely ground. Add butter and blend until smooth, scraping down sides of bowl occasionally. Mix in egg yolk. Add flour. Blend until dough comes together in clumps. Gather dough into ball; flatten into disk. Wrap in plastic and chill at least 3 hours. 

For the filling: Finely grind almonds and flour in a food processor. Mix in 7 tablespoons sugar, then butter, blending until smooth. Mix in egg. Transfer filling to medium bowl. Cover and chill at least 3 hours. 
Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 375°F. Roll out chilled dough on floured sheet of parchment paper to 14-inch round, lifting and turning dough occasionally to free from paper. Using paper as aid, turn dough into 11-inch-diameter tart pan with removable bottom; peel off paper. Seal any cracks in dough. Trim overhang to 1/2 inch. Fold overhang in, making double-thick sides. Pierce crust all over with fork. Freeze crust 10 minutes.

Line crust with buttered foil, buttered side down, then fill with pie weights. Bake crust until sides are set, about 20 minutes. Remove foil and weights. Bake crust until sides are golden and bottom is set, pressing with back of fork if crust bubbles, about 10 minutes longer. Cool crust in pan on rack. Reduce oven temperature to 350°F.

Spread almond filling evenly in crust. Stem pears and cut in half; scoop out cores. Cut each half crosswise into thin slices. Gently press each pear slightly overlapping, starting from the crust and working towards the center. This gives it a petaled effect.

Bake tart until golden and tester inserted into center of filling comes out clean, about 55 minutes. Cool tart in pan on rack. Push pan bottom up, releasing tart from pan.
Serves 8
Inspired by this recipe.

Recipe: Plum Torte

This recipe is perfect for this time of year in California, where Indian Summer is slowly moving into shorter, crisper Autumn days, and the last of the stone fruit is lingering in farmer's market stalls.  We were inspired by a classic Marian Burros recipe, which has been published by the NY Times for years... it's no surprise it's so popular, since this is an easy but impressive dessert.

Ingredients:

2/3 cup of sugar, plus extra for topping

1 stick of salted butter

1 cup of flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon of salt

2 eggs

10 small black plums, sliced in half with the pits removed

Juice of half a lemon

Cinnamon to taste (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. 

Cream the butter and sugar together in a mixer or by hand.  Add the flour, baking powder, salt, and combine.  Beat in eggs.

Pour the batter into a round 9" baking dish and place the plums skin side up on top of it.  Sprinkle with lemon juice, a teaspoon or so of sugar, and as much cinnamon as you would like.

 Bake for 45-50 minutes, or until the batter is set and the top is golden brown.  

Allow to cool and serve with creme fraiche, whipped cream, ice cream, or just plain.

We Recommend: Sockerbit

We've always been big fans of gummy candies, so when we stumbled upon Sokerbit on West 3rd St. in LA, we were in heaven. The store features all sorts of Scandinavian sweets - and they are all made without trans fats, artificial color, and GMOs. From marshmallow to sour to chocolate covered, there's something for everyone. And because you scoop it yourself, you can try them all.

Here are some of our favorites: lips, hearts, vampire teeth, raspberries, and chocolate marshmallow bears.

For more information, visit their website.

Salty Chocolate Chip Cookies

These cookies are a twist on the traditional chocolate chip drop cookie.  Replacing half of the butter with olive oil reduces fat, but also gives the cookies a nice crispiness and a slightly less sweet taste that works well with the additional salt.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees farenheit.

Ingredients:

1 stick of butter
1 cup of sugar
2 1/4 cups of flour
1 tsp of baking soda
2 eggs
2 ounces of olive oil
1 package or 12 oz of bittersweet chocolate chips
Himalayan or sea salt to taste

Cream the butter and sugar together, then add the two eggs one by one.

Add in the flour half a cup at a time, along with the baking soda, and half a teaspoon of the salt.  Slowly add the oil as you need more moisture.  Combine well and add chocolate chips.

Lay out the cookies in teaspoon sized rounds on an ungreased baking sheet, about twenty per sheet.  Lightly salt the top of each cookie.

Bake for 12-15 minutes, keeping an eye on them.  These take slightly longer to bake than traditional drop cookies, but are done when they have a nice light brown color.

Cool slightly before transferring to a rack or plate. 

Makes approximately 50-60 small cookies.

Recipe: Blueberry Financiers

We love these simple and delicious French tea cakes.  They're an easy, elegant pastry to have in the house for snacking and entertaining at brunch, in the afternoon, or as part of a dessert.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Ingredients: 

1.5 sticks of butter
1 cup sliced almonds
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups of powdered sugar, plus additional for dusting
6 egg whites

2 tablespoons of honey
1 cup of frozen blueberries

 

Special item: 24 muffin cup liners (square or round), placed on baking sheets

 

- In a saucepan or cast iron over medium heat, melt the butter.  Stir it occasionally to mix in the brown bits that form, and let it simmer until it becomes light brown all the way through - about 5-7 minutes.  Remove butter from heat and allow to cool slightly.

- Grind the almonds in a food processor 

- Mix the ground almonds in with the flour and sugar, then add egg whites and honey, folding in completely

- Add brown butter to the batter, combining well

- Divide the batter equally between the 24 cups

- Drop the blueberries on top of the batter, distributing evenly

- Put the baking sheets with the filled cups into the hot oven, and bake for 15-17 minutes - cakes should be slightly golden and just cooked through.

- Let cool slightly, and sprinkle powdered sugar over the cakes.  Serve warm or at room temperature.

Recipe: Toblerone Cookies

Ingredients:

2 bars of Toblerone
1/2 cup of salted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 cup of all-purpose flour
1 tsp good quality salt
1/2 tsp baking soda

Preheat oven to 375.

Chop the bars of Toblerone into small, morsel sized pieces and set aside.

Using an electric mixer or by hand, cream the butter and both kinds of sugar using a whisk.  When well mixed, add the egg and vanilla and continue stirring until blended.  Add the flour, salt, and soda, stirring with a spatula or kneading the dough by hand.  Finally, add the Toblerone and combine well.

On a greased baking sheet, drop about a teaspoon of dough per cookie, keeping them spaced in 4 rows of 3 - a dozen cookies to a sheet.  Bake for 8-10 minutes, until slightly browned.

Allow to cool slightly, then move to a rack or plate, or just enjoy!  These cookies are delicious both warm or at room temperature.

Recipe : Chocolate Chip Gingerbread Cookies

Ingredients:

1 stick of butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup unsulfured molasses
1 tbsp grated fresh ginger
1 1/2 cups and 1 tbsp all-purpose flour
1 tbsp unsweetened Dutch cocoa powder
1 tsp baking soda 
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp cloves
1/4 tsp nutmeg
8 ounces of bittersweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Cream the butter, brown sugar, molasses, and ginger together in an electric mixer, or by hand.

In a separate bowl, sift the dry ingredients together.  Pour them into the wet ingredients, and then add the chocolate chips, mixing well.

Roll the dough into 1 inch balls, place onto buttered baking sheets, and refrigerate for twenty minutes.  Remove from refrigerator, and bake 10-12 minutes until done.

Makes approximately 30 cookies.

Thanksgiving Recipe: Cranberry Pear Crisp

Pumpkin Pie is a classic favorite for Thanksgiving dessert, but sometimes after eating such a large meal, it sounds too rich. This Cranberry Pear Crisp is just tart enough to keep it light, but the pear and topping add sweetness.


Ingredients:
1 lb. cranberries
1 c. dried cranberries
1.5 c. sugar
2 t vanilla extract
3 firm pears, peeled and cut into chunks
1/2 t ground cinnamon
pinch ground allspice
1 c plus 2 T flour
3/4 c rolled oats
1/4 t salt
1 stick unsalted butter, melted







Directions:

• Preheat the oven to 375
• For the filling: Combine the fresh and dried cranberries in a large bowl. Add 1 cup sugar, 3 T water and the vanilla and mix. Lightly smash with a potato masher to crush some of the cranberries. Add the pears, cinnamon, allspice and 2 T flour, and mix. Transfer to a 3 qt. baking dish.
• For the topping: combine 1 cup flour, the oats, 1/2 c. sugar and the salt in a mixing bowl. Stir in the melted butter. Crumble the topping over the fruit, breaking up the clumps into small bits.
• Bake until the fruit is bubbling and the topping is browned, approximately 40 minutes.
• Serve warm, adding a scoop of ice cream if desired.

Adapted from the Food Network Magazine

Recipe: Berry Pie

This berry pie is a simple, yet tasty way to take advantage of the fresh berries currently in season.

Ingredients:

1 lb. of cherries

1 container fresh strawberries

1 container fresh raspberries

1/3 cup sugar

3 tablespoons cornstarch

2 pie crusts from your favorite recipe (this is a good one)

Step 1: Preheat the oven to 375. Pit the cherries and cut up the strawberries, then mix together in a bowl with the raspberries. Add the cornstarch and sugar and mix together.

Step 2: Roll out the pie crust and put in the pan. Add all of the berry mixture.

Put the second pie crust on top, and pinch together all of the edges. Cut vents in the top crust. Brush with almond milk and sprinkle with a little sugar. Put in the oven on the lowest rack for 20 minutes.

After 20 minutes put the pie on the higher rack, so the pie is in the top 1/3 of the oven. 

Bake for an additional 20 minutes.

Let the pie cool slightly, but serve while still warm with vanilla ice cream.

Recipe: Salty and Sweet Rice Krispie Treats

Ingredients:

1 stick of butter
6 cups Rice Krispies cereal
1 10 ounce bag of mini marshmallows
1 teaspoon good quality sea salt
1/4 teaspoon maldon sea salt flakes (optional)

In a saucepan large enough to hold all of the ingredients, begin to melt the butter over low heat.  Stir it often, and allow it to liquefy, foam slightly, and turn brown - once the color turns, take the pan off the heat right away so it doesn't burn.

Add the marshmallows - the heat from the butter should be enough to melt them. 

 Once the marshmallows melt, add the sea salt and cereal.

After everything is mixed, place it in a buttered, 8 inch square baking dish, and use a spatula or clean hands to distribute the mixture evenly.  Sprinkle the Maldon salt over the top if using, and allow to cool at room temperature for about an hour. 

 Finally, slice and serve.