Pear and Fig Pie with Hazelnut Crust

I must state, with all sincerity, that this recipe was truly disappointing.  I feel like I've had a bad run lately, with subpar recipes and discouraging outcomes.  It doesn't help in this pie's instance that I'm not a great pie maker.  I have one recipe that works and this is clearly not it.  I don't know if it's my warm hands, but it can't be total inexperience since I've made many, many recipes.  Once again this one disappoints, dry and crunchy, not at all flaky and light.  The nuttiness is there, which is pleasant, but the pears don't shine and the figs feel awkward, like the melding of the flavours never happened.  There is a nice pop of lemon, but it isn't enough to save the pie from it's bland and poorly-textured doom.

I realize post recipe that I messed it up.  The recipe calls for 1 1/2 sticks of butter (3/4 cup) and I put in 3/4 of a stick (1/3 cup).  This of course, would make a huge difference to the overall recipe.  I also noticed that the recipe online has an added 2 Tbsp of ice water added, to make the dough much more workable and cohesive I'm sure.  Drat.  This could have been so much better!

Baking notes:
-As I said, I messed up the crust recipe, be sure I follow the ingredient list properly and your results will be much better.
-I added only about 1/4 cup of sugar rather than 1/2 cup.
-My pears were a little under ripe, I'm sure the filling would be that much better with very ripe and sweet pears.
-I would also say that a little added spice would go a long way to improving this pie.  A little ginger or maybe some finely chopped rosemary.

The recipe for Pear and Fig Pie with Hazelnut Crust can be found on the epicurious website.

33/569

Puff Pastry Pinwheel Cookies with Jam

Ack! These cookies, they were not all that great.  I mean, I've definitely had worse, but I'd never go out of my way to make them again, or even snack on one if I saw it.  They're rather bland and boring, and sure a lot of work.
In fact, the first tray burned entirely.  When I didn't follow the instructions they worked out better, but save yourself the trouble and don't make these.  I brought a plate of these to work and came home with most of them.

Baking notes:
-The recipe called for the jam to be added before it was placed in the oven, but the result was cookies that were totally burned to shit.  In the next batch I added the jam immediately after they were out of the oven and it turned out much better.
-Using 1/4 tsp of sugar on each cookie was more than enough.

The recipe for Puff Pastry Pinwheel Cookies with Jam is on the epicurious website.

32/569

Coffee Gelato

The pickings are getting slim in the pantry department.  I haven't gone shopping in nine days! That's gotta be some sort of world record, ha!  The most striking thing about this recipe, coming from someone who make ice cream on a regular basis, is the length of the ingredient list.  It's four items long, which is to say; very short.  Eggs, milk, coffee and sugar.  No cream, cornstarch, cream cheese, nuts or chocolate.  Just a simple custard gelato.  I whipped up the gelato in no time flat, but expected the worst.  Even Shane agreed, we expected it to be icy.  We know, we're pros.

Luckily for us the gelato came out perfectly!  It's smooth and rich and perfectly sweetened.  A successful recipe.  The part I disliked was the use of instant espresso powder.  We've made plenty of coffee ice cream over the years and have always steeped coffee beans in the custard.  This recipe is much more convenient and less wasteful of the coffee beans but tastes like espresso powder, which is not great.  Unless of course you really like instant coffee.  Which would make you an anomaly, and particularly well suited to making this recipe.

Baking notes:
-This recipe cooked up nice and quick.  Remember to be careful when cooking, custard especially with 5 yolks scrambles easily.

The recipe for Coffee Gelato can be found on the epicurious website.

31/569

Texas Sheet Cake

I've never had to keep the house stocked with food suitable for lunches and now that I do I realize the constant challenge.  By myself I can make and eat pretty much anything I find, my lunches for work are never a problem, but supplying Shane's lunch is an entirely different experience.  I feel as though if I don't have a plan, he won't eat and it's true.  I bake a lot, but there wasn't necessarily a sweet available on every day, now there is.  Homemade granola bars are a constant in the freezer, soups can be found there too.  Buns and homemade bread make quick sandwiches and oatmeal makes a fast breakfast.  Fruit must always be on hand for a healthy snack, and no 12 hour long day can go by without something sweet.  We've been going heavy on the cookies, which is always tasty, but I was in the mood for a snacking cake.  More precisely, a cake recipe we had all the ingredients for, because this time I wasn't going to the store.

Texas sheet cake sounded like a great idea and in fact it easily could have been.  I halved the recipe, because the whole recipe suits a family of five better than a family of two.  Unfortunately I didn't like the cake.  I found it very dry, which I suppose I could have alleviated, but more so I found it bland.  I like a slap-you-in-the-face chocolate cake and this was more of a hint of chocolate kind of cake.  I'd also argue that this cake could be a lot prettier if the frosting had drizzled better or the toppings were sprinkled on top instead of sandwiches between the two chocolate layers.  I might try a texas sheet cake again, but I'd use a different recipe.

Baking notes:
-As mentioned I halved the recipe and baked the cake in an 8x8 inch pan.  I checked on the cake at 20 minutes and it was more than done.  Thus, overbaked.
-I used a nice dark chocolate with a higher cocoa content than called for and I think it was better for it.
-The toppings I used were toasted shredded coconut and toasted walnuts.  Pecans would have been best.
-Next time I would glaze the cake, let it set for 5 minutes and then sprinkle the toppings on top.  If they looked like they would fall off I'd press them in a little with my hand. Easy.

The recipe for Texas Sheet Cake is not available online.

30/569

Hazelnut Meringue Drops

As you can see, there is clearly nothing meringue-y or drop-y about...well whatever this is.  Instead of light fluffy puffy little clouds with a tiny crisp shell, you get something very different.  I can tell you straight away what went wrong.  One egg white had a little bit of yolk in it.  That's it, that's all it takes, a little (tiny) bit of fat in the swirl of white and your egg whites won't whip.  I had four egg whites sitting in the fridge, sloshing around a bit for my attention every time I opened the fridge.  I decided to use them for this recipe, because frankly I didn't want an egg white omelette.  What do you do with all your leftover whites?  Next time I'm making a frosting, of the swiss buttercream style.  Now that is a good use of whites, do you think?

Baking notes:
-I could tell my whites were not going to whip, but I already had everything ready to go, so I powered on and prayed for a miracle.  Unfortunately it didn't happen, but I'm not that disappointed.
-I followed the recipe exactly, but because the whites didn't whip I just poured it into a pan and places it in the oven.
-I baked the meringue for 35 minutes at 300 F.  When I took it would I could tell it was complete garbage, so I decided to make something crispy and crunchy.  I put the "cookie" back in the oven at 150 F for 1 1/2 hours.  By then it really was crunchy.  We ate part of it broken up and then threw it out.

You can find the recipe for Hazelnut Meringue Drops on the epicurious website.

29/569

Nectarine and Almond Crisp

I realized my absence of baked summer fruits all season long.  In place of the usual pies, crisps and fools was...nothing.  I've been baking less, but I'm sure you noticed that.  I hope it changes again, I hope baking fills our bellies and warms our homes.  It's always such a trip, of guilt and remorse with me.  But I'm weird! Don't mind me! Instead focus on the fleeting summer all around you for it will be gone in two weeks.  Two weeks before the peaches and nectarines don't show up in the markets.  Two weeks before the mornings are too cold to brave without a coat.  Two weeks before the rains begin.  And two weeks before the cinnamon starts to fly.  Goodbye summer, welcome fall.

This crisp bridges the summer-fall gap perfectly with it's soft juicy nectarines freckled with warm cardamom and ginger.  The fruit is luscious and bright, the crumble is nutty and crisp.  It's all a perfect balance, now quick! get to the store before it's to late!

Baking notes:
-I didn't have apricot preserves, so I used a peach jam preserved in the summer.
-I couldn't find almond paste so instead I added two tablespoons of butter and 1 tsp almond extract to the topping. It worked beautifully.
-The cardamom comes through quite strong in this recipe, if you aren't the biggest fan I would recommend reducing the spice by 1/4 tsp.
-I baked the crisp for 30 minutes at 400 F.  When I went to check on it I saw the almonds starting to burn.  I reduced the oven temperature to 350 F and baked for 5 more minutes.

You can find the recipe for Nectarine and Almond Crisp on the epicurious website.

28/569

Chai Pots de Creme

You can think of these pots de creme as the sequel to the chocolate pudding of the day before.  I needed more cold and creamy treats to soothe my aching mouth so I turned again to the book.  Feeling more alive later that night I yakked to my dear sister on the phone while I steeped milk, strained custard and baked these.  The process is definitely more involved than a simple pudding, but the results are dessert worthy.  I've indulged in two already, and given their richness I feel eating more would be a little too decadent, even for myself.  The pots de creme are smooth as silk and wonderfully rich.  A beautiful blend of spice would elicit a quiet murmur of appreciation from even the most picky.  They are seriously good.  But be sure to share!

Baking notes:
-I used four Earl Grey tea bags in this recipe.
-I didn't have any whole cloves on hand so I used 1/16 tsp of ground cloves instead, which worked very well.
-I didn't have an orange so I substituted lemon zest instead.
-I baked the custard in one cup mason jars.  Filled 3/4 full the recipe made four jars.
-I find cold cream coats my mouth in a layer of fat I find unappetizing.  Both the baked custard and the whipped cream have the cold fatty layer, so that might not appeal to you either.
-My custard baked perfectly in 30 minutes.

The recipe for Chai Pots de Creme can be found on the epicurious website.

27/569

Double Chocolate Pudding

Chocolate pudding is the perfect antidote to tooth extraction, or well anything that requires comfort by the bucketful.  It was the dessert I remember most about my childhood, the treat that most passed my lips.  It was pudding of the box variety of course, what else could it be?  If we are going for pure nostalgia the flavour would be butterscotch instead of chocolate, and had this cookbook had that recipe I most certainly would have used it.  But alas chocolate pudding is a fine prize in any regard and almost made getting all four wisdom teeth pulled worth it.  There was some serious rationing going on yesterday.  And please, given my drug induced haze I would appreciate some leniency with my humble pudding-on-the-lap pictures, any pictures at all seems like a small miracle.

The pudding is velvety and thick, unadorned it coats the tongue just like it should.  It's dark and super flavourful, more so than the boxed type.  You can think of it as an adult's pudding, but I think a non-box initiated child would be as over the moon about it as I am.  I promise you this: my children will know this pudding as well as I knew the little square boxes.  Enjoy a new favourite!

Baking notes:
-I made this recipe exactly as the directed, but on a slow and temperamental stove, so it took a bit longer.
-I specifically used a 70% dark chocolate and it was perfect, though I'm sure nearly any chocolate would be.
-I did not require use of the freezer as stated in the recipe, I left the pudding in the fridge overnight, with saran wrap clinging to the tops of the pudding to avoid the dreaded pudding skin. Belch!

The recipe for Double Chocolate Pudding is available on the epicurious website.

26/569