I know that technically it’s still summer but it’s really beginning to feel a lot like fall here and I’m more then ready. Over the last week I have begun to feel a lot better and the cold crisp air is breathing new life into me. I’m ready for a new season and a new start in this pregnancy. Bring on the cravings! :)

Doughnuts are something that my family loves. My mother-in-law makes one mean glazed doughnut and I love it! My problem is finding time to make the dough, roll it out, cut it out and deep fry it. They’re definitely worth the effort but I’m hard pressed to find the time with an antsy two year old.

That’s why these jam filled fritters make me a happy woman. You simply whip up a tasty muffin batter, drop it into hot oil, pipe it full of strawberry jam and dust it in icing sugar. Bliss. I’m already thinking of different ways to fry up this spice infused batter. I think some chopped apples would turn these into some pretty fine apple fritters.

These would be a great way to end the first week of school. You can have the fritters all ready for when the kids come home, then they can help fill them with jam and dust them in icing sugar. I’m sure they won’t complain and few will probably disappear on their way to the serving tray.

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Last week I was feeling good enough to break my six weeks of baking silence. Let me tell you, it felt wonderful! My poor hubby has been deprived of homemade goods for so long that he was almost giddy when he found out I was actually going to bake him a pie (and one of his favourites at that!). So giddy in fact, that he decided to capture the process on film. He did such a good job of capturing why I love to bake.

James and I love pie so much that we had it at our wedding instead of cake. Our mothers went through lot’s of work that summer making and freezing pies for the big day. Strawberry Rhubarb was definitely one that we requested be on the menu.

This recipe is a little bit different then your average Strawberry Rhubarb Pie. The obvious reason being that it has a crumble, which makes it that much more of a breeze if you have frozen pie shells in your freezer. The other reason is that the filling is infused with the flavours of cinnamon and ginger. They give such a warmth and richness to the pie. I think I may need to make another soon.

It feels good to be back!

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The first time I made this recipe was in my first year of marriage and I accidentally subbed three cups of flour for the three teaspoons called for in the recipe. It became more like a cake then a tart, but it was still delicious. You’ll never guess what happened this time I made it. I put in three tablespoons of flour instead of three teaspoons. Dang it! Why is three teaspoons so hard to remember! I have made it the correct way, I promise, and it looks and tastes just like this, just even more gooey.

Butter Tarts are considered a Canadian treat and are similar to the more familiar Pecan Pie in look and flavour. This recipe deviates from the norm and becomes more simple by being baked in a 9X13 pan, rather then into individual tarts. That coupled with the shortcrust bottom, makes this super quick and hassle free. It also makes a great party treat as it makes a large amount and can be picked up with your hands. You might consider making it for an Olympic party to show off your skills at Canadian cuisine. :)

It may not be the most attractive looking desert but after one bite of gooey goodness, you won’t mind.

Butter Tart Slice

adapted from Grand Slam

Crust

• 2 cups flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 cup butter, softened
• pinch salt

1. Combine ingredients until evenly distributed (I like to use my hands in order to feel for clumps). Press into the bottom of an ungreased 9×13 pan.

Filling

• 2 cups brown sugar, packed
• 1 Tbsp. baking powder
• pinch salt
• 3/4 cup coconut
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1 cup raisins
• 3 tsp. flour
• 3 eggs, beaten
• 1/4 cup butter, melted

1. In a large bowl combine first 7 ingredients (the “drys”). Add eggs and butter. Stir until well combined. Poor over prepared crust.
2. Bake at 350º for 35 min. or until filling is set. Cut into bars to serve.

* This tastes equally delicious served warm from the oven as it does at room temperature. Although, once it has cooled it will be easier to handle.

* Store in an airtight container at room temp.

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The November 2009 Daring Bakers Challenge was chosen and hosted by Lisa Michele of Parsley, Sage, Desserts and Line Drives. She chose the Italian Pastry, Cannolo (Cannoli is plural), using the cookbooks Lidia’s Italian-American Kitchen by Lidia Matticchio Bastianich and The Sopranos Family Cookbook by Allen Rucker; recipes by Michelle Scicolone, as ingredient/direction guides. She added her own modifications/changes, so the recipe is not 100% verbatim from either book.

If you know me well, then it is no secret that I am a bit of a Christmas fanatic.  I know it may seem strange for someone my age to get so excited about Christmas, but who can resist all those warm and fuzzy feelings that are invoked at Christmas time? I feel like a child again when the first snow falls,  reminding me of the love and warmth that  surrounds you when  you spend time with the ones you love.  It is irresistible to me and I can’t help but get excited. A holiday dedicated to peace, joy and love. What could be better?

This year I get to go home for Christmas. In fact, I am already here. I was not able to bring my camera equipment  with me so things are going to be looking a little different around here over the Christmas Holidays. But, not to worry, there will be lot’s of goodies to go around with the “Dear Mrs. Claus” post sshowing up on Mondays, featuring all of your wonderful Christmas recipes. (If you are interested in submitting your Christmas photos visit this post) And, I will be doing Christmas interviews with some of my favorite bloggers.  In the New Year I will be up and running again with my photos and recipes, but for now I thought it quite fitting to share the love and goodies from other bloggers. That’s what the season is all about right?

Being that I will not be able to post all the Christmas recipes that are spinning around in my head, I could not resist squeezing one in before I left for home and the Daring Bakers Challenge provided the perfect opportunity. Therefore, traditional Cannoli became Cannoli Christmas Trees. They are layered with raspberry, white chocolate and pistachio ricotta fillings and spruced up (ha) with icing sugar snow and pomegranate lights. I think they’re pretty cute. And, tasty too. :)

I made my own ricotta for this challenge and have linked to the recipe below. I use this recipe often as it is so simple to make and I find it cheaper and fresher then store bought. It is also helpful because you can make the amount needed so there is no waste.

I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas Season and are able to sit back, relax, and enjoy time with ones you love.

Cannoli Christmas Trees

• cannoli stars (large and small)
• raspberry ricotta filling
• white chocolate ricotta filling
• pistachio ricotta filling
• pistachios, chopped
• icing sugar
• pomegranates

1. Place one large cannoli star onto serving plate. Top with raspberry ricotta. Top with another large star and add a dollop of white chocolate ricotta. Top with one more large star and top that with  pistachio ricotta. Sprinkle with additional chopped pistachios and stick a small cannoli star into the ricotta point side down.
2. Sprinkle with icing sugar and pomegranates if desired. Serve immediately.

Cannoli Stars

• 2 cups flour
• 2 Tbsp. sugar
• 1 tsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 3 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 tsp. white wine vinegar*
• 1/2 cup wine (Marsala is what is traditional used)*
• Vegetable or any neutral oil for frying (2 inches deep)

1. In the bowl of an electric stand mixer or food processor, combine the flour, sugar, cocoa, cinnamon, and salt. Stir in the oil, vinegar, and enough of the wine to make a soft dough. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and well blended, about 2 minutes. Shape the dough into a ball. Cover with plastic wrap and let rest in the fridge from 2 hours to overnight.
2. Cut the dough into two pieces. Keep the remaining dough covered while you work. Lightly flour work surface and roll the dough until super thin, about 1/16 to 1/8” thick (An area of about 13 inches by 18 inches should give you that). Cut out 4 inch star shapes as well as 2 inch star shapes. Cover with a damp towel and let sit for several minutes to help keep the dough from shrinking.
3. In a deep heavy saucepan, pour enough oil to reach a depth of 2 inches. Heat the oil to 375°F (190 °C), or until a small piece of the dough or bread cube placed in the oil sizzles and browns in 1 minute. Have ready a tray or sheet pan lined with paper towels.
4. Dock the cannoli with a fork, making sure to go all the way through. This is to avoid the cannoli from puffing up in the centre. Carefully lower a few of the cannoli stars into the hot oil. Do not crowd the pan. Fry until lightly golden, about 2 minutes, turning them so that they brown evenly. Remove to paper towel lined tray to cool.

* I substituted the wine with apple juice and upped the vinegar to 1 Tbsp to make up for the lost acidity.

Raspberry, White Chocolate & Pistachio Fillings

• 1 cup dry ricotta (or half this recipe)
• 2/3 cup icing sugar
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1 tsp. lemon zest
• 1 cup whipping cream
• 2 Tbsp. each, chopped pistachios, chopped white chocolate, crushed raspberries

1. Cream together ricotta, sugar, cinnamon and zest until smooth.
2. Whip cream to soft peaks and fold into ricotta.
3. Divide into 3 bowls. In one bowl fold in pistachios, in another fold in white chocolate, and in last fold in raspberries.

* If you want more vibrant colors feel free to add some food coloring.

* You can use fresh or frozen (and thawed) raspberries for this filling.

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One part of the Daring Cooks challenge this month was to make some sort of fried wonton dessert. The filling and shape were up to us. I chose to go with a Peanut Caramel which I rolled into balls and coated in chocolate before wrapping them up into homemade wonton wrappers. Once they were cooked, I drizzled them with more chocolate and sprinkled them with peanuts. The only thing that I would change about this recipe is that there was too much caramel per wonton. It was very sweet. I wrote the recipe as I would make it next time. I thought these were very tasty and would make an excellent addition to a dessert platter.

Go to the bottom of the post for step-by-step photos.

Caramel Peanut Wontons

• 24 wonton wrappers (recipe here)
• egg wash (1 egg whisked with 1 Tbsp. water)
• 1 recipe peanut caramel
• 8 oz. semi sweet chocolate, melted
• oil (make sure it is suitable for high heat. ie. canola oil)
• 2 Tbsp. finely chopped peanuts

1. Dip each caramel ball into chocolate and place back onto parchment paper.
2. Cool in the freezer until chocolate is firm.
3. Place one wonton wrapper on work surface (making sure to keep others covered with a damp towel). Brush the edges with egg wash.
4. Place one chocolate covered caramel into the centre of the wonton. Lift up two opposite corners and press together at the top. Take the remaining two corners and do the same. Seal all corners and openings.
5. Cover with damp towel and repeat with remaining wontons and caramel.
6. While you are forming the wontons heat 2 inches of oil, over medium heat, to 350ºF (180ºC ). If you do not have a thermometer, an easy way to tell when the oil is ready is to place the handle of a wooden spoon into the hot oil, if bubbles form around it, it is ready.
7. Fry the wontons, a few at a time, until golden. About 1 min. Remove with a slotted spoon onto paper towel, to drain.
8. Once all of the wontons are fried. Drizzle with remaining chocolate and sprinkle with chopped peanuts.

Makes: 24 wontons

* Do not refrigerate.

Peanut Caramel

adapted from here

• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 Tbsp. corn syrup
• 2 Tbsp. butter, room temp.
• 3/4 cup lightly salted peanuts

1. Heat cream to boiling. Keep hot.
2. Place sugar in a non-stick skillet warmed over medium heat. Do not stir.
3. Once sugar is melted stir in the corn syrup and let bubble until a deep caramel color is reached.
4. Stir in the butter carefully as caramel will bubble furiously.
5. Once butter is incorporated add cream, being careful of spatters once again.
6. Lower the temperature and let simmer for 2 min.
7. Remove from heat and stir in peanuts.
8. Let cool a bit before dropping by teaspoons (making 24) onto a parchment lined baking sheet. Allow to cool fully.
9. Once cool, roll into balls.

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I am pretty sure that I have not yet had the chance to meet all of my lovely readers, and you know what? I would love to meet you! So why not introduce yourself? And, for those of you that I have had the honour to “meet” already, I would love to know more about you. To get the ball rolling I will fill you in on some tidbits about me that you may not know:

A couple of years ago I was a live host of an hour long radio show for young teens. I also script wrote and directed a short mini-drama for each show called “The Adventures of Bob and Alfred.”

I used to volunteer at a hospital where I accidentally dropped a frog on an immobile elderly lady. I promise we were only trying to add a little excitement to her life, just not that much.

I also used to be the bus driver for said hospital and ended up lost in the woods with 5 old people, trying to find my way back to the hospital, while one of them got up every time I stopped because she wanted to go to the bathroom in the woods.

I am extremely stubborn and if you tell me that I can’t do something, I will just have to prove you wrong. This is how I blacked out just before the finish line in the 200 metre dash in my high school track-meet. But, I still came in third, gosh darn it!

Now it’s your turn. You don’t have to get quite so personal. But, I would love to know something about you. So, fill me in people!

Now about this tart. Let me tell you, it is delicious. Neither me or my husband have stopped thinking about it since I made it. And, he doesn’t even like pears! We managed to polish it off the day after it was made. There is so much wonderful flavour in this flaky pastry parcel. The sliced almonds add a lovely nuttiness, while the lemon zest adds a brightness that make it taste fresh and inviting. The crust itself is amazing, I may just use it for all of my freeform tarts. It’s easy to work with, flaky and buttery. Just perfect! I will be making this again soon, and this time I think I might try it with apples, for my loving husband (even though he gobbled it down just fine with pears). :)

Almond Pear Tart

adapted from TasteofHome

• Pastry dough
• Pear filling
• 1 Tbsp. butter
• Egg wash (1 egg white + 1 tsp. water, whisked together)
• 1 Tbsp. sugar
• Glaze
• 1/4 cup sliced or slivered almonds, toasted

1. Roll the pastry dough out to a 14 inch circle. Place on a large baking sheet.
2. Spoon the filling over the pastry leaving a 2 inch wide rim. Cut the butter into small cubes and sprinkle over the filling. Fold the edges of the pastry over the filling, pressing the pastry together, to seal.
3. Brush egg wash over the pastry and sprinkle with sugar.
4. Bake at 375°F for 45-50 minutes, until golden brown.
5. Pour glaze over the warm tart and sprinkle with almonds.

Serves: 8-10

Pastry Dough

• 1 1/3 cups flour
• 3 Tbsp. sugar
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 7 Tbsp. cold butter, cubed
• 2-3 Tbsp. cold water

1. Combine flour, sugar and salt. Cut in cold butter until the mixture is crumbly.  Add water 1 Tbsp. at a time until the dough sticks together to form a ball. (You may need more water depending on the humidity in your area. Just make sure it sticks together without being sticky to the touch.)

Pear Filling

• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup sliced or slivered almonds, toasted
• 1/4 cup flour
• 1.5 tsp lemon zest
• 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 4 medium sized ripe pears, peeled and sliced

1. Toss together all ingredients until pears are well coated.

Glaze

• 1/4 cup icing sugar
• 1.5 tsp. milk
• 1/4 tsp. vanilla extract

1. Mix together until smooth. (Do this just before glazing so that it does not start to set)

*Note on toasting almonds: My preferred way to toast nuts is on the stove top in a frying pan. Just place over med. heat, stir occasionally and keep a close eye. As soon as you can smell the nutty flavour and see a bit of color they are done. You must keep a close eye because they can go from perfect to burnt pretty fast.

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When I was making this Puff Pastry for the Daring Bakers Challenge I ran into all sorts of problems that I was sure would turn my puff pastry into flat little disks rather then pillowy puffs. But, it turns out this dough is a lot more forgiving then I thought. I wanted to share with you some of my struggles so that if you decide to tackle this beast you can feel confident, even when you feel like you are messing it up.

#1) I only have a very small food processor so I had to make the dough by hand and ended up making it quite dry which made it a little harder to roll out.

#2) When I was rolling the dough out for the first time my butter broke through. A very large 4 inch gap was showing and I thought for sure it was done for. But, I decided to persist and rolled it out as long as I could, which ended up being 16 inches rather then the 24 inches that is was supposed to be. I slapped on a whole bunch of flour, folded it up and popped it in the fridge.

#3) I had trouble with the butter breaking through right up until the 5th turn, so I just coated it all with tons of flour. It all ended up quite dry but it got easier to roll out every time and it wasn’t so dry that it was cracking.

#4) Because of my difficulties I refrigerated it after every turn rather then every other turn.

#5) As you can see in the picture above my dough was so dry that the layers after folding did not stick together. This didn’t seem to be a problem though once I rolled it out.

Hopefully that will give you a little encouragement if not everything goes right the first time you try this. I am planning on making it again, since puff pastry is not readily available in the grocery stores here. I am expecting that each time it should get easier and turn out better. Don’t be scared to give this a try, if I can pull it off with all of my mess ups you can too!

Puff Pastry

adapted from Baking with Julia by Dorie Greenspan

One recipe makes approximately the same amount as 3 (397g) packages of store bought puff pastry.

• 2-1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1-1/4 cups cake flour (or 1 cup + 2 Tbsp flour + 2 Tbsp cornstarch)
• 1 tbsp. salt (you can cut this by half for a less salty dough or for sweet preparations)
• 1-1/4 cups  ice water
• 1 pound very cold unsalted butter

1. Check the capacity of your food processor before you start. If it cannot hold the full quantity of ingredients, make the dough into two batches and combine them.
2. Put the all-purpose flour, cake flour, and salt in the work bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade and pulse a couple of times just to mix. Add the water all at once, pulsing until the dough forms a ball on the blade. The dough will be very moist and pliable and will hold together when squeezed between your fingers. (Actually, it will feel like Play-Doh.)
3. Remove the dough from the machine, form it into a ball, with a small sharp knife, slash the top in a tic-tac-toe pattern. Wrap the dough in a damp towel and refrigerate for about 5 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, place the butter between 2 sheets of plastic wrap and beat it with a rolling pin until it flattens into a square that’s about 1″ thick. Take care that the butter remains cool and firm: if it has softened or become oily, chill it before continuing.
5. Unwrap the dough and place it on a work surface dusted with all-purpose flour (A cool piece of marble is the ideal surface for puff pastry) with your rolling pin (preferably a French rolling pin without handles), press on the dough to flatten it and then roll it into a 10″ square. Keep the top and bottom of the dough well floured to prevent sticking and lift the dough and move it around frequently. Starting from the center of the square, roll out over each corner to create a thick center pad with “ears,” or flaps.
6. Place the cold butter in the middle of the dough and fold the ears over the butter, stretching them as needed so that they overlap slightly and encase the butter completely. (If you have to stretch the dough, stretch it from all over; don’t just pull the ends) you should now have a package that is 8″ square.
7. To make great puff pastry, it is important to keep the dough cold at all times. There are specified times for chilling the dough, but if your room is warm, or you work slowly, or you find that for no particular reason the butter starts to ooze out of the pastry, cover the dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate it . You can stop at any point in the process and continue at your convenience or when the dough is properly chilled.
8. Gently but firmly press the rolling pin against the top and bottom edges of the square (this will help keep it square). Then, keeping the work surface and the top of the dough well floured to prevent sticking, roll the dough into a rectangle that is three times as long as the square you started with, about 24″ (don’t worry about the width of the rectangle: if you get the 24″, everything else will work itself out.) With this first roll, it is particularly important that the butter be rolled evenly along the length and width of the rectangle; check when you start rolling that the butter is moving along well, and roll a bit harder or more evenly, if necessary, to get a smooth, even dough-butter sandwich (use your arm-strength!).
9. With a pastry brush, brush off the excess flour from the top of the dough, and fold the rectangle up from the bottom and down from the top in thirds, like a business letter, brushing off the excess flour. You have completed one turn.
10. Rotate the dough so that the closed fold is to your left, like the spine of a book. Repeat the rolling and folding process, rolling the dough to a length of 24″ and then folding it in thirds. This is the second turn.
11. If the dough is still cool and no butter is oozing out, you can give the dough another two turns now. If the condition of the dough is iffy, wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate it for at least 30 minutes. Each time you refrigerate the dough, mark the number of turns you’ve completed by indenting the dough with your fingertips. It is best to refrigerate the dough for 30 to 60 minutes between each set of two turns.
12. The total number of turns needed is six. If you prefer, you can give the dough just four turns now, chill it overnight, and do the last two turns the next day. Puff pastry is extremely flexible in this regard. However, no matter how you arrange your schedule, you should plan to chill the dough for at least an hour before cutting or shaping it.

*While this is not included in the original recipe, many puff pastry recipes use a teaspoon or two of white vinegar or lemon juice, added to the ice water, in the détrempe dough. This adds acidity, which relaxes the gluten in the dough by breaking down the proteins, making rolling easier.

*Keep things cool by using the refrigerator as your friend! If you see any butter starting to leak through the dough during the turning process, rub a little flour on the exposed dough and chill straight away. Although you should certainly chill the dough for 30 to 60 minutes between each set of two turns, if you feel the dough getting to soft or hard to work with at any point, pop in the fridge for a rest.

*Not to sound contradictory, but if you chill the paton longer than the recommended time between turns, the butter can firm up too much. If this seems to be the case, I advise letting it sit at room temperature for 5-10 minutes to give it a chance to soften before proceeding to roll. You don’t want the hard butter to separate into chunks or break through the dough…you want it to roll evenly, in a continuous layer.

*Roll the puff pastry gently but firmly, and don’t roll your pin over the edges, which will prevent them from rising properly. Don’t roll your puff thinner than about about 1/8 to 1/4-inch thick, or you will not get the rise you are looking for.

*Try to keep “neat” edges and corners during the rolling and turning process, so the layers are properly aligned. Give the edges of the paton a scooch with your rolling pin or a bench scraper to keep straight edges and 90-degree corners.

*Brush off excess flour before turning dough and after rolling.

*Make clean cuts. Don’t drag your knife through the puff or twist your cutters too much, which can inhibit rise.

*When egg washing puff pastry, try not to let extra egg wash drip down the cut edges, which can also inhibit rise.

*Extra puff pastry dough freezes beautifully. It’s best to roll it into a sheet about 1/8 to 1/4-inch thick (similar to store-bought puff) and freeze firm on a lined baking sheet. Then you can easily wrap the sheet in plastic, then foil (and if you have a sealable plastic bag big enough, place the wrapped dough inside) and return to the freezer for up to a few months. Defrost in the refrigerator when ready to use.

*You can also freeze well-wrapped, unbaked cut and shaped puff pastry (i.e., unbaked vols-au-vent shells). Bake from frozen, without thawing first.

*Homemade puff pastry is precious stuff, so save any clean scraps. Stack or overlap them, rather than balling them up, to help keep the integrity of the layers. Then give them a singe “turn” and gently re-roll. Scrap puff can be used for applications where a super-high rise is not necessary (such as palmiers, cheese straws, napoleons, or even the bottom bases for your vols-au-vent).

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The September 2009 Daring Bakers‘ challenge was hosted by Steph of A Whisk and a Spoon. She chose the French treat, Vols-au-Vent based on the Puff Pastry recipe by Michel Richard from the cookbook Baking With Julia by Dorie Greenspan.

I must admit that I was petrified going into this challenge. My first year of marriage I tried to make croissants from scratch for my parents who were coming to visit. After hours and hours (probably more like days back then) of slaving away at it, they turned out to be hard, tooth breaking, croissant shaped, lumps. I was devastated. Since then I have found a new and easier croissant recipe that does not require all the rolling and folding, which made me quite happy, but now I had to face my fears straight on.

Although, I know that I have a lot more to improve on with my puff pastry making skills, I am proud to say that I have no broken teeth and that they were even a little flaky. Gasp! I will be posting the full story of all my trials and tribulations with the puff pastry recipe tomorrow. But, for now I am going to enjoy the rest of my weekend.

I filled my Vols-au-Vent with Vanilla Bean Cranberry Sauce and Rum Pastry Cream. There were some major faults in the recipe I was making, which became quite apparent when my pastry cream turned out like scrambled eggs. I promptly whisked in an extra cup of milk which brought it back to the proper consistency. I also found the cranberries had a little too much rum for my liking, so I would cut it down by half.

This is a perfect dessert for my mother and all of those who prefer tart or bitter over sweet, because there is really nothing sweet about this dessert. Although, it still makes a wonderful ending to a warm meal.

Vols-au-Vent with Vanilla Bean Cranberry Sauce and Rum Pastry Cream

• 1 pckg. Puff Pastry (or 1/3 recipe puff pastry)
• Vanilla Bean Cranberry Sauce
• Rum Pastry Cream
• Egg wash (1 egg yolk + 1 Tbsp water)

1. On a lightly floured surface, roll the puff pastry dough into a rectangle about 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick. Transfer it to a baking sheet and refrigerate for about 10 minutes before proceeding with the cutting.
2. For smaller, hors d’oeuvre sized vols-au-vent, use a 1.5” round cutter and for larger sized vols-au-vent, fit for a main course or dessert, use a 4” cutter. Make clean, sharp cuts and try not to twist your cutters back and forth or drag your knife through the dough. Half of these rounds will be for the bases, and the other half will be for the sides.
3. Using a ¾-inch cutter for small vols-au-vent, or a 2 to 2.5 inch round cutter for large, cut centers from half of the rounds to make rings. These rings will become the sides of the vols-au-vent, while the solid disks will be the bottoms. You can either save the center cut-outs to bake off as little “caps” for you vols-au-vent, or put them in the scrap pile.
4. Dock the solid bottom rounds with a fork (prick them lightly, making sure not to go all the way through the pastry) and lightly brush them with egg wash. Place the rings directly on top of the bottom rounds and very lightly press them to adhere. Brush the top rings lightly with egg wash, trying not to drip any down the sides (which may inhibit rise). If you are using the little “caps,” dock and egg wash them as well.
5. Refrigerate the assembled vols-au-vent on the parchment lined baking sheet while you pre-heat the oven to 400ºF (200ºC). (You could also cover and refrigerate them for a few hours at this point.)
6. Once the oven is heated, remove the sheet from the refrigerator and place another sheet of parchment over top of the shells. This will help them rise evenly. Bake the shells until they have risen and begin to brown, about 10-15 minutes depending on their size. Reduce the oven temperature to 350ºF (180ºC), and remove the parchment sheet from the top of the vols-au-vent. If the centers have risen up inside the vols-au-vent, you can gently press them down. Continue baking (without parchment) until the layers are golden, about 15-20 minutes more. (If you are baking the center “caps” they will likely be finished well ahead of the shells, so keep an eye on them and remove them from the oven when browned.)
7. Remove to a rack to cool.
8. Put a small amount of Vanilla Bean Cranberry Sauce into the Vois-au-Vent and top with Rum Pastry Cream.

*For additional rise on the larger-sized vols-au-vents, you can stack one or two additional ring layers on top of each other (using egg wash to “glue”). This will give higher sides to larger vols-au-vents, but is not advisable for the smaller ones, whose bases may not be large enough to support the extra weight.

*Although they are at their best filled and eaten soon after baking, baked vols-au-vent shells can be stored airtight for a day.

*Shaped, unbaked vols-au-vent can be wrapped and frozen for up to a month (bake from frozen, egg-washing them first).

Vanilla Bean Cranberry Sauce

adapted from Sugar

• 2 cups cranberries, fresh or frozen
• 6 Tbsp. water
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 vanilla bean (or 1 tsp. extract)
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 2 Tbsp. rum, optional (I would do 1 Tbsp)

1. Place cranberries, water, sugar and cinnamon in a small sauce pan. Split vanilla bean in half and scrape seeds into cranberries, add the scraped out vanilla pod. Bring to a simmer and stir occasionally, until most of the  cranberries have burst (about 15-20 min.). Scrape into a clean bowl, removing vanilla bean, and stir in rum. Cover with plastic wrap directly on the surface of the cranberries to prevent a film forming on top. Refrigerate until serving.

Rum Pastry Cream

adapted from Sugar

• 2 cups milk (the original called for 1 cup)
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 4 egg yolks
• 2 Tbsp. sugar
• 2.5 Tbsp. cornstarch
• dash salt
• 1 1/2 Tbsp. unsalted butter
• 1 Tbsp. rum, optional
• 2 Tbsp. whipping cream

1. Place milk and vanilla in a medium sized saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Whisk together egg yolks, sugar, cornstarch and salt in a separate bowl. Gradually add milk to egg mixture, whisking constantly until all is incorporated. Pour mixture back into the pot and bring back up to a simmer, whisking constantly. Once thickened, remove from heat and whisk in butter and rum. Pour into a clean bowl and cover the pastry cream with plastic wrap directly on the surface. Chill completely. Whip cream to medium firm peaks and fold into pastry cream. Refrigerate until serving.

* I just whip the cream by hand. It is such a small amount it does not take long, as long as the whisk, bowl and whipping cream are all very cold.

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I’ve been having one of those weeks. You know, the one where you hit the floor at 5:30 in the morning after tripping over your sons safety gate, or send your fresh pizza flying while giving yourself a matching pair of second degree burns. Yeah, it’s been one of those weeks. Thankfully it is Friday and I am eagerly awaiting the start of a new week, hoping for the absence of pinched fingers, banged heads, and stubbed toes.

I wish I had a slice of this Butterscotch Apple Crisp to drowned out my bruises. Unfortunately, I will have to be satisfied with drooling over this photo that I took while visiting my parents in Canada. You see, Jello Instant Pudding has yet to be discovered here in Norway (by me). The likeliest candidate I have found so far are these sticky puddings, which don’t have me convinced just yet. But perhaps, after a little testing.

I normally like to make most of my foods from scratch. But, sometimes there is just no substitute for the instant pudding packages. Plus, it is just so darn tasty. The recipe calls for a 7×11 pan but I have often used a 8×8 pan with great results.

Butterscotch Apple Crisp

adapted from TasteofHome

• 4 cups tart apples, peeled and sliced
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 Tbsp. flour
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1/2 cup quick-cooking oats
• 2/3 cup flour
• 1 (4 serving size) pckg. cook-and-serve butterscotch pudding mix (I often used instant)
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 cup cold butter, cubed

1. Layer the apples in an ungreased 7×11 inch pan (or 8×8 if need be).
2. Whisk together brown sugar, 1 Tbsp. flour, water and milk. Pour over apples.
3. In a separate bowl combine oats, 2/3 cup flour, butterscotch pudding mix, sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Cut in butter until crumbly. Sprinkle over apples.
4. Bake at 350 for 45- 50 min. until apples are cooked through and topping is golden brown.

Serves: 8

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Time is tight these days, but still I could not resist jumping on the cherry train and baking up a batch of these Mini Cherry Pies. However, they were a couple of weeks in the making, which relieved any stress that comes with baking in a timeline. I made the filling one day, froze it, made the crust another day, assembled the pies, and threw them back in the freezer because it was just too darn hot that day to do any baking. Bring on cooler weather and a craving for a freshly baked pie and out come these bad boys, cherries a-blazing! It definitely is a longer process but it’s nice to bake up a batch of these on a whim without all the prep work being done immediately before, especially when you don’t have hours of time stretching out before you.

This cherry pie filling is rich in flavor and not overly sweet. The hint of cinnamon in the background adds a nice depth without actually being noticed. I ended up with quite a bit of extra filling, but I’m not complaining because I am going to use it to top this cherry cheesecake later on in the week. I can’t wait! I will definitely be using this recipe over and over again.

The crust is great, but nothing special. It works like a charm, but I really hate using shortening in anything that I don’t have too. The shortening does make it easier to roll out and a lot less temperature sensitive, but nothing beats the flavor and flakiness of an all butter crust. Plus your arteries will thank you. Although, if you are looking for an easy, no fail recipe, this is your ticket.

Mini Cherry Pies

adapted from Fresh with Anna Olson

• 1 recipe pie crust (for a double crust) *your own or the following
• cherry filling * recipe follows
• 1 egg plus 2 tsp. water whisked together, for egg wash
• cinnamon sugar for sprinkling (3 parts sugar to 1 part cinnamon)

1. Roll out 2/3 of the dough 1/4 of an inch thick (or a little less) on a lightly floured surface. Cut circles large enough to cover the base of 12 regular size muffin cups.
2. Line those muffin cups with the circles of dough and fill each with a mound of cherry filling.
3. Roll out the remainder of the dough and cut into 1/2 inch strips. Make lattice pattern (Like so, but make it on the counter instead). Cut out 12 circles with a 2.5 inch cookie cutter. Gently place on top and cinch edges.
4. Brush with egg wash and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar.
5. Bake at 375F for 5 min then lower the temperature to 350 and bake for an additional 25 min. (From frozen I baked at 375 for 10 min and 350 for 35 min)

Makes: 12 mini pies

Pie Crust

• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 cup cold unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup shortening
• 2 Tbsp. lemon juice
• 1/4 cup very cold water

1. Stir together flour and salt.
2. Cut in butter and shortening until crumbly.
3. Add lemon juice, then enough water until dough is wet enough to come together. You made need more or less water.
4. Shape into a disk, wrap in seran wrap and refrigerate 30 min.

Makes enough for a 2 crust pie

Cherry Pie Filling

• 6 cups pitted cherries
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• dash ground cinnamon
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 1/4 cup cold water

1. Put cherries, sugar and cinnamon in a saucepan and bring to a simmer. Continue simmering for 15 min until soupy.
2. Whisk cornstarch into water, add to saucepan and cook until thickened (at least 2 min). Let cool.

Makes enough for 1 pie or 12 mini pies

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