Blonde Brownies

I made these blonde brownies as an All Hallow's Eve surprise for a cutie out in cali, but the postal service failed me and lost my precious box of baked goods somewhere in between here and there. I do know that they turned out well as I sampled the snacks before sending them off. It makes me sad/angry to know that those adorable little pumpkin decorations will go unseen, but at least I have the internet through which to show them off.

2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup butter
2 cups brown sugar (firmly packed)
2 eggs (lightly beaten)
2 teaspoons vanilla
6 ounces chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

In a saucepan, melt the butter and mix in the brown sugar. When well combined, pour into a large bowl and let cool. When cool, add the eggs and vanilla. Slowly add the dry ingredients. Combine everything well.

Spread batter into a greased 9x13 inch pan. Sprinkle chocolate chips generously over the top. Bake for 25-35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let blondies cool in the pan before cutting into squares.

French Onion Soup

This traditional French soup is sure to warm your soul on a cold winter (wait- isn't it still Fall?!) night. It is especially good when you use beef stock left over from a Rosh Hashanah brisket. Onions appear in almost everything I cook, but usually as part of the chorus. So here is a masterpiece solo for everyone's favorite chemical-warfare inclined vegetable.

7 medium yellow onions (sliced thin)
3 Tablespoons butter
1 Tablespoon oil
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon sugar
3 Tablespoons flour
2 quarts beef stock
1/2 cup dry white wine
Salt
Pepper
Bread
Gruyere cheese (grated)

Melt the butter and oil together in a huge saucepan (at least 4 quarts). Cook onions over low heat in the covered saucepan for 15-20 minutes, until they start to sweat. Uncover and raise heat to medium. Add salt and sugar and cook for another 40 minutes, stirring occasionally, until onions are soft and golden brown. Sprinkle in the flour and stir for another 3 minutes.

Meanwhile, set your beef stock to boil. When the stock is boiling and the onions are ready, combine the two off heat. Add the wine and season with salt and pepper to taste. Simmer partially covered for 40 minutes or more.

Pour into soup bowls, float bread or croutons on top, and sprinkle with grated gruyere cheese. Broil just until cheese is melted and starting to brown. Bon appétit!

Fig Tart with Caramelized Onions, Rosemary, and Stilton

So long sweet summer. As my final farewell to the season of the sun I wanted to eat figs one last time before they disappear for a while. When I saw this recipe in the times I knew immediately I had to try it. Already too late in the season for the ubiquitous Black Mission Fig, I had to use the less sweet, but still delightful Kadota Fig. This tart turned out amazingly, and has served as the impetus for my new found affection for puff pastry (freezer variety - not making my own... yet). Look forward to more puff pastry treats in the future.

2 Tablespoons butter (unsalted)
2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 large onions (halved lengthwise and then thinly sliced)
2 sprigs rosemary (more for garnish)
Pinch of sugar
1 teaspoons good balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup milk
1 egg
Flour for dusting
3/4 pound puff pastry dough
1 pint (3/4 pound) fresh figs (stemmed and cut in half lengthwise)
1 1/2 ounces (6 Tablespoons) Stilton cheese (crumbled)
2 Tablespoons pine nuts
Good quality honey for drizzling (optional)

Preheat oven the 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

Start by melting together the butter and the olive oil in a large skillet over low heat. Add the onions, rosemary, and a pinch of sugar to the skillet. Cook until onions are limp and golden brown, about 40 minutes. Add the vinegar and stir well.

In a small bowl, whisk together the milk and egg. Add the onions to this mixture.

Line an 11x17 inch baking sheet with parchment paper. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the puff pastry dough until it is a 9x12 inch rectangle. Transfer pastry onto baking sheet.

Use a fork to spread the onion mixture evenly over the pastry, leaving a one inch border. Let excess egg remain in bowl as it will get used later. Arrange the figs, cut-side up, on top of onion mixture. Scatter cheese and pine nuts on top of everything. Use a pastry brush to paint the egg mixture onto the edges. Gently fold the edges over to give the tart a lip. Brush the lip with more egg mixture.


Bake about 25-30 minutes, until pastry has puffed up and turned slightly golden. Sprinkle with some more rosemary needles and drizzle with good honey, if desired.

I served mine warm right out of the oven, but I think it would be good at room temperature also. Three cheers for stilton, figs, and puff pastry. Yeah.

Butterscotch Cashew Bars

Today's food item of focus is the cashew. With an abundance of cashews in the pantry, I thought this would be a good starting point for my next baking project. I scoured the internet and was a little disappointed by how few recipes are out there for cashew centered baked goods. Butterscotch and cashews is an explosive flavor combination, and this recipe does a great job wedding them.

For shortbread layer:
2 sticks butter (room temperature)
1 cup light brown sugar (firmly packed)
1 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt
2 1/2 cups flour

For butterscotch/nut layer:
11 ounces butterscotch chips
3/4 cup light corn syrup
1 Tablespoon & 1 teaspoon water
2 cups roasted, salted, whole cashwes

Preheat oven to 350 degress Fahrenheit.

Spray a 9x13 inch pan with cooking spray. Then, line the pan with two pieces of parchment paper, one down the width and one down the length. Spray the parchment with the cooking spray.


Beat butter, brown sugar, and salt with an electric mixer on medium speed for a minute or 2, until combined. Add the flour, and mix in on low speed just until the flour is incorporated. Press the dough evenly into the pan, being sure not to apply too much pressure to the dough. Poke some holes in the dough with a fork. Bake between 30 and 40 minutes, until the crust is golden. Cool on a wire rack.

Meanwhile, melt together the butterscotch, corn syrup, and water over low heat. Stir until everything is melted together. Pour this mixture evenly on top of the crust. Sprinkle the cashews over the butterscotch. Bake for another 5 minutes. Remove from oven to wire rack and cool completely before cutting into squares with a very sharp knife.

This sweet-salty treat is seriously irresistible.

Lemon Squares

This one is my mom's specialty, and she finally let me in on her (not so) secret recipe. I think I could eat a million of these.

For shortbread crust:
2 cups flour
1 cup butter (room temperature)
1/2 cup sugar

For lemony goodness:
2 cups sugar
4 eggs (beaten)
6 Tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 Tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon baking powder

Powdered sugar (for sprinkling on top).

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.

Start by blending together the flour, butter, and sugar for the crust in a food processor. When the ingredients are well combined, press the mixture into a 11x9x2 inch pan. Pop in oven and bake for about 20-25 minutes, or until the shortbread is starting to turn slightly brown on top.

Next, mix together the sugar, eggs, lemon juice, lemon zest, salt, flour, and baking powder. Mix well, being sure there are no chunks of flour or sugar remaining. Pour the lemon mixture on top of the hot shortbread. Bake another 25 minutes. Removed from oven and cool thoroughly. Sift powdered sugar in a thin layer over the entire pan. Cut into squares and dive into lemon ecstasy.

Blueberry Crumb Cake

I love this time of year when blueberries are sold in enormous quantities far beyond the amount any one household could eat before they start to rot. There are only two solutions for this kind of berry-overload: freezing and baking! This summer I have been trying to bake with blueberries at every opportunity. This recipe, which is adapted from the barefoot contessa, was so good that I actually made 2 of them in the past week. People love it when you show up at their house with a piece of cake, it will make them smile every time.

For streusel:
1/4 cup white sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 stick unsalted butter (melted)
1 1/3 cups flour

For cake:
6 Tablespoons unsalted butter (room temperature)
3/4 cup white sugar
2 eggs (room temperature)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon lemon zest (grated)
2/3 cup sour cream
1 1/4 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 1/2 cups fresh blueberries
Confectioner's sugar


Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter and flour a 9-inch round baking pan.

For streusel:
In a bowl combine white sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Add melted butter and then add the flour. Mix everything together until crumbly. Set aside

For cake:
Cream butter and sugar together with the paddle attachment of an electric mixer on high speed for about 4 minutes. Adjust mixer speed to low and then add the eggs, one at a time. Add vanilla, lemon zest, and sour cream while continuing to mix on low speed.

In a separate bowl, sift together flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Add this dry mixture to the wet mixture and combine on low speed until texture is consistent. Turn off mixer.

Fold in blueberries gently with a spatula, taking care that everything is well mixed.

Spoon the batter into the baking pan and spread evenly with the spatula. Crumble the topping with your hands evenly over the cake batter surface. Bake around 50 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Let cool completely. Sprinkle confectioner's sugar on top. Great served with coffee or ice cream!

Lavender Honey & Rosewater Oatmeal Cookies

Last weekend I got some lavender honey from the local farmer's market which I wanted to use somehow in baking. Yesterday I had the brilliant idea to combine it with some rosewater that I purchased in Bulgaria for a flowerific flavored treat. I love how the smallest drop of rosewater really permeates the flavor of whatever it is added to. My next challenge will be to use it in a savory dish, a curry maybe?

3 tablespoons butter (room temperature)
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup lavender honey
1 egg
1/2 tablespoon rosewater
1/2 tablespoon water
1/2 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 cup oatmeal
1/3 cup walnuts (chopped)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease cookie sheets. Mix together butter, brown sugar, honey, egg, rosewater, and water in a mixer with a paddle attachment. In a separate bowl, sift together flour, salt, and baking soda. Mix in the oatmeal. Next, add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture and stir together well. Add the walnuts and stir until the texture is consistent. Drop about 1 tablespoon of dough on the cookie sheet for each cookie. Remember that the cookies will spread when they are baking, so leave plenty of room between each one. Bake for 13 to 15 minutes.