Christmas with the Pastry Queen

Several years ago I purchased the Pastry Queen Cookbook by Rebecca Rather. It quickly became my favorite cookbook. This is high praise considering I have an extensive cookbook collection. Last month, I finally got to visit the Rather Sweet Bakery in Fredericksburg. The food was so good we ate there twice. I considered it a mission to try several items from the bakery so I could find out what other items I should try from the cookbook. My next mission is definitely going to be making the Mexican Chocolate Cake. I was really excited when I learned Rebecca was putting out a new cookbook, Christmas with the Pastry Queen and even more excited when I found out she would be teaching a cooking class. When I called to sign up for the class I was told it was sold out and I could be placed on the waiting list. I took a spot on the waiting list but didn't have high hopes. Two days before the class, they called and said there had been a cancellation and I could have a spot. Last night I attended the class and Rebecca did not disappoint. She was entertaining to watch and very down to earth. She is an amazingly talented chef. It was interesting to learn that she came up with names for several of the recipes in the new book and then just whipped up the recipes to match. We sampled five recipes from the new cookbook and each one was absolutely delicious. I can't wait to make each of those recipes and try more from the new book. Below is a review of the recipes sampled:

Sticky Toffee Pudding with Brandy Butterscotch Sauce-This dessert was very rich. It had a wonderful caramel/butter taste. It would be the perfect ending to a dinner of beef tenderloin. Interestingly it is not made in a pudding mold but a glass Pyrex dish.

Blue Corn Blini with Crab and Avocado Creme-This dish had so much flavor in each bite. It was a fun little appetizer. I think you could easily leave the crab out or even substitute different fish such as salmon.

Warm Pear Upside Down Cake with Amaretto Whipped Cream-This was a decadent dessert and surprisingly easy to prepared. The candied ginger gives the cake a nice bite. I cannot wait to make this dessert.

Wild Mushroom and Goat Cheese Quesadillas with Cranberry Pecan Salsa-This would be a wonderful Thanksgiving appetizer or great for dinner with a salad. The Cranberry Pecan Salsa was a show stopper. I am looking for ways to incorporate it into other dishes. I'm thinking of trying it on a baked brie. I know this dish will become a regular on our menu.

Chocolate Chewies-I recently had cookies similar to these at a bakery and was looking for a recipe and now I found it. Even better these cookies have no butter or flour, are gluten free and if you omit the nuts-fat free. These cookies did not taste like they were missing anything. They were very light and chewy.

Paula Deen's Shore is Good Seafood Dip

I was looking for a fun appetizer to bring to a girl's night get together and found this in my Lady and Sons Cookbook. The recipe was really easy and delicious. I couldn't find cream of shrimp soup at the store so I substituted cream of asparagus. The other great thing about this recipe is unlike other Paula Deen recipes, it doesn't have three sticks of butter. Sorry no picture, but I took it straight out of the oven to the get together. There is a picture on the food network site. It would be fun to serve this fondue style at a party.

Shore is Good Seafood Dip:
Recipe Courtesy of Paula Deen
2 tablespoons butter
1 medium green bell pepper, diced
1 medium onion, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
1/2 of a 10 3/4-ounce can cream of shrimp soup (discard top half and use bottom part of soup)
1 cup mayonnaise
1/2 pound freshly grated Parmesan
1 (6-ounce) can crabmeat, picked free of any broken shells, drained
6 ounces shrimp, fresh or canned, drained
1/2 teaspoon white pepper Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

Melt the butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add the bell pepper, onion, and celery and saute for 2 minutes. In a bowl, combine the soup, mayonnaise, Parmesan, crabmeat, shrimp, and pepper. Stir the sauteed vegetables into the seafood mixture and spoon this mixture into a lightly greased 8 by 11-inch casserole dish. Bake for 30 minutes. Serve with toast points or crackers.

Spiced Carrot Muffins

I had carrot muffins at a friend's house the other day and was inspired to make some this morning with some leftover carrots I needed to use up. I found this recipe from an issue of Everyday Food. I made mine as mini-muffins. I served them plain but they would be good with a cream cheese frosting also. Not only did the muffins turn out really well but they make your house smell good while cooking too!

Spiced Carrot Muffins
Recipe from Everyday Food

Ingredients:

Makes 12.

• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons pumpkin-pie spice
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup plain low-fat yogurt (I used vanilla yogurt)
  
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• 1 large egg
• 2 1/2 cups shredded (about 5 medium) carrots

Directions:

1. Line twelve cups (each 2 1/2 inches wide) of a standard muffin tin with paper liners; set aside. In a large bowl, stir together flour, sugar, pumpkin-pie spice, baking powder, baking soda, and salt; set aside.
2. In another bowl, whisk together yogurt, butter, and eggs. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture, and add yogurt mixture. Stir until just combined. Fold in carrots.
3. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups. (If desired, muffins can be baked immediately in a 375 degrees oven for about 20 minutes.) Freeze until firm, about 30 minutes, then cover tin with plastic wrap, and freeze until ready to bake, up to 3 months.
4. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Bake muffins (still frozen) until a toothpick inserted in center of one comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Transfer to a rack. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Brownie Pumpkin Cheesecake

I saw this recipe yesterday and thought it was really cute. It was easy and fun to make. My only complaint is that the brownie on bottom was a little over cooked. I worried about this since the recipe had the brownie cooking separately and then again with the cheesecake. If I made it again, I would probably under cook the brownie. I would probably also use a pastry bag to pipe the face as the plastic bag method was hard to get the control to do the face neatly. All in all a cute recipe and perfect to watch It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown!

Brownie Pumpkin Cheesecake
Recipe: Pillsbury Halloween

Brownie Base:
1 box dark chocolate fudge brownie mix
Water, vegetable, oil and eggs called for on brownie mix box

Filling:
2 packages (8 oz each) cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup canned pumpkin
2 eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips, melted

1. Heat oven to 350F. Spray 10 inch springform pan with cooking spray. Make brownie batter as directed on box; spread in pan. Bake 28 to 30 minutes or until toothpick inserted 2 inches from side of pan comes out almost clean.

2. Meanwhile, in large bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar with electric mixer on medium until smooth and creamy. Beat in pumpkin until well blended. On low speed, beat in eggs 1 at a time, just until combined. Stir in vanilla and pumpkin pie spice. Reserve 1/2 cup filling in small bowl. Pour remaining filling over baked brownie base.

3. Stir melted chocolate into reserved filling; place chocolate in large resealable food storage bag. Seal bag; cut off 1 corner of bag. Squeeze bag to pipe jack-o-lantern face on cheesecake.

4. Bake 40 to 45 minutes or until center is almost set. Cool 30 minutes. Run knife around edge of pan to loosen cheesecake. Cool 30 minutes longer. Refrigerate at least 2 hours before serving. Cover and refrigerate any remaining cheesecake.

Cheesy Baked "Ravioli"

This recipe has to be one of my all time favorite Giada recipes. The original recipe is a Cheesy Baked Tortellini, however, I usually substitute ravioli. This recipe has so much flavor and is so easy to make. It is one of my standard go to recipes. I don't add the smoked mozzarella because I don't care for melted cheese but I'm sure it would be wonderful with it.

Cheesy Baked Tortellini
Recipe Courtesy of Giada de Laurentis

Olive oil
2 cups marinara sauce
1/3 cup mascarpone cheese
1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves
2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme leaves
1 pound purchased cheese tortellini
2 ounces thinly sliced smoked mozzarella
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly oil an 8 by 8 by 2-inch baking dish.

Whisk the sauce, mascarpone cheese, parsley and thyme in a large bowl to blend. Cook the tortellini in a large pot of boiling salted water until just tender, about 2 minutes. Drain. Add the tortellini to the sauce and toss to coat. Transfer the tortellini mixture to the prepared baking dish. Top the mixture with the smoked mozzarella and Parmesan. Cover and bake until the sauce bubbles and the cheeses on top melt, about 30 minutes.

Soufleed Banana Pancakes

Yesterday I realized I had four bananas that needed to be used. I thought about doing my usual banana bread but wanted something different. I went to Williams Sonoma's website and searched banana recipes and found this recipe for Soufleed Banana Pancakes. It was perfect as I had all the ingredients and it was just in time for breakfast. We really liked this recipe. It would be a decadent touch to a brunch or just fun for a Sunday morning breakfast. It was almost dessert like.

Souffléed Banana Pancake This recipe calls for beating the egg whites until stiff peaks form. The whites should hold their shape and stand upright when the beater is lifted. When folding the beaten whites into the batter, take care not to deflate them or the pancake won’t rise properly. Use a firm but light hand and stop folding when the mixtures are just blended.

6 Tbs. (3⁄4 stick) unsalted butter 3 Tbs. firmly packed light brown sugar 2 bananas, peeled and cut diagonally 1⁄4 inch thick 4 eggs, separated 2⁄3 cup milk 1 1⁄4 tsp. vanilla extract 1 Tbs. dark rum 1 tsp. salt 2⁄3 cup all-purpose flour 2⁄3 cup banana puree (about 2 bananas) 1⁄4 cup granulated sugar 1⁄2 cup pecan halves, lightly toasted Confectioners’ sugar for dusting Preheat an oven to 375°F. In 10-inch nonstick fry pan over medium heat, melt the butter. Pour 3 Tbs. of the butter into a batter pitcher or bowl; set aside. Tilt the pan to coat the bottom with the remaining butter and return to medium heat. Add the brown sugar and stir until it melts. Add the sliced bananas and cook until barely softened and lightly caramelized, about 1 minute per side. Transfer to a plate. Reserve the pan. Add the egg yolks, milk, vanilla, rum and salt to the pitcher with the melted butter and whisk until blended. Gradually whisk in the flour, then stir in the banana puree. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites on high speed until frothy. Slowly add the granulated sugar and beat until stiff peaks form. Using a rubber spatula, fold one-third of the egg whites into the batter, then fold in the remaining whites. Pour the batter into the fry pan and top with the caramelized bananas and pecans. Bake until the pancake is puffed and golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes. Dust with confectioners’ sugar and serve immediately. Serves 6. Williams-Sonoma Kitchen.

Julia Child's Beef Bourguinon

We attended a dinner party several years ago where the host served us this recipe. I absolutely fell in love with this dish. I have tried several other recipes but this one is the best hands down. I was trying to determine what to serve for a dinner party we were having and thought this was perfect fall inspired dish. It also gives me a chance to use my 13 quart Le Creuset Round Oven which I just love. Along with the Beef Bourguinon I served a mixed green salad with goat cheese, dried figs, walnuts and a fig walnut vinaigrette, crusty French bread and Ina's Apple Pear Crisp.

Beef Bourguinon
Recipe from Juila's Kitchen Wisdom

Cooking time: about 2 1/2 hours

6 ounces blanced bacon lardons (basically bacon boiled and simmered, then rinsed)
About 4 lb trimmed beef chuck, cut into 2 inch cubes
Salt and freshly ground pepper
2 cups sliced onions
1 cup sliced carrots
1 bottle red wine
2 cups beef stock or canned beef broth
1 cup chopped tomatoes, fresh or canned (I used canned)
1 medium herb bouquet (8 parsley sprigs, 4 cloves of garlic, 4 cloves and 1 tsp dried thyme tied in cheese cloth)
Buerre manie for the sauce: 3 tbsp flour blended to a paste with 2 tbsp butter
For the garnish 24 brown briased small white onions (I omitted) and 3 cups sauteed quartered mushrooms

Saute lardons to brown lightly in a little oil in a large frying pan. Set aside to simmer with beef.
Brown the meat on all sides in the oil and rendered fat from the lardons. Season with salt and pepper. Remove meat and place in a heavy casserole. Add the sliced vegetables to the pan and brown and add to the meat. Deglaze the pan with wine pouring into the casserole along with enough stock to almost cover the meat. Stir in the tomatoes and add the herb bouquet.

Bring to a simmer, cover and simmer slowly on the stove or in a preheated 325 degree oven until the meat is tender.

Drain through a colander set over a saucepan and return the meat to the casserole. Press juices out of the residue into the cooking liquid, then degrease and boil down the liquid to 3 cups. Off heat, whisk in the beurre manie, then simmer for 2 minutes as the sauce thickens. Correct seasoning and pour over meat, folding in the mushrooms and the onions.