Tag Archives: baking powder

Bakery Miscellaneous

Blueberry Streusel Coffee Cake

Yesterday’s abundance of sour cream and several cups of frozen summer blueberries in the fridge and the freezer led me to this great recipe on the “allrecipes” web site. The cake did an on-point job in meeting my needs: enough to serve eight after eating two pieces after supper and saving a 3-slice hunk of it for breakfast the next day. I knew when I sliced the cake tonight that it would be even better the next day, after the streusel mixture set. Normally I don’t have any luck with streusel toppings but it helped that this streusel swirls into the middle and the top layers of batter. An overnight rest made for a fabulously chewable streusel cake with coffee yesterday

I used my stand mixture up to the point of folding in the berries. My berries were flash-frozen from the summer so I sprinkled them with a T. of flour before adding to the batter to prevent dreaded ‘purple stain batter’ syndrome! Other than that, make strictly as is. Don’t over bake; an hour and 2 minutes was perfect. I covered it lightly with a dish towel and inverted it onto my serving plate after 45 minutes.  The only thing to really watch, other than having everything in place before you begin, is to allow your butter to soften to just the right texture before beginning.  As soon as the cold is off of it is just right.

The powdered sugar goes on in a fine mist. Combined with the snowflakes on the serving plate and the powdered sugar, it almost felt winterish in the kitchen on blueberry streusel day. It’s definitely worth a trip to your freezer to see if you have summer berries lurking there!

Blueberry Streusel Coffee Cake

Ingredients

1 cup butter, softened
2 cups white sugar
2 eggs
1 cup sour cream
1 tsp. vanilla
1-5/8 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup chopped pecans
Powdered sugar for dusting

Directions Preheat the oven to 350. Grease and flour a 9-inch Bundt pan.

In a large bowl, cream together the softened butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the sour cream and vanilla. Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt; stir into the batter just until blended. Fold in blueberries.

Spoon half of the batter into the prepared pan. In a small bowl, stir together the brown sugar, cinnamon and pecans. Sprinkle half of this mixture over the batter in the pan. Spoon remaining batter over the top, and then sprinkle the remaining pecan mixture over. Use a knife or thin spatula to swirl the streusel layers into the cake.

Bake for 55 to 60 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a knife inserted into the crown of the cake comes out clean. Cool in the pan on a wire rack. Invert onto a serving plate, and tap firmly to remove from the pan. Dust with confectioners’ sugar just before serving.

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Bakery Miscellaneous

Apple Crisp

Oh, geeze, is it really almost October?  Somehow, yes, indeed, ‘Truly Autumn’ is upon us and there is no better time to begin baking up Apple Everything!  Our cooler nights and mornings are perfectly suited to warm Apple Crisp tonight and then cold Apple Crisp the next morning so  gather your apples while you may and get started! Apples of every stripe will be everywhere soon and apples do so definitely deserve their own season! Apples & Autumn are the best of partners!

Today I used Granny Smith apples and a recipe from my sister’s “Deli & Delights” cookbook.  I love the texture of the crust on this one, it is more pie crust than sweet cobbler topping, and, pairing it with the just-tender apples has you thinking apple pie and ice cream in no time! There are no oats in this crisp topping; the butter provides the flakier crust. A simple filling is all you need: tart apples, sugar, and a whiff of cinnamon is just right.  Add a T. of lemon juice if using sweeter apples. Prep time is minimal: prepare the apples and blend with the filling.  Place into baking dish, make your crust topping and sprinkle it over the fruit, then drizzle the crumbs with melted butter, and you’re all pau and done!  Now just allow it to cool, if you can.

Vanilla ice cream is my favorite accompaniment for any warm fruit crisp and this one is wonderful as well for breakfast, served cold, with just 2 T. of sweet cream poured over.  Make up a larger version if you’re counting on it for breakfast!  We are definitely talking Apple Autumn Delight here, folks!

Apple Crisp

Ingredients

6 cups apples, peeled, cored, sliced
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon

TOPPING

1 cup flour
1 cup sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
1 egg
1/2 stick butter, melted

Directions Preheat oven to 350. Combine apples, sugar, and cinnamon in medium bowl; stir. Place in a lightly sprayed 9×9” baking dish. Combine flour, sugar, baking powder in medium bowl.  Add the egg; stir and press egg into dry ingredients, forming crumbs.  Sprinkle this mixture over apples in baking dish.  Drizzle the melted butter over the crumbs and bake 45 minutes or until browned and apples are tender.  Cool slightly and serve with vanilla ice cream.

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Recipes - Desserts

Strawberry-Rhubarb Crisp

First Scoop!

The best thing about a Rhubarb Crisp is adding fresh strawberries to the mix and today’s crisp proved no exception to this rule of thumb. You’re getting the sweet and the sour in each bite, guaranteeing satisfaction for all.  Tart and sweet, creamy and crumbly, this dish has it all.  I used my sister, Mamie’s, recipe, listed in her cookbook, “County Seat Deli & Delights” and altered it only by omitting the lemon juice in favor of orange zest and 1/2 cup of fresh orange juice as Ina Garten’s online recipe calls for. I also used my favorite Amish fruit thickener, Clear-jel by name, but you can certainly use cornstarch easily to thicken the filling also and I listed the cornstarch here. This is an awesome recipe, Mamie, and many thanks to you and Rosie!

The crisp topping I made exactly as listed as I never seem to have any luck using rolled oats in toppings. The butter, melted, is drizzled over the topping and not chunked up in the dough as most cobbler recipes instruct. This topping so deliciously delivers a great texture contrast to the soft fruit and it bakes up beautifully golden brown, rich with butter. The only difference in my book between cobblers, crisps, and crumbles is in the use of butter and whether you want a chewy topping or a biscuity one. The main thing you do with all of them is to sweeten, sometimes tarten, your fruit and make the topping that offers the best contrast and texture, and, geeze, what a great way to enjoy an abundance of summer fruit.

Of course you serve this dish with vanilla ice cream, preferably while the crisp is still warm. I guarantee you won’t find a more satisfying way to brighten any still hot September day. Enjoy!

Strawberry-Rhubarb Crisp

Ingredients

Combination of 6-7 cups rhubarb, cut 1″ pieces, and strawberries, stemmed and quartered

FILLING INGREDIENTS

2 cups sugar
3 T. cornstarch
4 T. water
2 t. orange zest
1/2 cup orange juice

TOPPING ingredients

2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. salt
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1-1/2 sticks butter, melted

Directions Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease a 9×13″ glass baking dish. Zest orange. Squeeze oranges to equal 1/s cup  juice.  I needed 2 oranges for this. Combine the rhubarb and the strawberries and orange zest in large bowl then place inside prepared baking dish. Set inside oven on a parchment-lined baking sheet.

Prepare the filling ingredients by combining the sugar, cornstarch, water and orange juice in a medium saucepan, bringing just to boiling. Remove from heat and pour this mixture over the hot fruit. Return dish to oven.

Make the topping by combining the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in medium bowl. Stir to blend. Add the eggs and stir until clumps begin to form and mixture pulls away from the bowl; use a fork to further cut the eggs into the dough until you have clumps. Drop this mixture by spoonfuls over the fruit; I usually squeeze 2 tablespoons in my hands and add these heavier pieces first then scatter any smaller crumbs evenly over the top. Slowly drizzle the melted butter over all and bake for 45-50 minutes. DO serve this warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

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Bakery Miscellaneous

Peach Cobbler

After finding the sweetest, largest, and juiciest of peaches from Eckert’s Nursery last week at Schnuck’s Market, it was a no-brainer that a peach cobbler soon appear in my kitchen as quickly as possible. Mine and mama’s favorite cobbler (with blackberry cobbler being an equal favorite if that’s possible), peaches are never better than when baked up cobbler style and topped with the sweet crunchy crust in this recipe.

There’s nothing hard at all about making cobbler. Peel the fruit, slice it, and toss with a minimum of sugar (ripe fruit doesn’t need a huge amount of sugar) and flour to thicken the juices then stir up your topping, add it over your fruit, and IN the oven it goes! I sometimes use cinnamon for spice, sometimes nutmeg, but use either sparingly; you want just the barest whiff to enhance the fruit.

Vanilla ice cream is, of course, the perfect accompaniment to a fruit cobbler. You absolutely cannot go wrong combining the two. It is only right. And right on! Use the recipe below from my “Missouri to Maui” cookbook to create the very best of summer deliciousness!

Peach Cobbler

Ingredients

For the fruit
1 cup sugar
2 T. flour, heaping
1/4 tsp. nutmeg or cinnamon
4 cups fresh peaches, peeled and sliced

For the topping
1 cup sugar
1 cup flour
1. tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1/3 cup cold butter or margarine, diced
1 egg, beaten

Directions

Preheat oven to 375. Place fruit in large mixing bowl and combine sugar and flour and pour over fruit; stir to coat. Sprinkle with nutmeg or cinnamon and pour into a lightly-greased 11x7x2 (2 qt.) baking dish. Prepare topping by stirring the dry ingredients together in mixing bowl then cutting in the cold butter until the dough is crumbly. Add the beaten egg, stir to combine, and drop by spoonfuls on top of the fruit or just sprinkle it evenly over fruit. Bake at 375 for 35-40 minutes until brown and bubbly. Cool before serving; top with vanilla ice cream.

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Bakery Miscellaneous

Mr. Beachy’s Butter Dips

 

Because I made a big pot of tomato sauce yesterday, I wanted homemade bread sticks for spaghetti tonight and Mr. Beachy’s Butter Dips were the perfect choice!  A quick and easy dough to assemble these little treats are a just-right accompaniment for any  pasta dish.

A note about Mr. Beachy:  He is the proprietor of a fantastic store deep in the Amish country in Arthur, Illinois.  My sister, Mamie, and I love to visit the store for its amazing array of fresh herbs and spices, the vast selection of flours of every kind and texture, dozens of bags of diverse tapioca grains, and the awesome choices of fresh baked goods. If you ever find yourself near Arthur, DO visit Mr. Beachy and his family!  We make the trip as many times a year as we can manage and it is worth every mile traveled.  Two of the thumbnail photos above I included to give you an idea of the huge variety of the merchandise at Mr. Beachy’s!  The store itself is a  baker’s Heaven!

The ample amount of baking powder in this recipe ensures a great rise to the bread. I  roll them out almost an 1″ thick so there is plenty of substance for soaking up the accompanying sauce with which I serve them. Since I was using them with pasta and sauce today, I sprinkled them with a dash of garlic salt before baking.  The small sticks have an almost biscuit-like flavor with nicely browned and crunchy edges.

If you are a pasta-sauce-bread person, these will please you with every bite.  They are also delicious without the garlic and accompanied with a bit of jam or jelly for breakfast.  However you decide to feature them, you’ll be happy with the results.  Enjoy!

Mr. Beachy’s Butter Dips

Ingredients

1/3 cup butter
2-1/2 cups flour
3-1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 cup milk
1 T. sugar
1-1/2 tsp. salt

Directions: Preheat oven to 450. Melt butter in bottom of 9×13 glass baking dish. Combine remaining ingredients and stir well with a wooden spoon in large mixing bowl. When dough forms a ball, turn out on a floured surface and roll out 3/4” to 1” thick. Cut dough into strips 1” wide and about 5” long. Roll in the melted butter in the baking dish and lay strips side by side in pan. Bake for 15-20 minutes.  Serve warm.

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