Two Cobblers That are Lip-Smacking Good and Lightened Up!

 

Tis' the essence of summer...

 

Cobbler!

 

Peachy Keen Classic Cobbler

It was a warm summertime day, didn't matter!  I cranked up the oven because there were hungry mouths here salivating for a sweet treat!

It all started when Bill and I saw that the farmers’ market still had a plethora of peaches…

I got the peaches, tossed them with sugar and spice, spread them in a baking dish, dropped spoonfuls of dough over the top and baked it up.  Easy as pie!

Simply put, a cobbler is a casserole of baked, syrupy sweet fruit with some sort of pastry topping. 

To the peaches and sugar, I added a touch of cardamom for its distinctive sweet and savory taste.  You know the spice, it’s a longtime staple that  Swedish bakers use in a lot of confectionaires, like my Swedish MIL did.  

Next, I stirred in small amount cinnamon along with a splash of lemon juice to balance the sweetness of the mixture.

But ~ the secret to this great tasting cobbler is all about the orange zest in the biscuit topping.  It’s a surprising aromatic addition that will make everyone at your dinner table smile.

This cobbler delivers a crisp and tender crust with sweet jammy fruit underneath.  Serve it with a scoop of ice cream or dollop of whipped cream, or not, serve it warm or room temperature, whichever you like.

Drop-dead delicious, for sure ~ it’s probably the best reason to turn on the oven in the summer!

Enjoy!

Yield:  8 servingsAuthor:  Pam

Peachy Keen Cobbler

This cobbler bakes up into a crisp and tender crust with sweet jammy fruit underneath.

 

 

INGREDIENTS:

For the filling:

• 1/2 cup Splenda (or sugar)
• 3 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
• 8 cups sliced peaches, about 10-12 medium-sized peaches

For the topping:

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup Splenda (or sugar)
• 2 teaspoons orange zest
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 heaping teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teasppon baking soda
• 3 tablespoons cold butter
• 3/4 cup buttermilk

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 375°.
2. In a large bowl, mix sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon and cardamom.
3. Add peaches and lemon juice, toss well to combine.
4. Transfer to an 11x7-inches baking dish that has been coated with cooking spray.
5. In a small bowl, whisk the first six topping ingredients; cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
6. Add buttermilk, stir just until moistened.
7. Drop dough by tablespoonfuls over peaches in baking dish.
8. Bake 25-30 minutes or until topping is golden brown.
9. Serve warm or room temperature.

 

A New Laptop, A Healthier Me and Cornmeal Cake with Macerated Berries for You!

What a week last week was!

I bought a new laptop last Wednesday ~ turned it over to Bubba that evening ~ he had it up and running and returned to me by Friday morning on his way to work.  

In the meantime, I developed a very nasty little cough which seemed to clear up a little when Bill came down with pneumonia out of the blue.  That left me with a good case of bronchitis.  

So, even though I had the laptop working great, cooking and blogging were the last things on my mind.  But, I’m happy to say Bill is doing fine now and I’m just about cured!

Our first computer - 1983
Bubba 14 years old teaching Matt 8 years old

Thanks to Bubba for setting the new one up, it’s great ~ I love it!

A week ago before the old laptop died, I was going to give you a mouthwatering dessert recipe in time for Labor Day weekend.  This recipe was in our local newspaper a while back and made me curious:

I like texture in food ~ you know, the feeling food has in your mouth.  I’m not much for mashed or creamed food with that soft mushy, slushy feeling; except for ice cream and even that I like with bits of fruit or nuts.  I’m not big on mashed potatoes and forget pudding, smoothies and custard.  So I had a feeling I’d like this cake because of the gritty texture of cornmeal.  And I did, it was a hit!

Cornmeal cake has a buttery, very appealing lightly gritty texture and that’s not all it’s about.  It includes a couple of teaspoons of finely grated orange rind that adds a tangy citrus taste to the cornmeal.  The recipe calls for strawberries, blueberries or raspberries; however, our farmer’s market had luscious blackberries so I used them for the sauce along with some Blackberry Brandy for depth. 

 It’s not a heavy hearty cake at all ~ it’s a perfect light, moist cake that is delicious when macerated blackberries are drizzled over a slice.  It’s truly inviting and heavenly! 

Here’s the recipe:

Cornmeal Cake with Macerated Berries

American Profile

Adapted

Cake:

1 cup flour

1½ teaspoons baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

½ cup butter (1 stick), at room temperature

1 cup sugar

2 teaspoons finely grated orange rind

1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
1/3 cup yellow cornmeal
½ cup 2 percent reduced-fat milk

Berries:

1 cup blackberries

¼ cup sugar, or to taste (I used a tablespoon of it)

2 tablespoons Blackberry Brandy

½ cup freshly squeezed orange juice

Method:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Grease a 9-inch round cake pan.

Combine flour, baking powder and salt.

Combine butter, sugar, orange rind and vanilla in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until evenly blended.

Add eggs one at a time, beating after each addition.

Reduce speed to low and add flour mixture and cornmeal alternately with milk, beating just until evenly incorporated.

Scrape into prepared pan, spreading evenly.

Bake 30 minutes or until a tester inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Cool in pan on wire rack.

To prepare berries:

Mash berries in a large bowl.

Add sugar, juice and brandy and mix gently.

Serve drizzled over cake.

We really enjoyed this and I will be making it again!  YUM!!!

And thanks again Bubba! 

Be sure to visit my friend, Linda’s blog @My Kind of Cooking for great tips, recipes.  

A Tate’s Bake Shop Giveaway & Orange Poppy Seed Muffins

“Hello” all you fantastic cookie lovers! 

I bet I will have you drooling shortly!

I was drooling before I could even get all the beautiful packages opened when the box from Tate’s Bake Shop arrived.  Inside were the thinnest, crispiest cookies I have ever eaten and a copy of Tate’s Bake Shop Cookbook by Kathleen King.  They are buttery delicious and have the honor of being featured in the magazine ~ Everyday with Rachael Ray, The Boston Globe, The New York Times and The Gourmet Retailer.

Right now though, I want to tell you a little about Kathleen King, the owner and baker at Tate’s Bake Shop in Southampton, New York.  She was born there and first began selling her chocolate chip cookies at her father’s North Sea Farms roadside stand.  Kathleen has been famous for her chocolate chip cookies since she started baking them as an 11-year-old girl.  They were such a hit that selling them put her through college.  Her cookies are sweetly magnificent ~ perfect!

Kathleen King ~ owner, Tate's Bake Shop

And here’s a really sweet surprise from Kathleen ~ one of you lucky people will be winning the same package I received.  It’s filled with 3 boxes of cookies:  oatmeal raisin (the best I have ever eaten!), white chocolate macadamia nut (YUM!), and her award-winning famous chocolate chip.  And the extra-added attraction is a copy of Tate’s Bake Shop Cookbook by Kathleen King with the foreword written by none other than Ina Garten!

I love Tate’s Bake Shop Cookbook!  It’s chocked-full of a yummy assortment of desserts and treats, with a few being:  Orange Moss (Kathleen has great memories of her grandmother making this light dessert often),  Peanut Butter Bread (a must-try!), Gorp Cookies (trail mix turned into a cookie), Oatmeal Scones, Fresh Blueberry and White Chocolate Tart, Magic Bars (an old-style cookie bar from the 1930’s), Raspberry Charlotte, Blueberry Buckle, Bob’s Mud Cake (an interesting recipe given to Kathleen by her professor at Cobleskill College), Whole Wheat Quick Bread and…

The first recipe I tried from Kathleen’s cookbook:  Orange Poppy Seed Muffins.  Bill was drooling while the muffins were baking up.  Oh, my gosh!  What a fantastic aroma coming from the oven!  They are delicious ~ a very light citrus muffin with a flavor that can be changed to lemon or tangerine.  The texture is so light and the top so springy with just a tad of crispiness on the edge after baking.  I will be making them with lemon the next time for a change. 

Orange Poppy Seed Muffins

1¼ cups all-purpose flour

1¼ teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon salt

½ cup butter, softened to room temperature

¾ cup sugar

2 large eggs, separated

1 tablespoon freshly grated orange fzest

1 teaspoon vanilla

½ cup buttermilk

2 tablespoons poppy seeds

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Grease nine 3 x 1½-inch muffin cups.

In a medium-size bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar until the mixture is light and fluffy.  Add the egg yolks one at a time, beating well after each addition.

Beat in the orange rind and the vanilla.

Add the flour mixture and buttermilk alternately to the butter mixture, finishing with the flour mixture.

Fold in the poppy seeds.

Beat the egg whites to soft peaks and fold them into the flour mixture.

Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cups, filling them to the top.

Bale them for 20 minutes or until a cake tester or toothpick inserted in the center of one muffin comes out clean.

Yield:  9 muffins

Now, on with the giveaway!

Like I mentioned earlier, if you are the lucky winner you will receive 3 packages of goodies:  chocolate chip, white chocolate macadamia nut and oatmeal raisin cookies plus the magnificent Tate’s Bake Shop Cookbook by Kathleen King.

 

Here are the rules:

• Leave a comment on this post telling me you are a follower through Google Friend Connect (on the side bar of this blog) and what your favorite Christmas treat is. 

• For an extra entry become a fan of Tate’s Bake Shop Facebook fan page and leave me a separate comment telling me you’ve done that. 

• For a third entry, follow this blog on the Facebook Networked Blogs (on sidebar of this blog) and leave a comment telling me you’ve done so.

• This giveaway is open only to U. S. residents. 

• The giveaway is open through midnight CST, Tuesday, December 14, 2010.  The winner will be selected by Random.org and announced on Wednesday, December 15^th.

If you can’t wait until the drawing or are not the winner, Tate’s Bake Shop is offering the readers of Pam’s Midwest Kitchen Korner a coupon worth 15% off any tatesbakshop.com purchase now through December 31, 2010.  Please use the discount code:  cookie. 

Good luck to all of you!

My only regret is that I don’t live close enough to Tate’s Bake Shop in the Hamptons.  That would be a heavenly sweet thing!

Spicy Pork Tenderloin

We really enjoy roasted pork tenderloin.  It’s versatile, easy and makes a good and easy dinner.

This one is a spicy dish packed with a combination of delicious flavors, thanks to Dijon mustard, orange juice, honey, fennel seeds, mustard seeds and lots of pepper.  It smelled sweet as it was roasting and I was afraid it would taste sweet ~ never fear, it turned out wonderfully with no sweet taste, just spicy goodness!  Love the aroma of the fennel!

Pork tenderloin is always a good choice when trying to come up with a meal that will please most people.  It reminds us of Mom’s great home cooking and the great flavors in this one will bring you a smile from everyone at your dinner table!

SPICY PORK TENDERLOIN

Ingredients:

¼ cup Dijon mustard

2 tablespoons orange juice

2 tablespoons honey

1 teaspoon grated orange zest

¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon

Dash of ground allspice

1 teaspoon mustard seeds

1 teaspoon fennel seeds

¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper

2 pounds pork tenderloin

Method:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a bowl, whisk together the first 9 ingredients.

Place the meat on a roasting pan and brush some sauce over it.

Bake until thermometer registers 160 degrees, about 30 minutes.

Remove from oven and let stand for 5 minutes.

Slice and serve.

ENJOY!

It’s spicy and delicious!!!

Tangy Tilapia

Most people are fans of tilapia and it is one of the most versatile, mild-flavored fish that I can think of.  The price is usually right and is readily available.   It is un-fishy and tends to take on the flavor of whatever sauce you use.

There are more uses for tilapia than just dining on them.  They are becoming the plant control method of choice due to their consumption of undesirable plants and algae.  Arizona stocks tilapia in the canals that provide water to Mesa and Phoenix, among others.  The water is purified by the tilapia ingesting the vegetation and detritus.  Arkansas stocks many public lakes and ponds for the same reason and to the enjoyment of anglers as well. 

This citrus tilapia is filled with just that ~ lots of good lemon, lime and orange flavors blended with honey that combine perfectly with the fish.  There’s a hint of spiciness with the garlic and chili powder.  What I really like is adding the panko bread crumbs before baking; it gives the fish a little crunch texture on top and I love the way this blackens a touch due to the honey. 

Tangy Tilapia

Ingredients:

1½ pounds tilapia

2 tablespoons butter, melted

3 garlic cloves, minced

¼ teaspoon chili powder

¼ teaspoon lemon zest

¼ teaspoon orange zest

¼ cup lime juice

¼ cup orange juice

¼ cup lemon juice

1/3 cup honey

Salt and pepper, to taste

¼ cup panko bread crumbs

Method:

Melt butter in micro or a saucepan.

Add the remaining ingredients, except salt, pepper and bread crumbs.

Blend well.

Place fish in a baking dish.

Pour sauce over the fish.

Season with salt and pepper.

Sprinkle with bread crumbs.

Bake at 400 degrees for about 15-20 minutes or until fish flakes easily with a fork.

It’s refreshingly delicious!

Spicy Cinnamon Rolls

We all know you can buy cinnamon rolls and sometimes they’re really yummy, but the homemade version with the spirals of pastry and spice is so much better.  Cinnamon roll lovers all around the world drool just thinking about them. 

Picture in your mind Easter morning before whatever your event of the day may be; be it church, an Easter egg hunt or a great dinner with the family, and smelling the aroma of freshly baked cinnamon rolls wafting from the oven at the start of your day.  Then you open the oven door, pull out the cinnamon rolls and sit down to enjoy one with a cup of coffee or tea.  

These cinnamon rolls are excellent and easy to make.  This recipe is adapted from a recipe by Amy Scattergood which was in the Chicago Tribune.  Combine the makings for the dough, let it rise, roll it, fill it with the spicy filling and let the dough rise again. Then finish by baking them for 20 minutes, apply a little icing and you’re done. 

This dough is a basic sweet bread dough with cinnamon added to it.  I’ve never added cinnamon directly to the dough before but it not only tastes great, the cinnamon supposedly enhances yeast activity.  The dough can be mixed by hand or to make it easier, use a mixer fitted with a dough hook, place it in the buttered bowl and after rising, they’re ready to bake.

And you’re rrready to rrroll with a great sweet start to your day!

Spicy Cinnamon Rolls

Ingredients:

1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature

Zest of 1 orange

2 eggs, at room temperature

4 cups plus 1 tablespoon flour, plus extra as needed

¼ cup sugar

2 packages (1/4 ounce each) active dry yeast

¼ teaspoon baking soda

2 tablespoons plus ¼ teaspoon cinnamon

2¼ teaspoons kosher salt

6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) butter, softened, cut into cubes, plus 6 tablespoons melted butter

1 cup brown sugar

1/3 cup raisins, optional

2 cups confectioner’s sugar, sifted

¼ cup milk

Method:

Whisk buttermilk, orange zest, and eggs in small bowl.  Set aside.

Place 4 cups the flour, sugar, yeast, baking soda, ¼ teaspoon of the cinnamon, 1 ¼ salt and 6 tablespoons of the softened butter in the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with a dough hook.

Pour in buttermilk mixture, mix on low until the mixture comes together, about 1 minute.

Increase speed to medium, continue to mix until dough is soft and smooth and pulls away from the sides of the bowl, about 5 minutes, adding a little flour if the dough is too wet (up to ¼ cup).

Scrape the dough from the bowl, form into a ball.

Place dough in large buttered bowl.

Cover with plastic wrap, set aside in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.

Meanwhile, make the filling.

Sift brown sugar, remaining 2 tablespoons cinnamon, remaining 1 teaspoon of the kosher salt, remaining 1 tablespoon of flour and raisins together in a bowl. 

Turn dough onto well floured surface.

Roll into ¼” thick rectangle, about 17 by 12 inches.

Brush dough with 4 tablespoons of the melted butter.

Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar and raisin mixture, keeping 1 inch clear along one of the long edges.

Loosely roll the dough into a long tube, pressing the clear edge to seal the tube.  Place the tube seam-side down on a cutting board.

Cut the tube crosswise into 12 rolls.

Place the rolls, ½” apart and spiral side up, on a parchment-lined baking sheet.

Cover loosely with plastic wrap, set aside until almost doubled in size, about 1 hour.

Heat oven to 375 degrees.

Bake rolls until golden brown, about 20-25 minutes.

Remove from the tray, cool on parchment paper.

For the icing:

Whisk confectioner’s sugar, orange juice, milk, remaining 2 tablespoons of the melted butter and a pinch of salt in a bowl.

The consistency should be like very thick syrup; add additional milk or sugar as needed.

Dip a whisk into the icing.

Drizzle icing over the rolls.

Enjoy!!

Ummm, cinnamon rolls:  ambrosia for your morning!  Yum!!!