Poppin' Bottles

It just so happens that I made a decidedly French dessert before I realized that it was Bastille Day today. Oo la la! I'm so tuned in. Pop some bottles for the French!

Bastille Day aka French National Day aka La Fête Nationale commemorates the storming of the Bastille (prison/fortress), which took place on July 14, 1789 and marked the beginning of the French Revolution, the end of absolute monarchy and the birth of the sovereign Nation. It became an official public holiday in 1880.

Clafoutis is a baked French dessert from the Limousin region, traditionally made with black cherries, arranged in a buttered dish and covered with a thick flan-like batter. It is then dusted with powdered sugar and served lukewarm. If you can make pancake batter, you can make this. Trust. I used raspberries because it's what I had, but really any seasonal and semi-soft fruit would work. Happy Bastille Day and enjoy this list of French-ified moments in pop culture!

Raspberry Clafoutis

Adapted from Food &Wine

1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
Salt
3 large eggs
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons milk
1 1/2 pints raspberries (3 cups)
Confectioners' sugar, for dusting

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter a 9-inch gratin dish. In a bowl, whisk the flour, sugar and a pinch of salt. Whisk in the eggs, butter and lemon zest until smooth. Add the milk and whisk until light and very smooth, about 3 minutes. Pour the batter into the gratin dish and top with the raspberries.

2. Bake for about 30 minutes, until the clafoutis is set and golden. (It will puff up around the edges.)  Let cool slightly. Dust with confectioners' sugar, cut into wedges and serve. Serves 6.

Snow What?

You might have noticed a build up of this white, bulky winter precipitation that you have to shovel. Snow, I think it's called? (See photo above. Poor bastards. Good thing it rained yesterday.) Some of us got more than others (am I right, Boston and much of CT??) and boredom can start to set in when schools, activities and roads (even the L.I.E.??) are closed down. What to do...

I trekked 40 blocks to a friend's apartment to do a little baking and cooking (and by "trekked" I mean "took the subway" and by "cooking" I mean "drank wine") and ended up making two vastly different desserts as the tween trio on site could not decide on only one. "I want chocolate! I want raspberry!" I tried a compromise but it was met with a resounding, "I hate that. Gross." Whatevs. Hand me a cocktail and I can get three kids to make 2 desserts at the same time.

Somehow we decided on molten chocolate cakes circa 1987 and berry cobbler. Did I neglect to mention that "cookies are boring" and that we had to work from existing ingredients in the kitchen? Totally. (Take that Iron Chef!) In the end it all worked out. I even caught the berry tween eating the molten chocolate cake even though she "hates chocolate cake." And of course it wouldn't be 2013 if we didn't Instagram (@tinanders - holla!) the whole damn thing. (By the way, I made another version of the chocolate cakes here but this is the original recipe.) A real camera is just so 2011.

Molten Chocolate Cakes
Adapted from Food & Wine/Jean-Georges Vongerichten

1 stick (4 ounces) unsalted butter
6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, preferably Valrhona
2 eggs
2 egg yolks
1/4 cup sugar
Pinch of salt
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1. Preheat the oven to 450°F. Butter and lightly flour four 6-ounce ramekins. Tap out the excess flour. Set the ramekins on a baking sheet.

2. In a double boiler over simmering water, melt the butter with the chocolate. In a medium bowl, beat the eggs with the egg yolks, sugar and salt at high speed until thickened and pale.

3. Whisk the chocolate until smooth. Quickly fold it into the egg mixture along with the flour. Spoon the batter into the prepared ramekins and bake for 12 minutes, or until the sides of the cakes are firm but the centers are soft. Let the cakes cool in the ramekins for 1 minute, then cover each with an inverted dessert plate. Carefully turn each one over, let stand for 10 seconds and then unmold. Serve immediately.

Make Ahead: The batter can be refrigerated for several hours; bring to room temperature before baking.

Mixed Berry Cobbler
Adapted from the Joy of Cooking and Martha Stewart

For the Filling:
2 pints raspberries and/or blackberries (red, black, or a combination of the two)
1/2 cup granulated sugar

For the Biscuit Topping:
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 3/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons cold unsalted butter
3/4 heavy cream, plus more for brushing
Sugar, for sprinkling (optional)

1. Make the filling: Preheat the oven to 375˚F. Mix together the berries and sugar. Pour into a 2-quart baking dish.

2. Make the biscuit topping: Whisk together the flour, baking powder, granulated sugar, and salt. Cut in the butter until the largest pieces are the size of small peas. Add the cream, and use a fork to incorporate, stirring just until cream is absorbed (there should be lots of loose pieces).

3. Turn out the dough onto a clean surface, and knead once or twice, gathering loose bits into ball. Pat dough to a 1 1/4-inch thickness. Cut into rounds or squares, or leave whole, and place on top of the filling. Brush with cream, and sprinkle with sugar.

4. Bake the cobbler until bubbling in center and biscuit topping is golden brown and cooked through, about 50 minutes (loosely tent with foil if biscuit topping gets too dark). Let stand at least 30 minutes before serving.

happy breakfast at wimbledon 4th of july!

Too bad there's not an American in the Gentlemen's Singles final at Wimbledon on this fourth of July. (Marathon man John Isner? Roddick? Hello?) At least Serena kicked butt yesterday. Yeah!

I made something that I think can work for you whether you are sitting on your couch with a cup of coffee this morning or going to a bbq later this evening. My mixed berry crumble might seem like dessert but it's not all that different from eating a bowl of granola with fruit. Am I right? Just top it with yogurt (or ice cream!) and wait for the fireworks.



Mixed Berry Crumble
(Adapted from Family Circle)

Berries
6 cups berries (any combination of blueberries, raspberries, blackberries)
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
Zest from one lemon
Topping
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
2/3 cup packed light brown sugar
3/4 cup whole rolled oats
1/2 cup (1 stick) cold, unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

1. Preheat the oven to 350˚F. In a large bowl, gently mix the berries, 1/3 cup brown sugar, 1/3 cup flour, and zest. Pour the berry mixture into a 2-quart baking dish.

2. In another large bowl, stir the remaining flour, brown sugar, and oats together. Cut in the butter until the mixture is crumbly.

3. Sprinkle the topping evenly over the berry mixture. Bake for 45 minutes, until the topping is golden and the mixture is bubbling. Allow to cool for at least 20 minutes before serving. Serves 6.

Berry Bloody

Last night's episode of True Blood had a lot going on. Bill revealed more of his past through his dreams. Franklin made Tara's "acquaintance" and then later presented Jessica with a decapitated head...in a shopping bag. Alcide made his first appearance. Lafayette got a bonus. And yet, I was still thinking about the multi-course blood dinner at Russell's mansion last week. BTW did you notice the cut crystal double old fashioned glass that Bill was drinking his blood out of this week? Fancy shmancy. I guess that's how the King of Mississippi (or more likely his opinionated gay partner, Talbot) rolls!

It was also 18 million degrees this weekend so the only thing that I could think to make in honor of the show was some blood sorbet (instead of the blood gelato from last week's ep), until I realized that you need an ice cream maker to do so. Which I don't have. Blood granita will have to do. (And by blood, I just mean red. I'm not that literal.)

All you have to do is make a simple syrup, puree some fruit, strain out the teeny tiny seeds, mix it all together, freeze, and then...voila! A cool refreshing treat, not unlike a snow cone or shave ice...but way better. Fruitier. I even think that Talbot would approve. If I served it in cut crystal bowls.



Berry Bloody Granita

1 pound fresh strawberries, hulled and cut in half
6 ounces fresh raspberries
1 cup water
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1. Place the berries into a blender or food processor and puree until smooth. Pass the berry puree through a fine mesh strainer into a medium bowl.

2. In a small saucepan, combine the water and the sugar and cook over moderate heat, stirring, just until the sugar has dissolved. Stir in the lemon juice and let the sugar syrup cool.

3. Add the sugar syrup to the berry puree and stir to combine. Transfer the mixture to a 13 x 9 x 2-inch nonstick metal baking pan and freeze just until ice crystals begin to form around the edge of the pan, about 30 minutes. Using a fork, scrape the ice crystals into the center of the pan. Continue to freeze the granita for about 2 hours, scraping the ice crystals into the center every 30 minutes, until the granita is fluffy and icy. Transfer the strawberry granita to bowls and serve. Alternatively, cover the granita tightly with foil until ready to serve. The granita can be made up to 2 days ahead. Let it stand at room temperature for 10-15 minutes, then scrape the granita with a fork until it is fluffy to serving. Makes about 4 cups.

Proscrastination

I don't know why I decided to bake a tart on one of the hottest days of the year so far. Humidity reared it's ugly head and instead of going to the beach or enjoying an air conditioned movie theater, I stayed inside with my oven set to 400˚F. Nice.

Actually, it's called procrastination. I was supposed to be studying for a test (and I was!) but when I'm home I always find other things to do like recycling my stacks of magazines, cleaning the bathroom, reorganizing my spice collection...instead of what I'm really supposed to be doing. (The berry tart was just breakfast!) This tart would be great for your summer BBQs, especially with vanilla ice cream, but don't forget the air conditioning.



Rustic Berry Tart

Crust:
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1 large egg, lightly beaten

Tart Filling:
2 1/2 cups raspberries, blueberries, and blackberries (or any combination)
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon flour
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Finish:
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon sugar

1. Make the crust: Mix the flour, sugar, and salt in a large bowl. Add the butter. Using a pastry blender, cut the butter into the flour mixture until it resembles coarse meal. Add the egg and stir just until the dough holds together. Gather the dough into a ball and flatten into a disk. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, about 30 minutes.

2. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Assemble the filling: Add the berries to a large bowl. Gently stir in the 2 tablespoons sugar, 1 tablespoon flour, and 1 tablespoon lemon juice.

3. Remove the dough from the refrigerator. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out to a 10-inch circle, then transfer to a parchment lined baking sheet. Place the berry mixture in the center of the dough leaving a 1-inch border around the edge. Fold the 1-inch border over the berries to form an 8-inch tart.

3. Bake the tart: Lightly brush the tart dough edge with the remaining beaten egg and sprinkle with 1 tablespoon sugar. Bake for 25 - 30 minutes, until the crust is light brown and the filling is bubbling, rotating once halfway through baking. Remove from the oven and cool for 15 minutes before slicing. Serve immediately or at room temperature. Serves 6.