Cobblers - Cherry Cobbler

A cobbler generally consists of a thickened fruit filling with a batter topping over it. For the novice, and those short on time, cobblers are a quick and easy method of making something similar to a pie. There is nothing short on taste, however. Cobblers, bubbling hot out of the oven, are a warm treat to have on a cold winter's night. Put a scoop of vanilla ice cream over the plated cobbler and you have a wonderful dessert just like Grandma used to make.

Cherry Cobbler

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup butter, softened to room temperature


• 1 cup sifted flour


• 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder


• 1/4 tsp. salt


• 2 tbs. sugar


• 2 cups pitted tart fresh or canned cherries


• 3/4 cup juice drained from the cherries


• 2/3 cup sugar


• 1 tbs. plus 1 tsp. quick-cooking tapioca


• pinch of salt


• 1 tbs. butter


• 1 extra large egg


• 1/4 cup milk

Directions:

1. Into medium bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, salt, and the 2 tbs. sugar.
2. Add the 1/4 cup butter to the flour mixture and cut in using a pastry knife until the texture resembles course crumbs.
3. Preheat oven to 400 F.
4. Drain the cherries in a sieve, setting aside the liquid. Add enough water to the cherry juice to make 3/4 cup liquid.
5. Pour the liquid into a medium saucepan. Add the 2/3 cup sugar, tapioca, and salt. Stir. Bring the mixture to boil on medium-high heat, stirring constantly. Let boil for about 5 min., still stirring. Add the cherries and boil 5 more min., until thickened. Remove from the heat and add the 1 tbs. butter, stirring until butter is melted. Set aside.
6. Using a spoon, make a well in the center of the flour mixture. Set aside.
7. Beat the egg in a small bowl of electric mixer, or use hand mixer. Add the milk and beat until blended. Pour the egg mixture into the well of the flour mixture. Using a spoon stir until the flour mixture is moistened. Set aside.
8. Pour the hot cherry mixture into an ungreased 6" x 10" baking pan, spreading evenly. Using a medium sized spoon drop about 6 spoonfuls of the flour batter, evenly spaced, over the cherry mixture. (Note: Don't worry about evenly covering the cherries with the batter as the batter will slightly spread during baking.)
9. Bake for 18 to 20 min., or until topping is golden.
10. Remove from the oven and serve warm, cutting into 6 portions.

Until next time, Happy Baking!

Scones - Pumpkin Scones Recipe

While I await the article to post on Italian Biscotti from my guest contributor, I shall skip ahead this week and post on Scones.

Scones are small quick bread (although dryer than what we think of as a quick bread) that originated in Scotland. Like French Madeleine cookies, scones were not readily available in this country until recent years. Now it seems every bakery cafe in the U.S. has at least one or more varieties. Their slightly dry, slightly sweet texture and taste make them well suited to enjoy with coffee. In Great Britain scones are the traditional accompaniment to afternoon tea time, served with jam and cream.

Now, just in time for you to serve to your Thanksgiving guests.....

Pumpkin Scones

Ingredients:

• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour (by the way, my favorite brand for all my baking is King Arthur)
• 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/4 tsp. baking soda
• 1 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp. ginger
• 1/8 allspice
• 1/8 tsp. nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1/2 cup butter, chilled
• 1 large egg, beaten
• 1/2 cup Libby's brand canned pumpkin
• 1/3 cup milk

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 F.
2. In large bowl of electric mixer combine flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, spices, and salt. With a pastry blender cut in the 1/2 cut chilled butter until mixture looks like coarse crumbs. Make a "well" in the center of the dry mixture and then set aside.
3. In a separate bowl combine egg, pumpkin, and milk. Add the egg mixture into the well of the dry mixture. Stir just until moistened.
4. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. (Tip: I like using freezer paper for all my doughs, lightly flouring it. Not only does my dough roll out with minimal sticking, but it makes clean up a breeze.) Knead dough by folding and pressing gently until nearly smooth. Pat dough into an 8 inch circle and then cut into 12 pie shaped wedges.
5. Place wedges 1 inch apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 12 to 15 min., or until golden. Remove scones from the cookie sheet and cool for about 5 min.
6. Serve warm with jam.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving, and, as always...Happy Baking!

Ethnic Cookies - French Madeleines

I have been away from my blog for a month, still recovering from a recent surgery. I am back on the blog now, and none too soon as it is "officially" Holiday Season. This week and next time I am finishing up the cookie section with Ethnic Cookies. Hopefully I have given you, throughout the months of the cookie section, enough ideas and recipes to get started making those holiday cookies.

Madeleines are a traditional French cookie. Actually, it is a cake-like cookie, created in a special Madeleine mold pan. The pan can be purchased in gourmet cooking shops such as Williams Sonoma. Being French myself, I grew up enjoying the lemony sweet cookies. However, the cookies were relatively unknown in this country until recently. Now I see them everywhere including grocery stores and coffee shop stands, typically packaged in small quantities.

I used to bake and bring in my desserts to the Transportation Department of Toys R Us, where I used to work as a "second job". At times I would cater my pies and cookies there as well. One particular time my co-worker and friend, Diane, asked me to bake her some Madeleines and she would pay me for them, asking me how much they would be. I had no idea what to charge at the time. The next day as I was leaving a Panera's coffee shop I was thinking about just how much I should charge for the Madeleines. "Falling from the sky" (the wind was blowing hard as it is apt to do in the Chicago land suburbs) and landing right at my feet was a Five Dollar bill. I decided to charge $5.0o for the madeleines, thinking it a sign. All this was before stores started carrying madeleines. By the way - the price on those store bought madeleines - $5.00! Guess I got it right.

The following recipe won me Blue Ribbons for the Ethnic Cookie division at a country fair, out of numerous entries, two years in a row (I didn't enter them after that, choosing to enter other types for variety's sake).

A few tips: For best results, try to purchase the standard size madeleine pan, instead of the miniature ones, and try to have it all metal (not Teflon coated). When mixing in the butter, there will be a lot of butter; just keep stirring until all the butter is incorporated. There is so much butter (which makes them so "yummy") that I have dubbed them Cholesterol Sticks! Coat the madeleine pan with butter, then flour, shaking off the excess flour.

Dori's French Madeleines

Ingredients:
2 large eggs
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup sifted flour
3/4 cup butter, melted and cooled
1 tsp. grated lemon peel
confectioner's sugar

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease and slight flour madeleine pans.
2. In top of double boiler, over not, not boiling, water beat eggs and granulated sugar with wire whisk while the mixture heats to lukewarm, - about 2 minutes. (Note: Water at bottom of the double boiler should not touch the base of pan above it.)
3. Set the top of the double boiler in cold water. Beat egg mixture about 5 minutes, or until light and fluffy.
4. With wire whisk, or a rubber spatula, gently fold in flour until well combined. Stir in cooled butter and lemon peel just until blended.
5. Pour into prepared pans, using 1 tbs. batter for each mold.
6. Bake 12 to 15 minutes, or until golden. Col 1 minute, then remove from pans with a small rubber spatula. Cool completely on wire racks.
7. Sprinkle with confectioner's sugar.

Makes about 2 1/2 dozen.

Next Week: Ethnic Cookies, Italian Biscotti