French Fridays with Dorie – Gèrard’s Mustard Tart

Welcome to ‘Week 2’ of French Fridays with Dorie!! Ms. Greenspan’s pick for this week is Gèrard’s Mustard Tart… a tart tart, if you will. 😉 I must admit that when I heard the words ‘mustard’ and ‘tart’ together in the same sentence, I was a bit put off. Now, I love mustard as much as (if not more than) the next guy (especially on my fries), but I didn’t ever think it would be something I put into a tart shell.

Knowing this, I planned to present the tart to the German ‘Iron Stomach’, aka Dad. This man will eat anything… breads and cheeses with the mold cut off and week-old tuna salad to name a few. Best-buy dates mean nothing to this guy. Got leftovers from four days ago? He’ll eat ’em. Seriously, his refrigerator drawer at work looks like a nuclear waste plant. Okay, maybe that’s going a bit far, but he will eat some gross things. But, the thing that’s most odd about it, is that he doesn’t prefer to eat chicken. “It’s too bland,” he says. I know… I said he was weird. 🙂

But, I digress. Dorie calls for two mustards in this tart: Dijon and another of your choice. So for Dad, I chose a Düsseldorf blend. Similar to Dijon, but with a sweeter bite. And what do you know? I loved it. It was smooth with a sharp tang. Perfect with that buttery tart crust – just amazing. Dad? He loved it, too. Took it to work for lunch one day, then took the leftovers for lunch at an event a few days later (of course).

Want to make one? Then get a copy of Around My French Table today!

#2 – Gèrard’s Mustard Tart
Source: Around My French Table by Dorie Greenspan

 

Tuesdays With Dorie – Coffee-Break Muffins

I had it all planned out. When I found out that this week’s recipe was a coffee-based muffin, I knew I’d be adding chocolate to this muffin batter. Coffee + chocolate? Of course! But guess what, I totally left it out. Completely forgot to put it in. Must of been because of the lack of caffeine I’d had that day.

The batter came together quickly and easily, leaving the kitchen smelling fabulous. With all that caffeine floating in the air from the brewing coffee and espresso powder, I was definitely getting my fix! And within 15 minutes, the muffins were ready to devour. So quick and easy!

Thank you to Rhiani of Chocoholic Anonymous for this wonderful pick! She’s featuring the recipe on her blog, so click the link above to get it! And don’t forget about those other TWD bakers listed here!

Coffee-Break Muffins (pg. 15)
Source: Baking – From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan

 

Honey Pumpkin Granola Cookies

Remember that Chocolate Chip Almond Granola from Sunday?? Sure ya do. Can you believe that I managed not to eat the entire batch? I’m so proud of myself. 🙂 I had an entire carton left over with just enough to make these little goodies. However, I’m not sure what I was more excited about – the cookies or the chance to try my New Zealand Kamahi honey. The cookies were yummy, yes, but the honey? Amazing.

Kamahi honey is a “bold honey with a smooth vanilla flavour and a complex herbal finish.” It comes from New Zealand’s North & South Islands and is best in savory dishes, but will work when you need a distinct honey flavor in baked goods. It’s definitely one I’ll be using very often in the near future!

Honey Pumpkin Granola Cookies
Adapted from: The Sweet Melissa Baking Book by Melissa Murphy

6 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
1/2 c Kamahi honey
1/4 c Pumpkin Butter
1 large egg
1-3/4 c whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp kosher salt
3/4 tsp ground cinnamon, heaping
1-1/4 tsp baking soda
1-1/2 c Chocolate Chip Almond Granola

Position a rack in the center of your oven. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper or aluminum foil. In a large bowl, whisk together the butter, honey, and pumpkin butter until smooth. Add the egg and whisk until incorporated. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, cinnamon, and baking soda.

Add the flour mixture to the honey mixture all at once and stir until combined. Then stir in the granola. Drop the batter 2 inches apart by rounded tablespoonfuls onto the prepared cookie sheets (12 on each sheet). Bake for 12-13 minutes, or until golden around the edges. Do not over bake.

The cookies should be nice and chewy when cool. Remove to a rack to cool on the sheets for 10 minutes before transferring to the rack. These cookies will keep layered between wax paper in an airtight container at room temperature for 4 days, or frozen for up to 3 weeks.

 

Tuesdays With Dorie – Oatmeal Breakfast Bread

One of the things I love about C’s mom, D – she’s a bread connoisseur, such as myself. So, when I saw that this week’s recipe was bread, how could I not make it with her in mind? She was the lucky recipient of this loaf (which we sampled after chips & queso, margaritas and chicken tacos). 🙂 No nuts or fruit add-ins but lots of yummy brown sugar & cinnamon topping – give me a spoon and a bowl of that alone and I’d be one happy girl.

Natalie of Oven Love is this week’s hostess – check her blog for this fabulous recipe and make it immediately!! It’s lovely on it’s own, but it’s even better toasted in the morning with a cappuccino! I’m sure it makes fabulous French Toast, too!!

Oatmeal Breakfast Bread (pg. 44)
Source: Baking – From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan

 

Sweet Melissa Sundays – Chocolate Chip Almond Granola

I’ve had an obsession with chocolate chip granola for the last month. Every morning for breakfast, with the exception of a few days, I’ve added in 1/4 cup into my yogurt. It was never really something I liked until I found a few flavors at Market Street made by Feed. So it was obviously fate when I ran out of the stuff this past Friday morning – now it’s on to making my own batches of granola!

To the SMS’ers: you’ve probably noticed that I changed the title and left out the cherries and other fruits. I’ve gotta have my chocolate! 🙂

Major thanks to Wendy of Pink Stripes who has this wonderful recipe on her blog – check it out and the other SMS bakers here!

Chocolate Chip Almond Granola (pg. 34)
Source: The Sweet Melissa Baking Book by Melissa Murphy

 

Glazed Doughnut Muffins

Ever worn a heart monitor? No? Well, it’s definitely not the most fun I’ve ever had. I watched my sister go through this for over 15 years – echocardiographs, EKGs, monitors, medicines, etc. – so I knew what an inconvenience it would be. Mine came off yesterday, but in the 48 hours I had it on, I couldn’t take a shower or bath, my skin was allergic to the tape and there wasn’t even ONE comfortable sleeping position I could find. Believe me, I tried. And that sticky residue from the electrodes?? It’s still hanging around.

They didn’t find anything life-threatening; just a few things to keep watching in the next few months. So, to reward myself for being super-good lately – salads, low-fat everything, soy, veggies and laying off the caffeine – I made these (yes, I only had one!). They’ve been in my recipe file for a few weeks now and I knew that it was the perfect time to try them out. I mean, glazed doughnuts in muffin form?? Yes, please.

Glazed Doughnut Muffins
Adapted from: My Baking Addiction & King Arthur Flour

Muffins:
1/4 c unsalted butter, room temperature
1/4 c vegetable oil
1/4 c Splenda for Baking
1/3 c light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1-1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground nutmeg
1 tsp ground cinnamon
3/4 tsp Kosher salt
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
2-2/3 c all-purpose flour
1 c skim milk

Glaze:
2 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
3/4 c confectioners’ sugar
3/4 tsp vanilla
2 tbsp hot water

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Line a standard muffin tin with 12 paper muffin cups. In a medium-sized mixing bowl, cream together the butter, vegetable oil and sugars until smooth. Add the eggs, beating to combine. Stir in the baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg, cinnamon, salt and vanilla. Stir the flour into the butter mixture alternately with the milk, beginning and ending with the flour and making sure everything is thoroughly combined. Spoon the batter evenly into the prepared cups, filling them nearly full. Bake the muffins for 15 to 17 minutes, or until they’re a pale golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center of one of the muffins comes out clean.

In a medium bowl, prepare the glaze by mixing together the melted butter, confectioners’ sugar, vanilla and water. Whisk until smooth. When muffins have cooled slightly, dip the muffin crowns into the glaze and allow the glaze to harden. At this point, you can leave them as is or dip a second time. Serve warm, or cool on a rack and wrap airtight. Muffins will keep at room temperature for about a day.

Just look at that crown!! 🙂

 

Cinnamon-Walnut Monkey Bread

I’ve always loved the sound of ‘Monkey Bread’. It evokes something fun, something child-like. And I’ve never made it… until now. You see the boxed kits in the store, but it’s so much easier than that! Especially when you already have everything on hand. Mine didn’t turn out as I’d expected, but hey, recipes rarely do (for me anyway). This one was warm, sweet and reminded me of Fall. Summer has definitely arrived in Texas (it’s forecasted to be 102 degrees this Friday), but I’m already yearning for a Pumpkin-Spice Latte… 😉

Cinnamon-Walnut Monkey Bread

1/2 (3 lb) package frozen roll dough, thawed
1/2 c chopped walnuts
2 tbsp butter
1/2 c light brown sugar
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
2/3 c light brown sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
3 tbsp butter, melted

Spray a 12-cup Bundt pan with cooking spray. Sprinkle walnuts in bottom of pan; set aside. Combine 2 tablespoons butter, 1/2 cup light brown sugar and 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon in a small saucepan; cook over low heat, stirring constantly until blended, then pour mixture over walnuts. Set aside.

Combine 1/2 cup light brown sugar and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon in a small bowl; set aside. Cut each roll in half; dip tops of balls into melted butter and then into brown sugar mixture. Place in prepared pan. (At this point, Monkey Bread may be covered and stored in the refrigerator 8 hours or overnight or proceed as directed.) Cover and let rise in a warm place, free from drafts, 50 minutes or until doubled in bulk.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F about 10 minutes prior to baking. Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until bread sounds hollow when tapped. Remove from pan and cool on a wire rack. Serve warm.

 

Guten Appetit! Germany & the Czech Republic

I’ve had a few revelations since my return from Europe this week. For one, my family is nuts – we’ve made over 10 trips to Germany (and surrounding countries) and we’re still making mistakes. You’d think we’d be seasoned pros by now, but nope, not yet. Two, I don’t exercise near as much as I should. We hiked 6 miles up and down a rocky, muddy mountain to see a castle… 6 miles. Crazy. And three, I center my vacations way too much around food. However, this means that I’ve returned with several new recipes in tow to post in the near future. Hurray! And guess what I found in Wuppertal? Cupcakes at McDonald’s!

I’m definitely going on a diet… just as soon as this jet lag moves on. 🙂

 

Sweet Melissa Sundays – Orange Blueberry Muffins with Pecan Crumble

A little late, but better than never! This week’s Sweet Melissa Sunday (yes, on a Tuesday) is the Orange Blueberry Muffin with Pecan Crumble, chosen by Chaya of My Sweet and Savory.

I loved, loved, loved these. The sweet orange was really prominent, and when layered with the blueberries, it made for an impressive muffin. My favorite was the pecan crumble. I could plop down on the couch with a bowl of that right now – just hand me a spoon & a glass of milk and I’m there! Funny thing, though… I halved the 12-muffin recipe (expecting 6) and I ended up with 12 muffins. Not exactly sure how that happened, but I guess it’s a good thing since these are so delicious! Want to see how the other bakers fared? Visit their blogs by clicking here!

I’m heading to Germany tomorrow (yes, tomorrow, and no, I’m not even close to being packed) with my trusty MacBook in tow. Hopefully, I’ll be updating fairly often with pics of yummy spätzle, sauerbraten, wienerschnitzel, sauerkraut, pommes frites, and those fresh-out-of-the-oven soft pretzels. It is Spargelzeit (White Asparagus season) after all!

And guess what? There are BIG changes in store for ‘My Baking Heart’, so I’d love it if you hung around!!

Orange Blueberry Muffins (pgs. 6-7) with Pecan Crumble (pg. 160)
Source: The Sweet Melissa Baking Book by Melissa Murphy

And finally, I just had to show you the newest addition to my kitchen. For the past seven or eight months, I’ve been helping out with C’s sister’s wedding. Tying ribbons, addressing invitations, shopping for flowers and bringing it all together this past weekend. After all of D and C’s late nights, everything went off without a hitch – it was absolutely gorgeous. So as a token of appreciation, C’s mom, D, gave me this to hold my cookbooks open.

I’m absolutely in love with it (I even cried when I opened the box). Not only is the piece vintage, it’s even more special since she had ‘My Baking Heart’ stamped onto it. If you’d like one of your own, head on over to SpoonerZ on etsy and check them out!

Oh! One last picture before I leave you. It’s from the wedding this past Saturday… barring the raccoon eyes from that afternoon’s round of golf, aren’t we pretty? C definitely cleans up well. 😉

 

Tuesdays With Dorie – Sweet Cream Biscuits

So sorry for my tardiness, y’all! Things like an expedited passport renewal got in the way. Seems that even though my passport is good for a week after my return from overseas in the next few weeks, Germany requires that it be valid for at least 3 months AFTER your trip. I found this out after hours of my own research… no thanks to the customer service at American Airlines or the passport office inside the USPS. So… it’s in the mail (Express, thankyouverymuch) and guaranteed to be there by noon tomorrow. Cross your fingers (and toes!) that I have it back by May 11!! 😀

On to the biscuits! These yummy little things were chosen by Melissa of Love At First Bite and that they were! Love at first bite… warm, tender biscuits that are perfect with sausage gravy and just right for Sunday breakfast. Very similar to these, too. Check Melissa’s blog for the recipe and take a look at the other TWD bakers here!

Sweet Cream Biscuits (pg. 23)
Source: Baking – From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan