As Promised

Lavender Brownies

3 T lavender

2 cups organic sugar

1 3/4 cups A.P. flour

3/4 cup + 2 T dutch process cocoa, plus more for dusting

1/2 t fleur de sel

1/2 t instant espresso (I use Starbucks Via Italian Roast)

3 sticks unsalted butter

4 eggs

2 t vanilla bean paste

-Method-

Preheat oven to 325º. Butter a 13x 9 pan and dust with cocoa powder. Pulse the lavender with a little of the sugar in a food processor until finely ground. Transfer to a bowl and add the remaining sugar, flour, cocoa, espresso, and salt. Whisk to combine.

Melt the butter in the microwave, and once cooled whisk in the eggs and vanilla.

Make a well in your dry ingredients and incorporate your wet ingredients. Pour into your prepared pan and bake for 40 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the middle comes out relatively clean.

Dark Chocolate Spice Cupcakes

No fancy recipe explanation here, this was just a basic dark chocolate cupcake recipe to which I added 1t ginger, 1/2 t cardamom, 1/2 t clove, and 1 t cinnamon. They were iced with basic buttercream with vanilla bean paste and lavender flowers.

Lavender Fleur de Sel Caramel Sauce

3/4 cup white sugar

1/4 cup water

1/4 cup light corn syrup

3/4 cup cream

5 T unsalted butter

2 t dried provence lavender

1.5 t good vanilla extract

1 t fleur de sel

-Method-

Heat sugar, water, and corn syrup in a saucepan over medium-high, stirring occasionally, until the sugar dissolve. Bring to a boil, making sure to wash down the sides with a pastry brush to avoid crystallization. Cook until amber in color, around 5-6 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the cream, then put the pot back on the heat. Cook and stir until the cream is combined. Remove from the heat, stir in the butter, vanilla, lavender, and fleur de sel. Let stand for 20 minutes, then strain. Serve immediately or keep, covered, in the refrigerator..

Lemon Tart

-Lemon Tart-
1 tart pastry (recipe follows)
3 organic lemons
1/2 cup sugar
1 Tbsp AP flour
2 large, free range eggs
1/4 cup melted unsalted butter, I used Kerrygold Irish Butter
1.5 Tbsp good-quality vanilla extract (don't use McCormick)

Par-bake your tart pastry. Lay it into (roll it around your pin) a 9 inch tart pan with a removable bottom. Press the edges into the crimped sides of the pan, then cover the dough with foil and bake at 450º for 7-8 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for another 5 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool, reduce oven temperature to 350º.

Zest both lemons to yield about 5 teaspoons of zest, then roll and juice the lemons until you have 6-7 tablespoons of juice. I juice my lemons into a cup through a small sieve to catch the seeds.

In a mixer fitted with a whisk, combine the flour and sugar. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating thoroughly after each egg. Beat until the mixture is light in color and slightly thick. Add the lemon zest, lemon juice, vanilla, and butter. Pour the mixture into your cooled pastry shell. Bake at 350º for 23 minutes. Let cool completely before unmolding.

-Tart Pastry-

In medium bowl cut 1/2 cup cold unsalted butter into 1-1/4 cups AP flour until pieces are the size of peas. In a bowl combine 1 beaten egg yolk and 1 tablespoon ice cold water. Gradually stir the egg yolk mixture into the flour mixture. Add 2 to 4 tablespoons more ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time, until all the dough is moistened. Shape into a ball. If necessary, cover dough with plastic wrap and chill in refrigerator for 30 to 60 minutes or until dough is easy to handle. On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough on an 10 inch circle. I use a French pin on my tart and pie doughs, as I think the shape of these pins helps to form a better circle. You can make this whole thing in your food processor, too.

French Pear and Almond Tart

recipe courtesy of Dorie Greenspan
photo courtesy of me ♥

-Sweet Tart Dough-
1.5 cups AP flour
1/2 cup confectioner's sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 stick plus 1 tbsp cold butter, cut into pieces
1 large egg yolk, beaten

In a food processor, combine flour, sugar, and salt and pulse to combine. Scatter butter over the top, pulse until butter is cut in coarsely. Add the egg yolk, a little at a time, pulsing after each addition. Once the egg is incorporated, pulse in long, 10 second intervals until the dough forms clumps. Turn out and knead very lightly, then press into your tart pan.
To partially bake- Butter the shiny side of a sheet of aluminum foil. Press the foil tightly down onto the crust, and bake at 375º for 25 minutes. Let cool completely.

-Almond Cream-
6 tbsp room temperature butter
2/3 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup ground almonds (or almond flour, available in bags on the organic food aisle)
2 tsp AP flour
1 tsp cornstarch
1 large egg
1 tsp pure vanilla

Combine the butter and sugar in a food processor and process until smooth. Add almonds and pulse until well blended. Add flour and cornstarch, pulse for 8-10 seconds, then add egg. Process for 15 seconds more, until egg is combined well. Add vanilla and pulse to incorporate. Pour cream into a nonreactive bowl, cover (press it onto the top of the cream) with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until firm, at least 2 hours.

Pour the prepared almond cream into the cooled, par-baked tart shell. Smooth out.

-To Assemble-
Peel and core 3 medium Bosc pears. Slice each pear in half lengthwise (see photo) and then very thinly crosswise. Lift each sliced pear, keeping it's shape, with a spatula. Place the pears on top of the almond cream in the tart shell, top facing inwards.
Place the tart on a lined baking sheet. Bake at 350º for 50-60 minutes, until the cream puffs up around the pears. Let cool before unmolding. Serve with a dusting of confectioner's sugar.

Pear Cupcakes

Preheat oven 350º F.
1.5 cups AP flour
1.5 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) room temperature butter
2/3 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp pure almond extract
1/2 tsp vanilla bean paste
2 large ripe pears, peeled and diced small
1/4 cup canola oil

Whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
Cream butter and sugar in a mixer until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add flour mixture, vanilla, almond. Add oil and mix. Fold in pears.

Pour into liners. Bake for 16 minutes. Let cool completely.

For Buttercream

2 cups confectioner's sugar
1/2 cup room temperature butter
1 tsp pure almond extract
1/2 tsp vanilla bean paste
1-2 tbsp cream
1 large strip (about 2 inches long) candied ginger, chopped finely

In a mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, mix butter and confectioner's sugar. Add almond and vanilla, and enough cream to reach desired consistency. Whisk in candied ginger.

Pipe onto cupcakes, and garnish with thin strips of candied ginger.

Cherry Almond Cookies

1 stick of butter, room temperature (I leave mine out overnight, but you can microwave your wrapped stick for 10-15 seconds)
1/2 a cup plus 2 Tbsp granulated sugar
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 tsp pure almond extract
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp fleur de sel
1 large egg
1 1/4 cups AP flour
1 cup dried chopped cherries (I used Welch's)
1/2 slivered almonds, toasted and chopped
1 Tbsp lemon zest

In the bowl of your mixer fitted with a paddle, cream the butter, sugar, vanilla, almond, cinnamon, and salt until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add egg and beat to incorporate. Add the flour and beat on low until just blended. By hand, stir in the cherries, lemon zest, and almonds.

Shape dough into a log (it will be wet) and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

Preheat oven to 350º. Line baking sheets with parchment paper and position rack in the center of the oven. Cute dough into 1/2 inch rounds and place on parchment lined sheets, about an inch apart. Bake for 14-16 minutes, until the cookies are lightly browned around the outside but still very soft in the center.

Banana Pancakes

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 cup sour cream
3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon milk
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla bean paste
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest

In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Whisk together the sour cream, milk, eggs, vanilla, and lemon zest. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ones, mixing only until combined.

Butter or use non cooking spray on a large skillet over medium-low heat. Ladle the pancake batter into the pan, I use about 1/4 cup for each pancake. Nestle a few slices of bananas on each pancake. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes, until bubbles appear on top and the underside is nicely browned. Flip the pancakes and then cook for another minute, until browned. Wipe out the pan with a paper towel, add more butter or spray to the pan, and continue cooking pancakes until all the batter is used. Serve garnished with sliced bananas, butter, and maple syrup, if desired.

Tarte Tatin

From Chocolate and Zucchini
-Short Pastry-
1 1/4 cup all purpose flour, sifted
1/2 cup sugar
1 stick of cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1/8 tsp fine sea salt
1-2 tbsp cold milk
In a food processor fitted with a plastic blade, pulse flour and sugar to combine. Add butter and salt, pulse until it forms coarse crumbs. Slowly add the milk, 1 tbsp at a time, until the dough reaches the desired consistency and forms a ball.
Turn out onto a floured surface and form a disk. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

-Salted Caramel-
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1 tbsp water
1/2 tsp fleur de sel
3 tbsp room temperature unsalted butter
In a heavy-bottomed sauce pan, combine water and brown sugar. Cook over medium low heat, DO NOT STIR. If you stir, the gods of caramel will smite you. Cook until sugar has melted and bubbles just begin to form on the surface, then quickly remove from heat. Add fleur de sel and butter, stir gently.

Butter the bottom and sides of a 9 inch round cake pan. Pour in the caramel, swirling the pan to coat the bottom. Arrange 2-3 peeled, sliced apples (I used Gala) around the pan, covering as much as possible.
Roll out the short pastry on a floured surface into a 10-11 inch round. Prick it all over with a fork, then pick it up (by rolling it around your pin) and slowly roll it on top of the apples. Tuck the sides in to the pan.
Bake at 350º for 45 minutes to one hour.
Remove from oven, let cook. Run a sharp knife along the edges to loosen sides. Carefully invert onto a serving platter or cake stand.
Note:
This cake would also be fabulous made with pears or plums, just something to think about.