strawberry pie

In my garage, snuggled under a tiny window lined with old bottles we unearthed tilling our little patch, sits my freezer. Nearly neglected in spring and summer when the garden is in full glory, it occupies its humble spot. However, when we can't bear to look at another green pepper or can't seem to keep up with over-productive green beans, into the freezer they go. A quick blanching followed by an ice bath and a towel drying is all that's necessary. Sometimes not even that much. In the dregs of winter it's a pleasure to rustle a bag of home-grown carrots out and recall their just-picked sweetness.

It's hard, however, to gauge just how much one should put away. How many bags of shredded zucchini can you use before the next year's haul is at hand? (The answer, I'm coming to find, is approximately one, by the way - shame on me!). So I find myself looking for ways to finish off the flavors of last year, before my freezer becomes the time capsule of fruits and veggies past.
Also, it just seems a little odd to bring in pints and quarts of new sun-warm fragrant berries while that icy prior generation looks on still in hibernation.

No worries, though. This pie turned out beautifully using last year's berries (which were hulled and frozen the day they were picked).
Strawberry Pie*
(adapted from Gourmet Magazine's recipe for Fresh Strawberry Pie with Whipped Cream)

The recipe specifies the importance of using only perfectly ripe berries, but I found that my perfectly ripe frozen berries were just a luscious.

Ingredients:

For the crust:
1 package honey graham crackers
2 Tb. cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
2 Tb. sugar

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Grind the graham crackers in the bowl of a food processor until they become fine crumbs. Add the sugar and butter and process until evenly incorporated. Press the crumb mixture in the bottom an up the sides of a 9 inch pie plate. Bake the crust in the oven until golden - about 15 minutes. Cool completely on a rack.

For the filling:
2 Lbs. hulled and quartered frozen strawberries (hand-picked when perfectly ripe is ideal, of course)
3/4 C. sugar
1/3 C. fresh lemon juice
1 envelope (2 1/4 tsp.) unflavored gelatin

In a large bowl combine the strawberries, sugar and lemon juice and allow to stand, stirring occasionally, for 45 minutes. Place a sieve over a large measuring cup and gently strain the liquid from the berries. Set the reserved berries aside. If necessary add enough water to the strawberry liquid to equal 1 1/2 cups. Pour the liquid into a small saucepan and sprinkle the gelatin over the surface. Allow the gelatin to soften for a minute or two, then bring the mixture to a bare simmer, stirring to dissolve the gelatin. Remove the mixture from heat and, in a metal bowl, combine it with the reserved berries. Place the bowl in the freezer for 30 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes, until it starts to thicken (the original recipe says until the mixture begins to mound, but I found this an odd term - it should be thick and just beginning to gel). When the mixture has chilled sufficiently, spoon it into the prepared, cooled, crust and refrigerate the pie for at least 4 hours (up to 24).

Serve cold with fresh whipped cream if you have it handy.

*I have altered this recipe specifically for the use of frozen berries, if you are making the pie using fresh, follow the original recipe for the pie filling through the link provided (the macerating time and liquid amount have been adjusted here to allow for the thawing and excess liquid of the frozen berries).

good night, sweet prunes

Steeped in tea, sweetened a tad, and put to rest with a kiss of mandarin orange peel.
I'll see you in the morning.Oolong-Steeped Prunes with Mandarin Orange Peel
(inspired by the recipe for Masala Chai Poached Prunes found over at In Praise of Sardines and by Judy Rodger's recipe in the ever-tempting Zuni Cafe Cookbook)
Ingredients:

8 oz. pitted prunes
1 cup water
A scant tablespoon of oolong tea leaves
Several bits of dried Mandarin orange peel (I used about six - 1/2 to 1 inch pieces)
A scant tablespoon of sugar

Bring the water to a simmer, pour over tea leaves and dried orange peel in a shallow dish. Steep for 10 minutes. Strain the tea leaves, reserving the liquid and removing the peels. Set peels aside and stir sugar into tea to dissolve. Place prunes in a jar, tucking in the reserved peel as well. Pour the tea over the prunes to just cover them. Cover and let cool. Let soak at least several hours, and store in the refrigerator.

cookies. continued.

Something delicious happened. Fig pinwheels.

The. Best. Cookie. Ever.

(At least for now...)

stones and pits

One day last spring I visited some friends who happen to run an incredible organic farm in Pennsylvania. After a brisk evening camping on the grounds I was treated to some the best blueberry-oatmeal pancakes and the most welcome cup of coffee a frozen camper could ever appreciate. That one breakfast initiated a chain of blueberry pancake weekends that saw me through the whole season. I still haven't quite got the craving out of my system and just might not be sure if I'm hungry for the pancakes or simply wistful and nostalgic. Isn't it amazing how good company can make something so simple transcendent?

While blueberries are abundant for the time being, the following recipe takes advantage of two of the season's other specialties: yellow peaches and sweet cherries. My *appreciation* of cherries of all kinds is well documented among those who know me, so it might not be too much of a surprise that I post a recipe or two here including this most loved fruit. And who wouldn't love a sunny bowl of yellow peaches and blushing Rainier cherries with their breakfast? So, in nostalgia and hunger I offer this recipe:

Corncakes Two Ways: Yellow Peach and Sweet Cherry Compote and Butter and Maple Syrup
(I adapted the recipe for Corncakes from the cornmeal pancake recipe on the package of the highly regarded Bob's Red Mill Medium Grind Cornmeal)

Makes about 8 corncakes

Ingredients:

For the Corncakes:

1/2 C. boiling water
1/2 C. plus 2 Tb. cornmeal (medium grind, preferably, such as Bob's Red Mill)
1/2 C. plus 2 Tb. buttermilk
1 egg
1/4 C. whole wheat flour (I most often use King Arthur flours)
1/4 C. unbleached, all-purpose flour
1/2 Tb. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. baking soda
1 Tb. granulated sugar (brown sugar might work well also)
2 Tb. corn oil, plus more for the pan

In a small bowl sift together the whole wheat flour, all-purpose flour, baking powder, salt, baking soda, and sugar. Set aside. In a separate medium bowl, pour boiling water over cornmeal and whisk until thick. Add buttermilk, whisking to combine. Whisk in the egg. Add the flour mixture to the cornmeal mixture and stir in the oil.
Heat a skillet or gridle over medium heat (add a little oil, if your pan is not non-stick) and pour batter by small ladle-fulls onto the hot skillet. The batter will be thin and the cakes will not puff up as much as regular pancakes. When small bubbles begin to appear and pop on the surface (about 1-3 minutes), carefully flip the cakes over and cook another 1-2 minutes or until golden and cooked through. Remove from the skillet and place on a plate lined with a paper towl. Serve warm with Yellow Peach and Sweet Cherry Compote or the classic butter and maple syrup.

Yellow Peach and Sweet Cherry Compote
(double this recipe to have enough compote for all 8 corncakes in the previous recipe)

Ingredients:

1 medium yellow peach (slightly underripe is fine), peeled* and cut into quarters and then into thirds (12 slices altogether)
1-2 handfuls sweet cherries (Rainier's are quite nice if you can find them, but any sweet variety will be delicious), pitted and sliced into quarters
1 Tb. granulated sugar
1 Tb. water
1/2 small pat of butter (optional)

Heat fruit, sugar and water in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook until fruit begins to soften and water and sugar thicken - about 5 minutes. If desired, finish with butter: Add butter to fruit mixture and continue to stir until melted)

*The easiet way I know to peel a peach is to drop the whole peach into a pot of rapidly boiling water for 30 seconds, then remove with a slotted spoon and place in a bowl of ice water just until the peach is cool enough to handle - the skin will peel away easily at your fingertips. However, as I was only using one peach in this recipe I just cut the peel away with a paring knife.)

**If your fruit is very ripe, cooking is not necessary. Simply slice the fruit and place in a bowl with a little bit of sugar (to suit your tastes) and let sit 30 minutes or so to release the juices.

Butter and Maple Syrup

Well, this is obvious and self-explanitory, but there is something really scrumptious in the combination of salty butter, sticky-sweet syrup and satisfying cornmeal. Just a suggestion with the syrup: the aforementioned farm friends introduced me to Grade B maple syrup for pancakes. If you can find it, it really does have more of that maple-y flavor.