I’ve been thinking quite a bit about locally grown food lately — not unusual for me by any means,  but my thoughts have just been more intensely focused.  So it shouldn’t be unusual for an article like “Butchers’ Banquet:  England’s Lincolnshire Wolds” published in the October 2011 issue of Saveur to have an impact on me.  I’m always looking for truly good recipes for traditional food, and even though I’m not British, I have solid connections.   In 1881 at the age of three, my great-grandfather sailed with his family from Newport, Wales to San Francisco hoping to find inexpensive land where his family might grow apples.  But that’s a story for another day.

This is more about the group of men mentioned in the article who have gotten together over years and years to enjoy a Sunday meal each week.  They know where the food has been grown, how it’s been grown, and have prepared it to showcase its quality.  Of course, it helps that they’re in the business.  I’d like to be invited to a table like that to hear the talk and understand more about what they know.  I’ll work on that from here in San Diego and maybe, just maybe, by the end of this year, I’ll know more about the more than 6,000 farms in our county and the farmers who tend them.

In the meantime, I thought I’d share these great Steak & Guinness pies with you.  My father-in-law loves Stilton and will jump at any excuse to tuck his napkin into his shirt and cozy up to a plate of hot food like this with a pint.  The recipe isn’t challenging, but does take some time, so plan ahead.  It’s worth it.

Steak & Guinness Pie Recipe

Filling Ingredients

¼ c. olive oil
1-1/4 lb. beef chuck, cut into 1″ cubes
3 cloves garlic, chopped
2 large yellow onions, sliced
2 ribs celery, thickly sliced
2 small carrots, thickly sliced
2 T fresh rosemary, chopped
1 12-oz. bottle Guinness
1/4  cup flour
2 c. vegetable stock
2 tsp. mustard powder
1 bay leaf
1 T olive oil
10 oz. mushrooms, quartered
6 oz. English Stilton, crumbled
1 medium zucchini, sliced quartered
1 egg, lightly beaten

For the crust, use the dough recipe from my Cornish Pasties .

Directions

1. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
2. Season beef with salt and pepper, then brown in batches, removing to a bowl as it finishes.
3. Add the garlic, onions, celery, carrots, and rosemary to the skillet and saute until softened and just beginning to brown.
4. Pour in the Guinness and cook until most of the liquid has evaporated, about 20 minutes.
5. Sprinkle the flour into the mixture and cook, stirring until mixed.
6. Add the browned beef to mixture along with any juices that have accumulated in the bowl, the stock, mustard, and bay leaf.  Bring to a simmer over medium-low heat and cook partially covered,  about 1½ hours.
7. Make the dough for the tops while the beef is cooking.  Wrap in plastic and chill until ready to use.
8. After the beef mixture is done, remove it from the heat and set it aside.
9. In another skillet, heat the 1 T of olive oil in a skillet over medium high heat. Add the mushrooms and zucchini and cook, stirring, until browned, then add to the beef mixture.
10. Add the Stilton to the mixture and stir in.  Correct seasoning.
11. Heat oven to 375°.
12. Divide beef mixture among four 6″ oven-proof bowls or pie pans able to hold up to 12 oz.
13. Roll the dough into a 14″ square and cut out four 6″ circles.  Press each circle gently down over the filling.
14. Brush the dough with the egg and with a pair of scissors, cut an “x” into the top of each.
15. Bake on a baking sheet until browned and bubbling, about 40 minutes.

Notes:

• This recipe was adapted from this one which accompanied the article linked above.
• I’ve made it a couple of times and although I have switched things up a bit each time, it’s just plain delicious.  Is there such a thing as gourmet pub food?
• The filling is very forgiving, but taking time to brown the meat properly without crowding it in the pan, and then allowing it to braise with the veggie mixture is key.
• You can make the beef mixture minus the Stilton a day ahead, covered in the fridge.  Reheat, add the Stilton, then place the dough on and bake.
• If you try the original recipe in the link, the purchased puff pastry is decent, but I loved the dough crust better.  It’s so easy to make — nothing fancy at all — give it a go!
• You’ll probably have dough and filling left over — I did each time I made it — so if you need to, you can probably squeak out six smaller pies.
• We enjoyed these pies with Bubble and Squeak.  Think mashed potatoes with veg and you’ll have it right.
• Now, for pork pie.  I have lots and lots of pork in my freezer from a local farmer.  Lots.

You’ve promised your body that you will adopt a healthier lifestyle — something just shy of a “diet” because you know yourself too well.  If what you’ve taken on is reduced to that, it’s probably not going to last because you don’t believe in diets — and for good reason.  You’ve seen too many people begin with all the motivation they can muster, then when they realize the pounds aren’t falling off as quickly as they’d like, or that after what is considered a good effort, they’ve plateaued, motivation dwindles and the “diet” is quietly ignored.  I can’t risk that because my knees will never forgive me for having to carry around 50 pounds they hadn’t counted on at their age.

Poor knees.

Last September when I began to think about more obsessively about my weight and lack of routine exercise (no coincidence since I’d just turned 55) I began to find reasons to avoid the kitchen.  Meals became food I could easily pick up and eat with little or no thought.  I stopped looking at new recipes and rarely used one to try something new for dinner.  And baking?  I stopped that almost completely because it seemed pointless to bake something, taste it, then try to find a home for it outside of mine.  I’ve never been a big sweets eater, but I thoroughly enjoy spending a morning in the kitchen baking something — especially if it involves a little thought or teaches me something new.  I miss that and know baking needs to be a part of my life — as does dessert.

Dessert is a food group, isn’t it?

I’m kidding, of course, but the point is I want to bake and enjoy dessert occasionally so have to find a balance with desserts that showcase a simple fruit without a lot of added sugar or an excessive amount of fat, for example.

Something classic, satisfying.  Elegant, but not fussy.

With apples.

Glorious apples.

Just a small slice?

Yes, please.

 Apple Tart Alsatian Style Recipe

Crust Ingredients

1-2/3 c. all-purpose flour

8 T butter, cold unsalted

1 whole egg

1 T sugar

pinch of salt

1-1/2 T cold water

Filling Ingredients

1/3 c.  blanched almonds

1/4 c.  sugar

1 T  all-purpose flour

2 egg yolks

1/2 c. milk

1/2 tsp. vanilla

1 T Applejack or brandy (optional)

2 lbs. Honey crisp apples

apricot jam melted for glaze

Directions

1. Attach the metal blade and put all ingredients into the bowl of a food processor.
2. Pulse ingredients just until a ball begins to form on the blade.
3. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and begin to lightly knead, using a pulling away action with the heel of one hand lightly pulling the dough away from the other.  Continue a few times until the dough is smooth.
4. Dust the dough with flour and make a flattened disk, cover well and chill while you make the filling.
5. Preheat the oven to 500 degrees F and position the rack to the lowest position.
6. Place the almonds in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade and run until reduced to a fine powder.  Add the flour and yolks, then process until the mixture is paste-like.  Pour the milk in and process until mixed well.  Add the flavorings and mix well.  Set aside.
7. Lightly butter a 10-inch fluted tart pan with a removable bottom.
8. Remove the pastry from the fridge.  On a lightly floured surface, roll it into a round disk about 1/4″ in thickness and 14 inches in diameter.  Place it over the tart pan and remove the excess dough.  Gently press the dough against the sides of the pan and lightly prick the bottom with a fork.  Chill.
9. Peel the apples.  Position each apple with stems pointing upward.  Cut down through the apple on opposite sides, running parallel with the core.  Do the same for the remaining two sides.  Your apples will be quartered and cored.
10. Place each apple quarter cut side down and make thin slices across the width of each piece.  Slide an offset spatula beneath each quarter and gently press down with your hand to slightly “fan” the pieces, being careful to hold the general shape of the apple quarter.  Arrange in the chilled tart shell.  Once the sliced quarters have filled the ring and center of the tart shell, dice the remaining apples to fill in between the sliced quarters.
11. Pour the custard mixture evenly over the apples.
12. Place the tart on a baking pan and slide it into the oven.  Bake for 10 minutes, then reduce the heat to 425 degrees F and continue baking until the crust and apples are golden brown, about 15-20 minutes.
13. Remove from the oven and immediately remove from the tart pan.  After removing the ring, run an offset spatula beneath the tart to remove it from the metal bottom before allowing it to cool on a baking rack.
14. Heat the apricot jam and using a pastry brush, gently coat the top of the tart as it cools.
15. Once cool, remove to a serving platter.

Notes:

• Having always been a lover of French cooking, I recently purchased French Classics Made Easy by Richard Grausman, thinking it would be nice to learn some new tips for making some of my favorite recipes less fussy.
• I tried this tart recipe first because I’ve always wanted to learn how to structure one in this Alsatian style, which can be used for any fruit such as pears, apricots, or plums.  It’s pretty easy as long as you have an offset spatula.
• What isn’t necessarily easy about making this tart is getting it completely out of the tart pan when it’s hot from the oven.  Not only is the ring hot — if the bottom of the crust isn’t done, then getting it off the metal bottom to cool on a rack is a challenge.  Mine wasn’t completely done, so I put it back in the oven (it was turned off, but still very hot) without the baking pan beneath it for about 5 minutes.  I was able to remove the bottom then.  I guess my worries about a tart pan sitting directly over the heat on the bottom rack of a 500 degree F oven even for 10 minutes should have been ignored.  If I’d decided to put the tart in there without the baking pan from the start, I probably would have been able to remove the tart from the metal bottom easily.
• If Honeycrisp apples aren’t available, try any apple that holds up well in the oven — Pippin, Granny Smith, Jonathan, Jonagold, Braeburn, Winesap, Gala, and many more.  Check your regional resources for what’s most available and when.
• So what about the diet?  Well, traditionally, this type of tart is make with a very rich custard, but this one is pretty much made of fruit.  The crust is very thin — you know where I’m going with this.  Moderation! Enjoy a small piece and share the rest.  And, I made this tart early last October, so it wasn’t a current temptation, but biting into it is all about the apple.  Nothing overly sweet, and definitely without any kind of eggy custard flavor that I know many don’t always like.  It’s a pleasant recipe easily made with whatever fruit you have available.
• I need another cookbook like I need another leg, but I’m glad I decided to get this one.

Apple Tart Recipes from Around the Web:

Beyond the Plate — Apple Tarts (Tarte Aux Pommes)

My Baking Addiction — Custard Apple Tart Recipe

Gimme Some Oven — Easy Apple Tart

Sprinkle Bakes — Easiest Ever Rustic Apple Tart

Years ago when I purchased my favorite cookbook, Baking with Julia, I began to steadily go through it, deciding which recipes to try.  This practice isn’t all that unusual, but at the time, baking was something I reserved for special occasions — birthdays, dinner parties, holidays — and always planned for on weekends, or when I had vacation time.  If someone had asked, I’d have said I was more of a cook than a baker, and not always confident that what I baked would turn out as I wanted it to, so kept things safe with the basics. Cake, an occasional bread pudding, and pie were the norm.

The dust cover of the cookbook is now worn and slightly torn in a few places with spots and spills on many of the pages.  Its sturdy binding has relaxed quite a bit, allowing it to comfortably lie open on my kitchen counter, sometimes for several days while I’m thinking about a particular recipe, glancing at it as I pass, wondering when the right time might be to indulge myself with a treat that doesn’t take a lot of time, or tackle something more complicated instead.

I think of so many different things when I open this particular cookbook, and most are not about the recipes.  I think of younger boys still at home, occasions celebrating a kitchen renovation, or springtime in all its glory and a back yard groomed to perfection with my mother’s love and sweat.  I think of a dinner party for six that lasted well into the night, meticulously planned for, each course paired with the perfect wine.  I remember all that was lovely about a very special house, no longer ours to enjoy.  So many things beyond recipes.

I don’t know that it matters which recipe I tried first from Baking with Julia, but of the 98 cookbooks I currently own, it’s the one I have baked more from than any other.  Of course there are quite a few recipes I haven’t tried, and several which continue to taunt me, all seemingly beyond my ability or perhaps patience to contend with– the Pain de Camagne, for example, which is made by a very old chef-levain method requiring one to “capture and nurture airborne wild yeast” for the dough.   But I have tried many more than once, like the Oven-Roasted Plum Cakes.

I’d waited forever to try the recipe, but when I saw a small bin of Italian prune plums at the market one day– something I’d not come across before — I knew they were destined for those plum cakes.  I sorted through the deeply purple oval-shaped fruit to collect a small bag, noticing their dusty skins and stems still clinging to most.  Some were quite firm, and others soft and fragile, like a ripe fig might feel.  Or persimmon.  I chose the firm plums finding that once sliced, the fruit easily separated from the stone unlike other plums such as Santa Rosas, which aren’t as cooperative.  The interior color is a beautiful mix of melon and chartreuse and the flavor not as sweet as I’d thought it would be, but pleasant all the same.

They would be perfect for a whole plum cake rendition and thoughts while baking about times fondly remembered.

Plum Cake

Ingredients

4 oz. butter, room temp

2 T + 1/2 c. brown sugar

1/2 c. sugar

2 lg. eggs

1 tsp. lemon zest

1/2 tsp. vanilla

1 c. flour

3/4 tsp. baking soda

1/4 c. buttermilk

8 Italian prune plums

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Brush butter on the sides and bottom of an 8″ round cake pan with a removable bottom.  Cut a piece of parchment that fits the bottom and place that inside the cake pan.  Butter that as well and set aside.
3. Using an electric mixer, cream the butter, 2 tablespoons of the brown sugar, and all of the granulated sugar on medium until the sugar is dissolved in the butter and the mixture is pale in color, about 5 minutes.
4. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing with each addition until completely incorporated, about 1 minute.
5. Add the lemon zest and the vanilla and continue to beat about 1 minute.
6. Add the flour and baking soda and mix on low speed just to incorporate into the wet ingredients.
7. Add the buttermilk and mix on low for half a minute.
8. Give the batter a few folds with a rubber spatula making sure the sides of the bowl are scraped in the process.
9. Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan.
10. Press each plum half cut side up into the batter, pressing lightly, but not allowing the fruit to be covered with the batter.
11. Sprinkle the brown sugar over the top of the plums and batter.
12. Bake on the center rack of the oven until golden brown and a tester inserted near the center is removed clean, about 25-30 minutes.
13. Remove the cake from the oven and cool on a baking rack at least 10 minutes before removing it from the pan.
14. Serve warm, if possible, with a lightly sweetened whipped cream mascarpone topping if desired.

Recipe Notes

• The first time I made this recipe, I did make separate plum cakes which I loved.  But you decide.  The convenience of a whole cake is always a good thing, but the individual cakes allowed the plums to show.  Ultimately, the taste is the same.
• The original recipe doesn’t specify a type of plum, so have fun trying different plums or whatever you have available.
• Evidently, I missed out on all the hooplah on the Plum Cake the New York Times published quite a few years ago.  It’s a holiday tradition from what I understand, and it’s very similar to the one I’ve shared here with differences being in the butter and sugar quantities.
• When I don’t have fresh buttermilk, I use a dry substitute and add water.  It works quite well if you’re in a pinch.
• You may have extra brown sugar.  Either sprinkle it all over, or just sprinkle it on the plums.  I went for it and the top is nice and crunchy.
• This is a perfect coffee style cake and it keeps well if wrapped.  To warm it up before serving, pop it in the microwave.
• If you’re not familiar with Baking with Julia by Dorie Greenspan, there is more information here regarding the PBS program.

More Plum Cake Recipes to Enjoy

Guilty Kitchen — Plum Cake Recipe

food52 — Late Summer Plum Cake

Always Order Dessert — Evolution of a Plum Cake

The Wednesday Chef — Dorie Greenspan’s Dimply Plum Cake

Lemons and Lavender — Italian Plum Cake

I love stone fruit, but haven’t taken advantage of it this season, waiting until now to wonder about new fangeled varieties of plums or pick up a few of the enormous peaches I’ve been seeing at the market.  The last four beauties I purchased sat around until my husband asked about whether he could put one in a smoothie he was making for us to share.  I couldn’t say no because if they sat on the counter any longer while providing me a visual reminder of what I was supposed to be planning to cook with them, they would be well past their prime– especially with the heat we’ve recently had.

And I was just waxing about Fall, wasn’t I?

You may not remember, but some time ago I promised a recipe for peach pandowdy and time has just slipped away while I’ve been cooking other things.  But I remembered, and as much as I was planning on putting these peaches in the perfect salad, they had pandowdy written all over them.

What’s a pandowdy, you ask?  It’s fruit tossed with sugar and whatever flavorings you’d like to add.  It’s tucked nicely under a simple biscuit crust and baked until it’s hot, juicy,  and full of the fruit flavor you’ve packed it with.  But there are other versions of this old-fashioned dessert.  I’ve heard that some may like baking the dough topper separately, then adding it while the fruit is baking.  Although I haven’t tried that version, I will say I’d probably miss the doughy underside of that topping which only happens when it’s placed on the fruit from the start and baked with it.

You may also wonder how a pandowdy is different from a cobbler, crisp, crumble, buckle, Brown Betty, grunt, slump or sonker, but I’m not an expert.   I grew up eating cobblers and crisps, and have heard of all but a sonker, which evidently, is taken quite seriously in some parts of North Carolina.

Have some fun with this simple recipe!

Old-Fashioned Peach Pandowdy Recipe

Filling Ingredients

1/3 c. brown sugar

2 T lemon juice, freshly squeezed

4 c. sliced fresh peaches, pitted (about 3 large)

Biscuit Topping Ingredients

1 c. flour

1 T sugar

1 tsp. baking powder

pinch of salt

3 T very cold butter

1/3 c. cream or whole milk

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F and position a rack in the center of the oven.  Lightly oil a baking pan (an 8 x 8 or similar will do) and set aside.
2. Toss the peaches lightly with the other filling ingredients and then scrape them into the oiled pan.
3. Make the the topping by adding the dry ingredients to a medium bowl.  Whisk lightly to mix the ingredients.
4. Cut the cold butter into small pieces and pinch it into the dry ingredients until it resembles a coarse meal.
5. Pour the cream over the dough and using a fork, lightly mix it until the dough begins to come together.
6. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and sprinkle a bit more flour over it.
7. Knead lightly, 10 times to make a smooth dough.
8. Press or roll the dough to the shape of the baking dish.  It doesn’t not have to be exact, nor does it have to attach to the sides.
9. Place the dough over the peaches and cut a few vents in it.
10. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the fruit is bubbling, and the top is golden brown.
11. Cool on a rack to allow the juice to thicken.
12. Spoon and serve.

Recipe Notes:

• This recipe was adapted from the lovely little book Biscuits and Scones by Elizabeth Alston which has been a favorite for years.
• Evidently, an authentic pandowdy was traditionally made with apples placed in a pan or skillet and has a topping which is pushed into the fruit as it bakes, giving it a broken, “dowdy” appearance — hence the name.  I’ve never tried breaking it up before, but it does sound interesting.
• If you can’t wait until the pandowdy is cool, then by all means, scoop away.  The juice will be thin, but it’s still great.  Just pour the excess over the biscuit topping.
• Try it with apples or berries, add some nuts or some spice, but try it!  It can’t get much easier than this.
• Here’s  information From Karen’s Kitchen about what makes one old fashioned fruit dessert different from another just in case.  I still have quite a few of them to sample!

For more old-fashioned fruit dessert recipes:

• Eatpress — “Blueberry Grunt”
• Hazel and ruby’s Vintage Kitchen and Garden — “Bring on the Buckle”
• Simply Recipes — “Blackberry Slump”
• Aesthetics & Gastronomy – “September and a Plum Crumble”
• Vegan Visitor — “Blueberry Peach Sonker”
• The Country Cook – “Apple Brown Betty”

Sometimes I’d love to skip dinner.

It’s beautiful in the evening just before the sun has set and I want to be on the patio enjoying the cool, dry air, watching the light against the the trees and houses change as the sun disappears into the Pacific.  I don’t want to waste one second of daylight at this time of year when the days are longest and sometimes, the temperature barely fluctuates between day and night.

Like right now.  It’s nearly seven and the sun isn’t quite ready to set.  Dinner is ready to prepare and won’t take all that long, but I’d rather be sitting in one of the chairs outside doing not much of anything.

All I’d need to complete the picture is some soft cheese — like burrata, perhaps some proscuitto, a handful of the sweet little sungold tomatoes my plant loves to produce, a nice crisp white wine, and good crusty rolls with a bit of something else added — like spinach, and sun-dried tomatoes.

If you’ve tried any of the recipes in Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day, then you know they’ll be good.  But do you know the secret to make them even more crusty?

I do.  And it works every single time.

Crusty Spinach Feta and Sun-dried Tomato Bread Rolls

Ingredients

1 c. fresh steamed spinach, chopped (see notes)

1 c. sun-dried tomatoes, julienned

3 egg whites

3 c. lukewarm water

1-1/2 T dry yeast

1 T kosher salt

2/3 c. feta, crumbled

1-1/2 T sugar

6-1/2 c. all-purpose flour

Cornmeal to sprinkle

Directions

1. Prepare the spinach first by steaming over simmering water until wilted.  Remove and when cool to the touch, squeeze in a fist or wring in cheesecloth to remove as much water as possible.  Set aside.
2. Make the dough by mixing the yeast, salt, spinach, feta, tomatoes, and sugar in a large container.
3. ***Add the egg whites to a large measuring cup, then measure the 3 cups of water to include the egg whites.  Combine with the spinach mixture.
4. Add the flour and mix with a wooden spoon only until all ingredients are moist.
5. Do not knead!
6. Cover the container lightly and rest at room temperature for 2 hours.
7. If you don’t plan to use the dough immediately, you can place it in the fridge, lightly covered until ready for use, up to 7 days.
8. To use immediately, sprinkle flour over the surface of the dough and pull off a baseball-sized piece.  The dough will be wet and soft, so sprinkling with a bit more flour may be necessary.  Shape into an even round.  Repeat until the dough is gone.
9. Allow each ball of dough to rest on a baking tray covered with parchment and lightly sprinkled with cornmeal for 1 hour.
10. Allow each ball of dough to rest for 1 hour on a baking tray covered with parchment that has been lightly sprinkled with cornmeal.
11. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F about 30 minutes into the resting period and place a tray for water into the oven on a rack at the lowest setting.
12. After the resting period, sprinkle the dough balls with flour and cut an “X” in the top of each with a pair of scissors by pinching into the dough.
13. Prepare a cup of very hot water.
14. Slide the baking tray into the oven and carefully pour the hot water into the tray set there earlier to create steam and quickly close the oven door.
15. Bake for 20-30 minutes or until the rolls are a rich golden brown and have firm, crusty tops.
16. Cool on a baking rack before serving.

Recipe Notes:

• ***I had to edit this post because I omitted the inclusion of the egg whites.  Apologies!  My server went down while I was writing, and evidently I left that important step out.  Thanks to Ailouron for noticing. Much appreciated!
• This recipe was adapted from Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day by Jeff Hertzberg and Zoe Francois.  The fabulous idea for using the egg whites in the water for the dough is theirs and can be found in this adaptation of their master dough recipe.  We’ve made it many times for holiday dinners and it’s truly the best recipe for rolls we’ve tried.  The only change I made for my adaptation above is to avoid brushing egg whites on the dough balls since flour is dusted over them before baking.
• One batch of dough should make about 10 good sized rolls and 1 small boule depending on what you’re interested in.
• I had quite a bit of spinach on hand one day and wondered whether there was such a thing as spinach bread, referred to “AB in 5″ and lo and behold there it was. I should have realized it wasn’t all that unusual.
• I had the julienned sun-dried tomatoes on hand so added them to the other ingredients and wanted to add chopped kalamata olives but sadly, didn’t have any.    The brand of sun-dried tomatoes I use comes in small bags, they’re pre-cut and quite soft — not the leathery ones sometimes sold in bulk.
• Make sure you steam enough spinach to make a fully squeezed 1 cup — at least 1 lb. of fresh spinach.  It’s better to err on the size of steaming more than you think you’ll need because you can always save the excess for another use.
• If you’ve never made AB in 5 dough before, it can seem quite different from making bread in a traditional way, but it’s easy to do.  In fact, my husband  enjoys making bread using their method, and he’s not a baker — let alone a bread maker.  Make sure your hands  are a bit wet before grabbing the dough from the container.  That keeps the process from getting too messy!  Don’t worry about whether all the rolls are exactly the same size, but if you have a scale, that can help.
• Don’t skip the steaming part — it really helps the rolls form a great crusty top.  Once you’ve poured in the hot water, keep the oven shut.  No peeking until you’re well into the baking process — 20 minutes to check for doneness.
• I do have a baking stone, but it’s a round pizza stone, so when I make rolls I use a baking pan instead.  They come out quite nicely.
• Truly a wonderful recipe!

For other versions of Spinach-based bread, you may be interested in the following:

Soul Curry:  Spinach Feta Bread

Baking and Books:  Rustic Spinach Feta Bread Recipe

The Knead for Bread:  Spinach Feta Bread Recipe

Simple Daily Recipes:  Spinach Feta Bread Recipe

Experiments of a Housewife:  Spinach Bread

The Way the Cookie Crumbles:  Spinach Bread

After all the years I’ve spent experimenting with recipes I feel I’ve got a decent grasp of which flavors work together, but tend to be a traditionalist — especially in the savory department.  Cilantro goes with onion, tomatoes, spicy peppers, and citrus.  Basil goes with tomatoes, onions, garlic, and olive oil.  Bell peppers go with celery and onions.  Once in a while, I’ll play around with one of the combinations, but not often.

I scan the ingredient list of an accomplished chef’s recipe and think, really? wondering where their inspiration comes from.  I dissect it with my own familiarity of and opinion about each flavor in an attempt to understand how one works with the other, but know that my simple lack of experience is my biggest obstacle.  It’s a slow process, but it works if I’m in the mood to tackle one of the often complicated recipes.   Again — not very often.  And even when I do, the experience is rarely if ever repeated, so my ability to grow knowledge beyond my traditional ingredient choices peters out.  Well, except for that dense, rich, dark chocolate tart I’ve made a few times with cayenne and chipotles in adobo.  But still.

A good example of my semi lack of awareness would be with maple syrup.  It makes me think of breakfast:  bacon or ham, eggs, hash browns.  I think of Fall for some reason because I think of apples.  Apples + maple syrup + walnuts = great with a German pancake.  Chalk this up to someone who grew up about as far as one can get from maple trees and their accompanying “sugaring-off” season which occurs as winter’s cold temperatures wane into spring.  Sasha Chapman’s article “The Sweet Life:  Maple Syrup Season in Quebec” published this past March in Saveur magazine provided an excellent foundation to restructure my thinking about maple flavored anything — authentically, of course.  I was drawn into Chapman’s nostalgic description of how Canadians gather in the “sugar shack” and work within the family to make syrup, waiting for that first taste of the season.

Why use maple syrup as an example to explain my not so edge-cutting ingredient combining ability?  Because it’s what the Daring Bakers were challenged with this month.  Color me surprised.  The April 2011 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Evelyne of the blog Cheap Ethnic Eatz. Evelyne chose to challenge everyone to make a maple mousse in an edible container. Prizes are being awarded to the most creative edible container and filling, so vote on your favorite from April 27th to May 27th at http://thedaringkitchen.com!

I had to do a bit of reading to get my head out of my maple syrup rut and consider what flavors might work with a mousse.

It’s spring…

There are berries everywhere…

…and mangoes.

Resisting the addition of a chiffonade of basil, a piquant maple balsamic vinegar reduction was added, and voila.

Maple Mousse in a Phyllo Nest with Strawberry and Mango Sauce and a Maple Balsamic Reduction

For the phyllo nests…

16 (9 x 14 inch) phyllo dough sheets, thawed overnight in the fridge
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
3 tablespoons granulated raw sugar
3 tablespoons ground almonds

For the strawberry sauce…

20 oz. fresh strawberries
3 tablespoons maple syrup
3 tablespoons water
1 teaspoon fresh lime juice

For the mango sauce…

16 oz. fresh mango (about 2)
3 tablespoons maple syrup
3 tablespoons water
1 teaspoon fresh lime juice

For the maple mousse…

1 cup (240 ml/ 8 fluid oz.) pure maple syrup (not maple-flavoured syrup)
4 large egg yolks
1 package (7g/1 tbsp.) unflavoured gelatine
1-1/2 cups (360 ml. g/12 fluid oz) whipping cream (35% fat content)

For the maple balsamic reduction…

1 quantity maple syrup

1 quantity balsamic vinegar

Additional strawberries and mango slices for garnish if desired.

Make the phyllo nests first:

Heat oven to 400°F.  Spray oil lightly on 6 large capacity muffin cups and set aside.

Brown the butter over medium heat until a rich golden brown and with a nutty aroma.  Scoop off foam and discard.  Filter through a cheese cloth lined strainer into a bowl.  Discard milk solids at the bottom of the pan.

Remove thawed phyllo from the fridge and separate 16 sheets from the roll.  Re-roll them and with a sharp knife, cut into thin strips, about 1/4″.

Divide the strip coils into 6 even quantities. Place 1 bunch of strips in a bowl and toss with 1 tablespoon of browned butter.

Place in a muffin cup, forming it into a cup itself and pressing lightly against the sides and bottom.  Sprinkle sides and bottom with 1-1/2 teaspoon sugar, then 1-1/2 teaspoon ground almonds.  Repeat with remaining phyllo strips until 6 phyllo nests are formed.

Bake until golden brown, about 15 minutes.  Remove from oven to cool on a baking rack, then remove from muffin cups and cool completely.  If not using immediately, seal in an air tight container.

 

To make the strawberry sauce:

Hull the strawberries and place them along with the other ingredients in the bowl of a food processor, blender, or narrow container to use an immersion blender.  Blend until smooth, then strain through a fine meshed strainer, discarding seeds and remaining pulp.  Heat in a shallow sauce pan over medium low heat and stirring occasionally until reduced and the consistency of a thin syrup, about 10 minutes.  Scrape into a bowl to cool until ready for use.

To make the mango sauce:

Follow the same procedure as with the strawberry sauce, but omit cooking it.

 

To make the mousse:

Bring maple syrup to a boil then remove from heat.

In a large bowl, whisk egg yolks and pour a little bit of the maple syrup in while whisking (this is to temper your egg yolks so they don’t curdle).  Add warmed egg yolks to hot maple syrup until well mixed.

Measure 1/4 cup of whipping cream in a bowl and sprinkle it with the gelatine. Let it rest for 5 minutes. Place the bowl in a microwave for 45 seconds (microwave for 10 seconds at a time and check it in between) or place the bowl in a pan of barely simmering water, stir to ensure the gelatine has completely dissolved.

Whisk the gelatine/whipping cream mixture into the maple syrup mixture and set aside.  Whisk occasionally for approximately an hour or until the mixture has the consistency of an unbeaten raw egg white.

Whip the remaining cream. Stir 1/4 of the whipped cream into the maple syrup mixture. Fold in the remaining cream and refrigerate for at least an hour.

To make the maple balsamic reduction:

Add equal amounts of each ingredient to a small sauce pan (3 tablespoons of each, for example).  Over medium heat, bring to a boil and allow to cook until reduced and thickened to a medium syrup that can be easily drizzled or squeezed through a nozzle.  It will easily adhere to the back of a spoon but will still be pourable.  Remove from heat until needed.  Refrigerate to store.

To plate the dessert:

Spoon or squeeze some of the strawberry and mango sauces onto the serving dish and add the balsamic reduction sparingly.  Place the fruit garnishes either in the phyllo nest or on the plate, and pipe in the mousse to finish.

Notes:

• I was pleasantly surprised by this bearing in mind there was no bacon, eggs, or hash browns involved!  It sounds like quite a bit of work, but it’s really not.  Even the final plating doesn’t take that much effort. To make ahead, cool the nests completely, then wrap and store at room temperature.  The fruit sauces can be made and frozen, then thawed and pureed again if necessary to make them smooth.
• If you’ve not used phyllo (filo, fillo) before, it’s much more forgiving than you might think.  The very best tip in working with it is to thaw it in the fridge over night.  You can tightly wrap whatever you haven’t used and freeze it over again.  I’m afraid to tell you just how long my phyllo languished in my freezer.  Goodness.
• You don’t have to brown the butter before tossing the phyllo in it, but who doesn’t like browned butter?  So good.  The sugar and ground almonds sprinkled in before baking provide stability and a very nice crunch, so don’t skip that part, but you might cut down on the quantity of ground almonds.  I used Trader Joe’s almond meal for this.  Saved some time.
• Thinking the phyllo nests would be just fine in a nice little pile, too.  Just sprinkle on the sugar and almonds, but go easy.
• The mango sauce is a breeze.  Peeling it is more of an issue until you get the hang of it.  Finding and cutting the flat sides or “cheeks” while the mango is positioned on its end is half the battle.  Remove the peel after you’ve sliced and diced.  Such a fabulous flavor!
• The strawberry sauce is more work.  I know some people say there’s no need to reduce the sauce after straining, but I’ve found the flavor is so much more intense and delicious.  This particular sauce recipe is new to me and I think I’d leave the water out next time because strawberries are full of water.  Be patient on the straining and use a rubber spatula with a whipping sort of motion — like a wheel.   It goes much more quickly like that.
• The balsamic reduction is amazing. I’ve never tried it with maple syrup before and would love to take credit, but I Googled it and wow.  I am clearly not in the know on these things.  But I have made it often with sugar and love it on fruit salad or just strawberries.  Yes, sprinkling slivers of basil over it and giving it a toss is quite wonderful tasting.  The vinegar brings out all the sweetness in the fruit.
• The mousse is quite lovely all by itself and I’m thinking it would be great frozen, like a fudgesicle.  Mmmm…dipped in chocolate and rolled in nuts.  I’ll save that one for another time.
• I wanted to play with the plating for this dessert, but when I’m the only one at home and it’s a dessert that needs to be eaten, clearly, I can’t play without wasting food and I’m not going to do that.  With respect to my plating, more of the maple balsamic reduction would have been great.  All the flavors mix quite well, though.  Very nice.
• Surprisingly, after about 40 minutes of shooting this dessert, it wasn’t soggy at all.  Good to know for a bit of prep ahead of time.
• If I had gone more traditional with this, you’d have seen sliced bananas, chocolate, and nuts.
• Even less traditional?  Fried flour tortillas with cinnamon sugar, bananas, and spicy chocolate.
• Here’s a print friendly copy of the recipe.

Many thanks to the hosts  Evelyne and Renata for the challenge — I’m now thinking about maple syrup in completely different ways!  And as always, big thanks to Lis and Ivonne who founded the Daring Bakers.  If you’re interested in visiting the other Daring Bakers to see what their creations look like, check out the blog roll.