Savory Wheat Crackers: TWD Baking with Julia

Tuesdays with Dorie: Baking with Julia - 58th installment. The recipe is Savory Wheat Crackers.

These were very easy, and the result was good.  I think I would like to try them again, because I like the idea of being able to whip up some crackers with simple ingredients, but they weren't as crisp as I wanted them to be. I tried to avoid overbaking them, but I think I underbaked as a result - it was difficult to know how long to keep them in the oven. 


The dough has a minimum of ingredients and was easy to roll out.  I didn't have the nigella seeds, so I used sesame, anise and poppy seed.  It seems like you could top them with anything (parmesan cheese?)

We ate these with cheese and hummus.  I did have to re-bake the ones I saved for the next day, as they became very soft.  Once they spent a few minutes in the oven, they were back to being crisp.
(This entry is in the 'better late than never department' - I actually baked these earlier this month, but life has been so hectic, I didn't get a chance to post until now.)

Tropical Napoleons: TWD Baking with Julia

Tuesdays with Dorie: Baking with Julia - 57th installment. The recipe is Tropical Napoleons.

 

This recipe was surprisingly easy - initially I wasn't too sure I wanted to make it, since I was short on time, but I, and the family were glad I did.  It's a good idea to watch the video, since that demystified the recipe for me.  The photo in the cookbook looked complicated, but the video make the process look easy. You use a template to spread out consistently shaped meringue disks, and then layer them with whipped cream and fruit.  Yummy!  Kind of like a differently shaped pavlova.   I made three variations - the one above with strawberries, mango, and kiwi, one with just strawberries, and one with only cream and wafers.  I didn't choose to stir coconut into the meringue, but I did make some wafers with coconut and sesame seeds on them.  It was a nice complement to the cream and fruit.

Based on bakers' comments on the Tuesdays with Dorie comments thread, I was ready to try various baking sheet options to see what would work.  I've experience the nightmare of sticking meringue before.  I tried 

1. Silpat (silicone mat)
2. greased and floured parchment
3. greased and floured baking sheet.   

Surprisingly, Silpat was the worst.  I think it might have been the woven texture of the mat, which got in the way of it releasing. My favorite was either the greased and floured parchment (fussy, but easy because you could peel away the parchment) or the greased and floured baking sheet.  I was actually surprised that I was able to get the wafers off that one.  You MUST have a metal spatula with a thin, sharp edge to get under the wafers - these would be a major headache without it.

Scallop and Pesto Purses: TWD Baking with Julia

Tuesdays with Dorie: Baking with Julia - 56th installment. The recipe is Scallop and Pesto Purses.

This was a phyllo-handling success story (unlike the summer vegetable tart from a previous installment).  I bought phyllo at an Armenian grocery store, where I had a choice of four different kinds (!).  I think it was relatively fresh, and ended up being easy to handle.   These were layers of two sheets, sandwiched together with butter and shredded parmesan cheese, cut into smaller rectangles, and then each rectangle wrapped around a scallop topped by a dollop of pesto and some scallions.  


I got the packages assembled, and tied with buttered strings, as specified.  Once I bundled them up, some cracks formed in the bottom folds, which was worrisome, as I thought it might allow the contents to leak out.  I put them in the fridge for a few hours, and then baked them as specified, for 20 minutes.  I thought the result was OK - good brown crispy phyllo on top, and good savory flavor.  The soggy bases of the "purses" were kind of disappointing, although not surprising - the phyllo doesn't seem dense enough to keep in the liquid of a scallop.  I did dry the scallops before wrapping, but maybe there's some other way to make them not release so much liquid (or maybe the filling could be something less moist.  It seems like this kind of appetizer would be nicer if you could pick it up and eat it, rather than using a plate and fork.    I wasn't sure if the strings were really needed - they were fussy to attach and remove, and squeezing together the top of the purse seemed to form a seal. 

Now to figure out what to do with the rest of the phyllo dough.... :-)

Cantuccini: TWD Baking with Julia

Tuesdays with Dorie: Baking with Julia - 55th installment. The recipe is Cantuccini.

Crunchy!

Almond biscotti - can't get enough of them :-)  I didn't even have to shop to bake these -  I was able to make them with what I had on hand.   They were really easy, and I love the fact that the recipe made so many of them. I cut them to the 1/4" width recommended, which is on the thin side compared with some biscotti I have made. They are very crunchy, as described in the recipe - perfect for dipping in coffee or milk. 

Kneading the sticky dough on a board

I found the dough rather sticky to knead and shape.  After reading the P&Q on the TWD site,  I wondered if I should use two eggs instead of three eggs, but I stuck with the recipe and used three.  I used a lot of flour to knead and shape.  I'm not sure if it would help to use fewer eggs - maybe they wouldn't rise the same way.  I'm also not sure why the kneading had to be done on a board...maybe it folds air into them (?).

Logs after baking

The logs seemed a little flattish, but they sliced up and baked up nicely.  It was good advice to let the logs cool thorough, and it helps to use a serrated knife for slicing. 

Slices ready for second round of baking

  

Potato Lefse: TWD Baking with Julia

Tuesdays with Dorie: Baking with Julia - 54th installment. The recipe is Potato Lefse.

Hard to photograph well (white on white), but easy and delicious!   You make the mashed potatoes, chill them overnight, and then add the dry ingredients.  You end up with a dense, but also somewhat light dough.  I was skeptical about the inclusion of sugar in the dough, but they really tasted great. 

Dough ball before rolling

I was amazed how thinly they could be rolled out.  I didn't have a linen-covered board, but I laid a floured towel out on my board, and made sure the pin stayed pretty well floured.  A few holes developed when the pin got stuck occasionally, but it was easy to patch.  

Dough just put onto the griddle

I wasn't always able to roll them out into neat circles, so some were irregularly shaped.  Having such a large pancake on the griddle made it more apparent that the griddle has sections that are hotter than others.  It was difficult to get them evenly browned.

We ate them as suggested, rolled up with butter, sugar and jam toppings.  Maple sugar and cinnamon sugar were voted the favorites.

Mocha Brownie Cake - TWD: Baking with Julia

Tuesdays with Dorie: Baking with Julia - 53rd installment. The recipe is Mocha Brownie Cake.

We all needed a chocolate fix, to help combat the feeling of endless winter (why was it still in the teens today?!), and this was just the thing.  It is very rich and densely chocolatey.  Everything went according to the recipe - I did bake it closer to the shorter time listed, to keep it more moist and brownie like.  It puffed up, and then collapsed a bit after cooling:

Puffed up right out of the oven...

Collapsed as it cooled

Interior surface after cutting the layers

It has a lot of chocolate - 12 oz. in the ganache alone.  This recipe needs a lot of time, with chilling the cake, cooling the ganache until it is the right consistency, and then chilling the assembled cake.  It's a good thing the directions call for the cake to chill before you cut it - it was challenging to cut in three equal layers, but the chilling firms it up and makes that easier.  It really was like a brownie in texture. The ganache could maybe be a bit stronger in coffee flavor to make it truly mocha.

Buttermilk Scones - TWD: Baking with Julia

Tuesdays with Dorie: Baking with Julia - 52nd installment. The recipe is Buttermilk Scones.

Check out my Union Jack tea cosy...

These were delicious!  I would definitely turn to this recipe again in the future - the recipe was easy, and they turned out great.  I loved the slightly airy quality of the baked scones - they were not at all dry or dense.

I followed the recipe (more or less) and made half of the scones as triangles, and half as a filled roll.  I mixed raspberry jam with dried blueberries for the filling, and then sprinkled sliced almonds on some of the spirals before baking.    The roll was kind of difficult to roll - it was more like a fold rather than a roll (maybe I should have patted it out more thinly?).  I've made many scones over the year, and this recipe is definitely on the rich side, so more of a special occasion than an every day scone.

Before baking

Berrry scones after baking