Well it’s officially Easter Sunday, and I’m sure that you’re all busy making your dinners and baking your goodies, but just in case you’re lookin’ for some more inspiration, I thought I’d pop back in and show off my dip-dyed Easter eggs… plus something special I made with them.

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Easter bread! Sweet & delicious (& unique). I’ve been looking for the perfect recipe to make for years. This was a tradition around my house forever, we used to buy the one shaped like a bunny with the egg where the butt was, ha. But I kept forgetting to make it and then whenever I found a recipe I just wasn’t feeling it. And then I found this one! Big thanks to The Italian Dish for the perfect recipe. Here’s a couple of pre-baking photos, pardon my pans- usually I cover them in parchment to bake but I ran out & wasn’t aware until it was time to bake. And at 11 a.m. on Easter Sunday I was not about to run out and get any! By the way, I used the entire recipe but only made 6 breads.

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Enjoy your Easter, everyone who celebrates it. Or should I say… Buona Pasqua! And for the rest of you, I hope you have a nice relaxing Sunday with your family or friends, & you eat something delicious. Because that’s what it’s about for me. Being with the people I care about and enjoying my time. Not religion, or fables, or anything. Not being perfect or having the perfect table settings or impressing anyone. Not worrying. But just taking a day off to experience the true joys of life: food, family, and freakin’ naps! Zzzzzzz…

A hot cross bun, or cross-bun,^[1] is a sweet, yeast-leavened, spiced bun made with currants or raisins, often with candied citrus fruits,^[2] marked with a cross on the top. The cross can be made in a variety of ways including: of pastry; flour and water mixture; rice paper; icing; two intersecting cuts. They are traditionally eaten on Good Friday but in the UK they are now sold all year round.^[3]

In many historically Christian countries, buns are traditionally eaten hot or toasted on Good Friday, with the cross standing as a symbol of the Crucifixion. They are believed by some to pre-date Christianity, although the first recorded use of the term “hot cross bun” was not until 1733;^[1] it is believed that buns marked with a cross were eaten by Saxons in honour of the goddess Eostre (the cross is thought to have symbolised the four quarters of the moon);^[4] “Eostre” is probably the origin of the name “Easter”.^[1] Others claim that the Greeks marked cakes with a cross, much earlier.^[5]

According to cookery writer Elizabeth David, Protestant English monarchs saw the buns as a dangerous hold-over of Catholic belief in England, being baked from the dough used in making the communion wafer. Protestant England attempted to ban the sale of the buns by bakers but they were too popular, and instead Elizabeth I passed a law permitting bakeries to sell them, but only at Easter and Christmas.

English folklore includes many superstitions surrounding hot cross buns. One of them says that buns baked and served on Good Friday will not spoil or become mouldy during the subsequent year. Another encourages keeping such a bun for medicinal purposes. A piece of it given to someone who is ill is said to help them recover.^[6]

Sharing a hot cross bun with another is supposed to ensure friendship throughout the coming year, particularly if “Half for you and half for me, Between us two shall goodwill be” is said at the time. Because of the cross on the buns, some say they should be kissed before being eaten. If taken on a sea voyage, hot cross buns are said to protect against shipwreck. If hung in the kitchen, they are said to protect against fires and ensure that all breads turn out perfectly. The hanging bun is replaced each year.^[6]

Amazing. As a self-admitted total history nerd, the part about Elizabeth I blew my mind! It also cemented my desire to make my own hot cross buns. But see, my idea was to translate them into a muffin type of deal. Not really, since they’re really just hot cross buns, except baked in buttered paper in muffin tins. But they resemble muffins more than buns this way. I got the idea from the panettone I made for Christmas which was both much talked about and much devoured. Is that proper grammar? Doesn’t sound like it. But you get the idea. Either way, hot cross buns are incredibly similar to panettones in terms of the dough & ingredients, so there wasn’t really much difference in making them.

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HOT CROSS BUNS (adapted slightly from Ree Drummond/Pioneer Woman)

Ingredients:

• 2 cups whole milk
• ½ cup canola oil
• ½ cup sugar
• 1 package (2 ¼ teaspoons) Active Dry Yeast
• 4 cups all-purpose flour
• ½ cup (additional) flour
• ½ teaspoon (heaping) baking powder
• ½ teaspoon (scant) baking soda
• 2 teaspoons salt
• ¼ cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• spices: cardamom, nutmeg, allspice (optional)
• ½ cup golden raisins

Glaze:

• 1 whole egg white
• splash of milk

;

Icing:

• 1 whole egg white
• powdered sugar
• splash of milk

Directions:

1. Combine 2 cups milk, canola oil, and ½ cup sugar in a saucepan. Stir and heat until very warm but not boiling. Turn off the heat and allow to cool until mixture is still warm, but not hot–about 30 minutes. Sprinkle yeast over mixture. Add 4 cups of flour and stir to combine. Mixture will be very sticky. Cover with a towel and set aside for 1 hour.
2. Meanwhile, cut large squarish circles out of brown paper bags. Melt two tablespoons butter and brush each one with some butter. Line muffin tins with them and press down, making them fit.
3. Add ½ cup flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir till combined. Combine ¼ cup sugar with cinnamon and whatever other spices you want to use. Lightly flour surface. Press to slightly flatten dough. Sprinkle a couple tablespoons of the sugar/cinnamon mixture. Sprinkle on about a third of the raisins. Then fold the dough over on itself and flatten again so the dough is “plain” again. Repeat the sugar/raisin process, then fold the dough again. Repeat a third time until all the raisins are used. (You won’t use all the sugar/cinnamon mixture.)
4. Pinch off ping pong or golf ball-size bunches of dough. With floured hands, quickly roll it into a ball, then turn the edges under themselves slightly. Place each ball in the buttered paper. Cover and allow to rise in a warm place for at least 30 minutes, an hour-plus is better. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
5. Make glaze: mix 1 egg white with a splash of milk. Brush onto each roll. Bake for 20 minutes, give or take, or until tops of buns have turned nice and golden brown. Remove from pan and allow to cool on a cooling rack.
6. Make the icing: Mix 1 egg white with enough powdered sugar for icing to be very thick. Splash in milk as needed for consistency. Add icing to a small Ziploc bag or disposable pastry bag and snip the corner. Make icing crosses on each roll, making sure they’re completely cooled first.

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I halved the above recipe and ended up with 14 total: 6 in the buttered-brown-paper-muffin version, without raisins, and 8 in an 8″-inch cake pan with raisins. As soon as the dough was made, I split it in half after adding the cinnamon mix and just added raisins to one lump and left them out of the other one. Makes sense, right?

These are the original buns that were baked in a pan & contain raisins

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If you’re making the full batch, you could easily use brownie pans instead of a round cake pan, if you’re not into the buttered paper idea. You also don’t have to use golden raisins, or even raisins at all. Dried currants work too, as does citron if you’re into that. I’m definitely not. I’m sure any kind of small dried fruit would do the trick. And if you’d really like to, I’m sure little mini chocolate chips would taste delicious too. And if you’re really adventurous, why not soak the raisins in a bit of liquor first?

I have to say these were much easier than I anticipated. I made them while watching a few episodes of Shameless & before I knew it they were ready to eat. Best hot cross bun muffins ever!

So Mardi Gras 2012 is upon us. Laissez les bon temps roulez!

Despite not being religious, French/Creole/Spanish (well I am a smidgen French, but not really enough to claim it) or from New Orleans, I love Mardi Gras. I love the colors, the parades, the partying, the food. Fat Tuesday (or Shrove Tuesday as my grandma & the old schoolers called it) was always one of the funnest part of being in Catholic school; pancakes & a party all day! Other than that, a lot of time in Catholic school is spent… well, being all Catholic.

However I can get down with the “Eat now, repent later” bit, for sure. As a matter of fact, I prefer “Eat now, repent never” even better. As a matter of fact… I don’t quite believe in repenting at all, unless you commit a real sin. Like throwing away good food. Or murder. You know.

The terms “Mardi Gras” ( /ˈmɑrdiɡrɑː/), “Mardi Gras season“, and “Carnival season“,^{[1][2][3][4][5]} in English, refer to events of the Carnival celebrations, beginning on or after Epiphany and culminating on the day before Ash Wednesday. Mardi gras is French for Fat Tuesday, referring to the practice of the last night of eating richer, fatty foods before the ritual fasting of the Lenten season, which begins on Ash Wednesday; in English the day is sometimes referred to as Shrove Tuesday, from the word shrive, meaning “confess.”^[6] Related popular practices are associated with celebrations before the fasting and religious obligations associated with the penitential season of Lent. Popular practices include wearing masks and costumes, overturning social conventions, dancing, sports competitions, parades, etc. Similar expressions to Mardi Gras appear in other European languages sharing the Christian tradition. In English, the day is called Shrove Tuesday, associated with the religious requirement for confession before Lent begins.

In many areas, the term “Mardi Gras” has come to mean the whole period of activity related to the celebratory events, beyond just the single day. In some US cities, it is now called “Mardi Gras Day” or “Fat Tuesday”.^{[1][2][3][4][5]} The festival season varies from city to city, as some traditions consider Mardi Gras the entire period between Epiphany or Twelfth Night and Ash Wednesday.^[7] Others treat the final three-day period before Ash Wednesday as the Mardi Gras.^[8] In Mobile, Alabama, Mardi Gras-associated social events begin in November, followed by mystic society balls on Thanksgiving,^[7][9] then New Year’s Eve, followed by parades and balls in January and February, celebrating up to midnight before Ash Wednesday. In earlier times parades were held on New Year’s Day.^[7] Other cities famous for Mardi Gras celebrations include Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Barranquilla, Colombia, Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago, Quebec City, Canada; Mazatlán, Sinaloa in Mexico; and New Orleans, Louisiana, United States.

Carnival is an important celebration in Anglican and Catholic European nations.^[6] In the United Kingdom and Ireland, the week before Ash Wednesday is called “shrovetide“, ending on Shrove Tuesday. It has its popular celebratory aspects as well. Pancakes are a traditional food. Pancakes and related fried breads or pastries made with sugar, fat and eggs are also traditionally consumed at this time in many parts of Latin America and the Caribbean.

So basically, you can have King’s Cakes (or cupcakes in my case), Bananas Foster (or the cupcake equivalent) or beignets. Or you can just make some pancakes, if you’re the simple type. But this year I made up some sweet rolls. Sweet, yeasty rolls with a brightly colored confectioner’s sugar glaze.

I’m going to say these are super quick & easy to make, and I hope you believe me. ‘Cause they really are. I made the dough the night before (which took about 5 minutes), let it chill overnight and then made them the next day. In what seemed like no time at all I was shoving them in my fat face.

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MARDI GRAS SWEET ROLLS (adapted from a recipe by Oxmoor House)

Ingredients:

Rolls:

• 1 package active dry yeast
• ¼ cup warm water (105° to 115°)
• 3 ⅔ cups all-purpose flour
• ½ cup sugar
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 cup sour cream
• ⅓ cup melted unsalted butter
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten

Icing:

• 1 ¼ cups sifted confectioner’s sugar
• 3-6 tablespoons milk
• small dab each yellow, green & purple Wilton icing gel food coloring

Directions:

1. Dissolve yeast in warm water in a small bowl; let stand 5 minutes. Combine flour, ½ cup sugar, and salt in the mixing bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, stirring well. Combine sour cream, butter, and eggs, stirring well. Add dissolved yeast mixture and sour cream mixture to dry ingredients. Beat at medium speed about 2 minutes or until smooth. Cover tightly, and chill 8 hours.
2. Preheat oven to 350°. Divide dough in half; shape half of dough into 12 (2-inch) balls, smoothing out tops. Place 2 inches apart on a baking sheet* coated with cooking spray. Repeat procedure with remaining dough. Cover and let rise 30 minutes or until doubled in bulk.
3. Bake rolls at 350° for 20 minutes or until very lightly browned. Let cool slightly, but not completely, before frosting.
4. Combine powdered sugar,and milk in a bowl; beat at medium speed of a mixer until smooth. Divide into three separate bowls, stir the food coloring into each bowl, creating three colors. Spread 2 teaspoons frosting on each roll while still warm. Best served warm.

*I used a pie plate, because it was a dark aubergine/purple color and looked pretty for the presentation. Depending on the amount of rolls you have, you can use a cookie sheet, glass baking dish or round cake pan (or two) as well.

You may notice in the directions I say to use a stand mixer. This is because I found a dough hook to be 100% necessary with this dough. I also had to sprinkle a little extra flour in to smooth it out, otherwise it was pretty sticky & didn’t get “smooth” enough. If you have a hand mixer that’s powerful & has a dough hook attachment, then that’s your decision. I personally did not try my new hand mixer out on these.

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The frosting, the way I made it, is a messy, crazy, delicious Crayola color-fest. I thought it appropriate since Mardi Gras is all about the fun, the gaudyness & lots of bright color. You can tone it down if you prefer, or just use the icing without color and sprinkle colored sugar in green, purple and yellow on top of it. It’s up to you, although it also depends on the type of food coloring you use. Americolor & Wilton are very bright, but the supermarket brands sometimes require more in order to give you that oomph. So why do we use these particular colors for mardi gras?

6: What is the significance of the Mardi Gras colors, and where did they come from?

A: Rex, the King of Carnival, selected the Mardi Gras colors and assigned meaning to them in 1892. Purple stands for justice, green for faith, and gold for power.

-Source

I halved this recipe and got around 9 rolls (some larger than others because I have a terrible time eyeballing dough size!). If you like, you can add a little lemon zest to the dough, but I liked it just the way it was. Also, you can totally omit the glaze and either have them plain or just brush them with some melted butter as soon as they come out of the oven; you’ll have a delicious alternative that can be served with any meal, any time of year- not just on Fat Tuesday.

But I rather like my messy, brightly iced, irregular-shaped sweet rolls.

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I’m sure by now you’ve noticed the fairy tale theme, right? Snow White, the Twelve Dancing Princesses, now the Queen of Hearts? If you haven’t noticed, what do I have to do, beat you over the head with my 800+ page volume of the collected works of the Brothers Grimm? Anyway… the Queen of Hearts poem above was supposedly in reference to the motif, or rather the suit, of hearts in playing cards; the character had been subject of songs & poems long before Lewis Carroll used her for his stories (although there is an extension of the above poem that includes characters from each suit- i.e., “The King of Spades flirts with maids”, etc, and why they never gained popularity I don’t know). Lewis Carroll’s Queen of Hearts (from Alice in Wonderland) has been interpreted many different ways. Disney’s popular red-faced fat woman & Tim Burton’s short squat big-headed version are just two of the many, many variations. Contrary to popular belief, she is not the same person as the Red Queen from Through The Looking Glass. She’s her own person, the embodiment of passion & fury. It used to be that the Queen was represented in a more flattering way, but even still, before Disney & Burton there were versions of her that weren’t so pretty. Some of my favorites are:

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Although Lewis Carroll’s particular version of the Queen didn’t bake any tarts, unlike the poem’s version, she just bitched & moaned about her red roses being white roses painted red. At any rate, the original Queen of Hearts baked some tarts, and in many illustrations they were heart-shaped, so these cookies or “tarts” made me think of that right away. Of course, it’s not the real version, as it goes with most baked goods we’re familiar with:

The Linzer Torte (or Linzertorte) is an Austrian torte with a lattice design on top of the pastry.^[1] It is named after the city of Linz, Austria.

Linzer Torte is a very short, crumbly pastry made of flour, unsalted butter, egg yolks, lemon zest, cinnamon and lemon juice, and ground nuts, usually hazelnuts, but even walnuts or almonds are used, covered with a filling of redcurrant jam or, alternatively, plum butter, thick raspberry,^[2] or apricot jam. It is covered by a lattice of dough strips. The dough is rolled out in very thin strips of pastry and arranged to form a criss-cross design on top of the preserves. The pastry is brushed with lightly beaten egg whites, baked, and sometimes decorated with sliced almonds.

Linzer Torte is a holiday classic in the Austrian, Hungarian, Swiss, German, and Tirolean traditions, often eaten at Christmas. Linzer Torte is often made like small tarts or cookies in North American bakeries.

Linzer sablés (German: Linzer Augen, “Linzer eyes”) are a cookie-sized version, made by cutting a circle of a similar dough, covering it with jam, placing a donut-like circle with a hole in the center piece of dough on top, and dusting with confectioner’s sugar.

I used a heart-shaped cutter, obviously, but you can use whatever shapes you want; hearts, stars, circles, diamonds, flowers, etc. Even just circles will work.

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LINZER COOKIES- THE CUPCAKE REHAB WAY

Ingredients:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour (or one cup all-purpose and one cup almond flour)
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• ¼ cup powdered (confectioners or icing) sugar
• ¼ cup granulated sugar
• ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• ½ teaspoon pure almond extract (or ¼ teaspoon if using almond flour)
• Preserves for filling (raspberry, strawberry or quince work nicely, I also used candy apple- can be jelly, jam or thick preserves) or if you prefer, Nutella or a thick chocolate sauce

Directions:

1. In a separate bowl whisk the flour with the salt. Set aside.
2. In the bowl of your electric mixer (or with a hand mixer), cream the butter until smooth (about 1 minute). Add the sugar and beat until smooth (about 2 minutes). Beat in the vanilla & almond extracts. Gently mix in the flour mixture just until incorporated. Flatten the dough into a disk shape, wrap in plastic wrap, and chill the dough for at least an hour.
3. Preheat oven to 350° degrees F with the rack in the middle of the oven. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
4. On a lightly floured surface roll out the dough to around ¼”- inch thick. Cut into rounds or whatever shapes you wish using lightly floured cookie cutter, cutting out smaller shapes from the centers of some. Re-roll & re-cut all the scraps until finished. Place the cookies on the prepared baking sheet and place in the refrigerator for about 15 minutes. This will firm up the dough so the cookies will maintain their shape when baked. Bake for 8 – 10 minutes, or until cookies are lightly brown. Cool on baking sheet for 10 minutes, then gently move to rack to cool completely.
5. Once cooled, spread preserves or jam or jelly on top of the “bottom” pieces, or “whole” pieces, going almost to the edge. Place the “window” or cut-out pieces on top, being careful not to press too hard or break them. Use the cut-out shapes as extra cookies, or “glue” them on top with a little bit of jam as I did. Or, “glue” them on before baking using a dab of water. Then sprinkle all cookies lightly with confectioner’s sugar.

Psst.. if the sugar on the jelly part bothers you, here’s a secret: it disappears after a while, and all that’s left is the sugar on the cookie. Like magic.

Oh and I should warn you. THIS IS A SHORTBREAD DOUGH. Therefore, it is very delicate. It will break if you move them too fast. They have to be thoroughly cooled and even then, if you make large cookies & don’t support them as you move them, they will break. Be aware. Example:

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You know The Island of Misfit Toys? That’s the island of broken cookies. Oh well. They tasted just as good. Lesson learned; don’t watch TV while making cookies. Stick with the music. Although they made a good excuse to snack on some while putting the rest of them together. And don’t worry if your top pieces are a bit differently shaped than the bottom, they look great anyway, trust me.

I used Wilton heart-shaped cutters that came four to a box; two smooth edged red heart cutters, and two scalloped edge heart cutters. I got them at Target, they were around 5 bucks I think. They’re quite large, about 4-5″ across for the biggest one, so I got less cookies out of the recipe. If you have small cutters, then you’ll get far more. Duh. I happen to think they’re amazing because they’re so much bigger than normal. I want to make some heart-shaped homemade pop-tarts with them next.

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Everybody thinks of them as Christmas cookies, but once they’re done in heart-shapes they become perfect for Valentine’s Day. So easy, so pretty. I used homemade (of course) strawberry jam (the dark red) & homemade candy apple jelly (the lighter color), but anything goes. For this time of year though, the heart-theme with the red colored filling is nice, but lemon curd also works nicely, as does apricot jam or jelly. And for St. Patrick’s Day, what else but shamrock-shaped cookies filled with bright green, glistening mint jelly? Actually that’s a really good idea…

Anyway, they’re great to package up (gently) and give to someone special. But if anyone takes or eats your cookies without asking, off with their heads!

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Don’t you love espresso? I do. Well, I love coffee of all kinds. One of the best gifts Jay ever got me was my Keurig. Yes- I am aware that I have said that about both Lola, my laptop (a.k.a. “June Carter”) & most recently my iPhone (through all my Andy Rooney-like anti-iPhone “you are all sheeple” grumblings I’ve come to realize this thing is amazing), but it’s kinda sick how much I love this Keurig. He gives good gifts, what can I say? I definitely inherited my love of coffee from my parents, despite wondering as a child how people could drink so much of it in one day when they could just have a can of Coke. They weren’t the kind of people that had one cup at 8 a.m. & the coffee machine was cold until the next morning, they were the kind of people who had cup after cup after cup all day long. And I never understood that.

Until now. Things have changed. I love coffee, I love fancy coffee, I love frapps, I love cappuccino, I love it all. But sometimes I just enjoy a simple espresso. And sometimes… I like some frothy milk on top.

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So yeah, I like coffee. I find it’s pretty much a perfect match for anything- cookies, cupcakes, cakes, pies, muffins, even ice cream. But for the purposes of this post, I had it with some panettone. Yes, panettone. What could go better with espresso than panettone?

Panettone (pronounced /pænəˈtoʊni/^[1]) is a type of sweet bread loaf originally from Milan (in Milanese it is called panaton),^[2] usually prepared and enjoyed for Christmas and New Year in Italy, Malta, Brazil, Germany and Switzerland, and is one of the symbols of the city of Milan. Maltese nationals are also traditionally associated with this sweet loaf. In Latin America, especially in Venezuela, Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay, Brazil, Ecuador, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia and Peru, it is a Christmas dinner staple and in some places replaces roscón de reyes/bolo rei (King cake).

It has a cupola shape, which extends from a cylindrical base and is usually about 12-15 cm high for a panettone weighing 1 kg. Other bases may be used, such as an octagon, or a frustum with star section shape more common to pandoro. It is made during a long process that involves the curing of the dough, which is acidic, similar to sourdough. The proofing process alone takes several days, giving the cake its distinctive fluffy characteristics. It contains candied orange, citron, and lemon zest, as well as raisins, which are added dry and not soaked. Many other variations are available such as plain or with chocolate . It is served in slices, vertically cut, accompanied with sweet hot beverages or a sweet wine, such as Asti or Moscato d’Asti. In some regions of Italy, it is served with crema di mascarpone, a cream made from mascarpone, eggs, sometimes dried or candied fruits, and typically a sweet liqueur such as amaretto; if mascarpone cheese is unavailable, zabaione is sometimes used as a substitute.

Efforts are underway to obtain Protected Designation of Origin and Denominazione di origine controllata status for this product, but, as of late 2008, this had not occurred.^[3] Italian Agriculture Minister Paolo De Castro was looking at ways to protect the real Italian cakes from growing competition in Latin America and whether they can take action at the World Trade Organization.

-Wikipedia

But no, this is not the stuff that comes in a box that you can find in every Italian family’s home at this time of year. This is homemade stuff, made with ingredients that make it practically irresistible to me; chocolate chips. I’m personally not big on the dried fruit or citron thing. But when I saw the recipe I knew I’d have to alter it to suit me. It’s made in a buttered brown bag… how the hell was I supposed to resist? So here’s my version of panettones… little ones that are easier to give (and eat!).

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CHOCOLATE CHIP MINI-PANETTONE’S

Makes 7

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon warm water
• 1 envelope active dry yeast (about 1 scant tablespoon)
• 1 ¼ cups flour, plus more for dusting
• 2 tablespoons warm milk
• 2 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons sugar
• 1 large eggs
• 2 egg yolks
• pinch salt
• ¼ teaspoon pure vanilla
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold
• ½ cup chocolate chips
• ¾ teaspoon heavy cream

Directions:

1. Pour warm water into a bowl, and sprinkle with half of the yeast. Stir with a fork until yeast has dissolved, then let stand until foamy, 5 to 10 minutes.
2. Stir in ⅛ cup flour, and cover bowl with plastic wrap. Let stand in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 30 minutes.
3. Pour warm milk into a bowl, and sprinkle with remaining yeast. Stir with a fork until yeast has dissolved, then let stand until foamy, 5 to 10 minutes. Meanwhile, whisk together sugar, whole egg, 1 egg yolk, salt, and vanilla. Whisk in milk mixture.
4. Beat butter and remaining flour with a mixer fitted with a dough hook on medium speed until mixture is crumbly. Reduce speed to low, and gradually add egg mixture. Raise speed to medium, and beat until smooth. Add yeast-and-flour mixture, and beat on high speed until dough is elastic and long strands form when it’s stretched, about 5 minutes (it will still be very sticky.) Stir in chocolate chips.
5. Transfer to a buttered bowl, and cover with buttered plastic wrap. Let dough stand in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 2 hours. Preheat oven to 400° degrees, with rack in lower third. Turn dough out onto a floured surface, and divide into 7 little portions of dough. Knead a few times, then shape into balls. Drop each ball into a buttered brown paper mold (see below for directions) and loosely cover with buttered plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm place until rises slightly to the top, about 30 to 45 minutes. Whisk remaining yolk with cream, and brush onto tops of balls. Cut an X in the top of each ball with kitchen shears (I didn’t do this).
6. Bake 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 350° degrees, and bake until tops are golden brown and rise slightly above rims of molds, about 15 minutes. Tent baking sheet with foil if tops are beginning to get too brown. Transfer panettone to a wire rack to cool. Panettone can be stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Pre-baking, & pre-egg wash!

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Recipe can be doubled, probably tripled too, FYI.

Okay so what I did was I cut up some brown paper lunch bags & used those as the “liners” or molds. It’s really easy, all you have to do is cut circle-squares (uneven circles or rounded squares) or tear them. Melt about 4-5 tablespoons butter and get a pastry brush ready. Then check & see if the paper fits in your muffin pan. If it doesn’t, trim it, if it does, butter it by brushing it on one side generously with butter & place it in a cavity, pressing down so it stays in place. Then plop a ball of dough on top of it. So simple. But you can also use these liners as well, if the whole DIY thing isn’t your bag (no pun intended). And if you’re a stickler, you can use real panettone paper molds. However I like to be very hands-on & creative, its a good outlet, & I’m always doing shit like this so for me it was a snap. If you do choose to DIY it, then use an old muffin tin. That’s what I did because I like my new ones to stay nice & clean & shiny. I keep an old one around for when I make pupcakes or popovers or stuff like this.

You can also substitute any dried fruits for the chocolate chips, and also add lemon or orange zest to the batter. But just so you know, the first batch of 7 that I made went all in one night.

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Super easy, really. And delicious. Let’s face it, edible gifts are sometimes the best gifts. Like I said before- homemade jellies/jams/marmalades, breads, cookies & even homemade limoncello or vanilla extract can make a great gift. It doesn’t take much to personalize an edible gift. I happen to think homemade gifts are worth more than bought gifts, if there was time & effort obviously put into it. Someone once said the greatest gift a person can give you is their time, and if they made you a really beautiful homemade gift then that’s exactly what they did.

And I don’t mean a piece of construction paper with glitter on it, either. That’s only acceptable if you’re 10 or younger, sorry.

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When I was little, my Aunt Winnie bought me a book called the A Perfectly Irregular Christmas Tree. It told the story of a little tree that grew to become the tall, beautifully lit Christmas tree in Rockefeller Center, and at the back of the book, it told the story of the origins of the tradition. Ever since then, I’ve been totally in love with the concept. Not that I wasn’t before that… but it wasn’t until that book that I really even thought about it. It was sort of like I just assumed the tree was always there or something. I know, silly, but come on, I was like, what, 7 years old?

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Basically there’s a very important history behind the origins of that big ol’ tree, and not many people know it.

Although the official Christmas tree tradition at Rockefeller Center began in 1933 (the year the 30 Rockefeller Plaza opened), the unofficial tradition began during the Depression-era construction of Rockefeller Center, when workers decorated a smaller 20 feet (6.1 m) balsam fir tree with “strings of cranberries, garlands of paper, and even a few tin cans” on Christmas Eve (December 24, 1931), as recounted by Daniel Okrent in his history of Rockefeller Center.^[10] Some accounts have the tree decorated with the tin foil ends of blasting caps. There was no Rockefeller Center Christmas tree in 1932.

The decorated Christmas tree remains lit at Rockefeller Center until the week after New Year’s Day, when it is removed and recycled for a variety of uses. In 2007, the tree went “green,” employing LED lights.^[11] After being taken down, the tree was used to furnish lumber for Habitat for Humanity house construction.^[12]

Anyway, in addition to all that New Yorker-ish stuff about me, I also love to bake, as is evidenced by this blog. And occasionally I get an urge to do so randomly, or I get inspired by something. So it happened one night that I wanted to make some frosted (or iced?) cookies, and I got the idea that they just had to be gingerbread. I had a few recipes already, stashed in cookbooks or ripped from magazines, most of which were supposedly awesome, but I thought I’d check Twitter & see if anyone had any they really liked. Gabrielle from The Punk Housewife responded super quick with a vegan version from Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar by Isa Chandra Moskowitz & Terry Hope Romero.

Now, I’m not vegan. I’ve made awesome vegan cupcakes before, and even made a dip entirely with vegan-friendly cheese & other non-dairy products (which I can’t say I’d do again, really). I have no problems with vegans or anything, but I myself can’t do it. I have a hot, dirty love affair with butter & cheese… & I like it. So I don’t usually have things like soy milk on hand, & if I’m going to bake something I’m usually going to go “whole hog” so to speak. However, by sending me that recipe she gave me a sort of kick in the pants to use that recipe as inspiration & then build on it with a few non-vegan tweaks. Sure, I could’ve just made it by substituting the soy milk with regular, but where’s the fun in that?! Basically, it forced my hand to do my own little gingerbread cookie thang. And that’s just what I did. So thank you, Gabrielle! I totally de-veganized that puppy. I made up my own little gingerbread cookie recipe as I went along, and then what did I do with that dough? I cut out little trees, as my homage to the big 74-foot guy in Rockefeller Center who just so happened to be having a little party & “lighting” in his honor last week. Of course mine weren’t lit- but they were all iced up with some royal icing & sprinkles.

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Yeah, at this time of year EVERYONE makes cookies, especially gingerbread, & everyone seems to be in on the “fancy royal icing decorating” craze now as well. But I’m not aiming to be like everyone else, so hopefully mine are not only perfectly imperfect (more on that in a bit), but unique.

GINGERBREAD COOKIES CUPCAKE REHAB-STYLE

Ingredients:

• 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour, sifted
• ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ¼ teaspoon Kosher salt
• 2 ½ teaspoons ground ginger
• ½ teaspoon ground allspice
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 egg
• ½ cup molasses (I personally like Brer Rabbit full flavor, even though that & Grandma’s are now owned by the same company)

Directions:

1. Unroll a fairly large piece of plastic wrap & sprinkle lightly with flour. Set aside.
2. Cream the butter & sugar until light & fluffy. Mix flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, allspice & ginger together in a medium bowl; set aside.
3. Add egg & molasses one at a time to butter/sugar mixture, beating after each until combined.
4. Add flour mixture gradually, until a sticky dough forms. Form dough into a ball the best you can & place on plastic wrap, rolling it up tightly. Chill for anywhere from 1 hour to overnight (but no longer than that).
5. Remove dough from fridge & if too firm, let sit for 20-25 minutes before rolling out. The dough will be quite sticky, so have flour on hand. Preheat oven to 350° degrees F, meanwhile roll out onto lightly floured surface to about ¼ – ½” thick. Using cookie cutters, cut out shapes & using a thin spatula, carefully place onto cookie sheet lined with parchment paper (they will be very soft!!! BE CAREFUL HERE). Re-roll the scraps left over until you haven’t got enough left to use, then just lay the pieces on the sheet (they make for nice nibbles later while you’re decorating your cookies).
6. Bake for 7-8 minutes. Remove from oven & allow to cool on the sheet for 5 minutes, then move to a wire rack to cool completely.

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ROYAL ICING

Ingredients:

• 4 cups powdered sugar
• 4 tablespoons milk or water
• 4 tablespoons meringue powder

Directions:

1. Mix all ingredients together in a medium bowl. If too thick, add more liquid, if too thin, add more sugar. Add food coloring as desired. Ta-da!

There are tons of different recipes for royal icing- some include pasteurized egg whites, some using regular old egg whites, some meringue powder, some just cream of tartar. Any of them work just fine as long as they’re the right consistency for what you’re using it for; i.e. outlines, flooding, etc. This particular recipe can be halved, quartered, doubled, tripled, etc. to suit your needs.

So once these babies are 100% cool, you can decorate them all fancy-like using that royal icing there. I obviously made little trees, so I decorated them like trees (duh). You can make anything from snowflakes to bells to holly to whatever. And then just decorate them using the icing & top it with quins, jimmies, sanding sugar, dragees- anything! The icing part can be a bit tricky if you’re not used to it. I’ve been icing cookies with royal icing since my mom made gingerbread & sugar cookies when I was a kid & let me decorate them. Now, I’m far from an expert on this, my main decorating niche lies within the cupcake sphere, so I’ll leave the explanation of how to decorate/frost cookies like a pro to Marian at Sweetopia who really is the expert. She not only does it way better than I do, but her explanation of how to decorate the cookies is probably way better than I could write. Not that mine came out terrible… I mean they’re cute, fairly neat & most importantly they taste great. So they’re not perfect, they’re ‘perfectly irregular’; like the tree in the book. But thats totally cool with me. I’m not perfect either. What in the world is perfect, exactly?

Well, cookies & tea are pretty damn close.

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Amazing. There is nothing, NOTHING like a good cookie. I have to say I really, really loved these. I had like 8 of these the first night, with a cup of Licorice Spice tea. So after that one batch of trees were such a success, the next night I made some little Christmas wreaths. I used green royal icing this time, along with red tie-dyed looking marzipan for the bows, and some round pink sprinkles in different sizes that Lyns sent me back in October. I wasn’t 100% pleased with how these came out though. I think I like the trees better. Oh well. It was a cute concept, poor execution.

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It was almost disgusting how good they were. The dough is very soft. VERY. Which admittedly can make it very hard to work with. It will definitely be a tricky dough, but the flavor is so amazing & perfect, and the texture is also so amazing & perfect, it’s well worth it. Just right for a cold December night while looking at how pretty your tree looks under a blanket on the couch. The best chewy gingerbread cookie I’ve had in a while; not hard as a rock & teeth-breaking, not flavorless nor overpowering. They’re just the right amount of soft, sweet & spicy.

But at this time of year, you can’t keep ‘em all to yourself. Or rather you can… at the risk of being compared to Ebenezer Scrooge. I prefer to share the wealth (to an extent). I put them in a little box (originally a cupcake box, I just removed the insert) courtesy of Bake-A-Box that was perfect for showing them off. And how cute is that gingerbread ornament?

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As if you haven’t noticed, I’ve been including vintage postcards at the bottom of all my holiday posts. This one is just so pretty I had to share it, plus it’s eerily perfectly appropriate for this post; it’s a big, beautiful tree & the baubles on it look just like the ones on my cookie wreaths.

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So one day back in August I went to meet my friend Brianne for coffee at Starbucks, and while I was gone, my mother was busy sorting through some of my grandmother’s things. She opened a drawer and underneath a stack of miscellaneous papers, found a Family Circle magazine from December 1963. In almost perfect condition, mind you.

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As a matter of fact, some magazines I subscribe to currently arrive at my house in worse shape than this magazine is in. Of course, my mother texted me, knowing I’d love it & appreciate it more than most. I have no idea why my Nana saved it- there aren’t any pages folded over, or recipes circled. There aren’t any notations made and just flipping through it I didn’t see anything that I’d say was definitely something she’d have saved it for. But I’m certainly glad she did.

One of the first things I thought of when my mother gave it to me was “HOLY SHIT THIS IS AWESOME!” I love vintage everything & anything, from pretty much any time period (except the 1970′s- that was just a dreadful time, for clothes, music, everything). The color of the magazine was still so bright, it was almost as if it was printed this month. And the ads! I felt like I was getting a firsthand lesson in Don Draper‘s Mad Men school of advertising. Amazing.

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The second thing that came to mind (other than, “They spell cookie with a ‘y’?”) was that nothing in this world is in fact ever “new.” The funny thing is that so much of the crafts or recipes in this magazine are just slightly different versions of things that I’ve seen very recently in not just Family Circle, but Better Homes & Gardens and also in Martha Stewart‘s Living. Like those wreaths! Hello, Martha, I see you taking those ideas from 1963!

And finally the third thing I thought was, “I wonder if there are any interesting recipes?” I knew that I wouldn’t be making anything from it for a few months, so after looking through it I put it aside in a safe place and waited until Christmas was closer before taking it out again. And whaddaya know… that’s NOW! I unearthed it once again & like I said a few days ago, I was immensely inspired by the awesome retro-ness of it. I decided I’d make one of the cookie recipes, and because they’ve always given me shit… I settled on their version of thumbprint cookies, using my homemade strawberry jam, among others, as the fillings.

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So may I present to you the 1963 Family Circle version of ‘thumbprint cookies’… Ring-A-Lings!

RING-A-LINGS (from December 1963 Family Circle, adapted slightly by yours truly)

Ingredients:

• 1 cup sifted flour
• dash of salt
• ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
• 3 tablespoons powdered sugar
• 1 cup finely chopped pecans*
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• assorted jams & jellies of your liking

Directions:

1. Sift flour and salt onto waxed paper or foil.
2. Cream butter and sugar until well-blended in a medium sized bowl; stir in dry ingredients, half at a time, blending well to make a soft dough; stir in pecans and vanilla. Chill several hours, overnight, or until firm enough to handle.
3. Roll dough, a teaspoonful at a time, into marble-size balls between palms of hands; place 2″ inches apart on greased cookie sheets or cookie sheets covered in parchment.
4. Make a hollow in the center of each with thumb or end of a wooden spoon; fill with about ½ teaspoon jelly/jam. Bake in a slow oven (300°) for 20 minutes, or until they’re starting to turn very slightly golden but not totally. Remove from cookie sheets and cool completely on wire racks.

*I omitted this ingredient completely

To quote Family Circle:

Here’s another buttery-good cooky that can be made as much as two weeks ahead. To store, layer with waxed paper or transparent wrap between; cover.

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Side note: if you’re going to be making cookies, get cooling racks. Do not let your cookies cool on the pan! They will get mushy on the bottom & the texture will change. You need that air circulation to properly cool them. Of course, it’s recommended for cupcakes & cakes too, but I find it’s especially important with cookies.

Anyway re: the recipe, I changed a few things, one being the ingredient list included not unsalted butter but “butter or margarine.” So I changed it to what I thought was better baking-wise & flavor-wise. Also, they only mentioned a greased cookie sheet, but I prefer to use parchment myself, so I added that. I like my baking sheets to stay clean & my cookies to not stick, so parchment paper is my BFF. I’d also chill my dough for a bit next time before using, just so they kept a nicer shape. Last but not least… I’d make my indents or “thumbprints” bigger & deeper next time; the wooden spoon trick I included above was what I did, and while it was one I’d read in quite a few cookbooks, aesthetically, the cookie to filling ratio isn’t what I’d like. *big, long, dramatic sigh*

On that note, I will state here for the record that thumbprint cookies are not my jam (pun intended). I can’t quite get them to look as perfect as I’d like, ever. That’s what I meant by they give me shit. I can make the most complicated cake or cookie with no problem, but give me something simple & I can’t get it right. However in the interest of 1960′s baking research, I plodded on ahead & finished the batch instead of getting irritated & stopping. I also experimented with a variety of my homemade jams & jellies as filling; the best was the strawberry jam by far. Fig jam just melted into nothing, the cherry preserves pretty much absorbed itself into the cookie like a dark red stain leaving just a sad lump of cherry and the tea jelly stayed really nicely in shape, but the color was kinda meh. I didn’t even photograph them because they weren’t worth it. I didn’t want to open more jars unnecessarily but I was indeed curious about using my mint jelly & also perhaps making some lemon curd & using that. Next time! The strawberry jam & mint jelly would’ve looked so cute. And next time, I WILL make them look perfect. If it kills me. Not to get all Black Swan about it but seriously. It’s frustrating.

Although despite that- they were amazing! Everyone loved them. Of course I had to wrap ‘em up in my little jars to give away!

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I used an old Christmas stocking pin & some pretty sheer green ribbon & it’s amazing how just doing that can dress up any old jar & make it look so cute. Plus, using old pins or brooches is a great idea because long after the cookies are gone, the recipient can wear it. Or at least see it & think of you & your delicious cookies! Another awesome idea is hanging an ornament off of the jar, so they can use it on their tree after the jar is empty.

And on that note… let the holiday baking begin!

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Each year, this particular time of the season is my favorite. I love fall weather, when it’s cool but not too cold yet (well, usually, this year we had snow before Halloween), the leaves are changing (again, usually, not so much this year), and of course Halloween & Dia de Los Muertos. The Mexican Day of the Dead has always been a holiday I’ve appreciated. The concept of it is one I think more Americans should embrace.

Dia de los Muertos is a traditional Meso-American holiday dedicated to the ancestors; it honors both death and the cycle of life. In Mexico, neighbors gather in local cemeteries to share food, music, and fun with their extended community, both living and departed. The celebration acknowledges that we still have a relationship with our ancestors and loved ones that have passed away.

- source

This year it especially hits home for me. Halloween marked the beginning of a long season of “first holidays” without my grandmother. My grandmother loved Halloween, as did her mother before her. And ever since I was a child, my Nana told me about All Saints’ Day/All Souls’ Day. She told me about all the superstitions her Irish grandmother & mother told her as a child. And those two holidays have a big tie-in with Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead). The main difference being the Irish are very melancholy, sad and superstitious about it, whereas the Mexican view is much more celebratory: celebrating the dead AND the living, and reflecting but not being regretful. I love that! I’m not religious, not particularly spiritual, yet I find this to be a wonderful “holiday” that most Americans get totally wrong but could really, genuinely learn from. I also love the tradition of going to the cemetery & cleaning up & sprucing up the graves, decorating them & making them beautiful. Too many Americans forget about their deceased ancestors remains, and don’t bother to ever “visit” them… and trust me, the “Perpetual Care” you pay for ain’t so perpetual. Not only that, but opening yourself up to another culture & it’s traditions is so amazing. You learn so much, & not just about yourself.

Anyway, one of the most famous images of the Day of the Dead, aside from the sugar skull, is the Catrina, or the female skeleton. Popularized in 1913 by José Guadalupe Posada in a print/zinc etching he created of a figure he called La Calavera de la Catrinas or La Calavera Catrina.

© José Guadalupe Posada

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On that same note, one of my favorite artists, Sylvia Ji, paints a lot of Catrina-themed women. I just adore her work and I think they’re so beautiful. The Catrina or Calavera is another aspect of Dia de los Muertos that makes me love it. I’m so inspired by these, as well as the imagery of Dia de los Muertos.

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Last year I made tres leches coconut cupcakes for Dia de los Muertos with little hand-painted sugar skulls. I still think they were completely amazing & adorable… but I didn’t want to repeat the same thing this year; I hate reruns. I wanted to do something a bit different. My friend Xenia asked me for my grandmother’s photo to add to her altar which was chosen for Noche de Altares (A Night of Altars), an event in Santa Ana that takes place tomorrow, November 5th. I was flattered that she would think of me… but also it gave me the bug. So I thought it was a great idea to make my own! It was a very small & simple one, but I think it served the purpose. I used the traditional marigolds, but some chrysanthemums too. So here are some pictures of my altar, and once the event is over I’ll add the pictures of Xenia’s as well, or a link to her post about it.

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It’s just a small, simple altar, but I think it’s beautiful. Represented in the altar: my grandmother Agnes & grandfather Clarence, my great-great-grandmother Winifred Mackin, her daughter Mary & husband Thomas Rooney, my other great-great-grandmother Frances Hebrank & her husband Henry Sonnanburg, my great-uncle Pat, my great-aunt Winnie & her husband Sam Prybuski, my uncle Kenny, my great-aunt Eleanor Sonnanburg & her husband Frank Rooney, and my great-uncle Jack Sonnanburg; all deceased. I think it’s a gorgeous tribute. So in addition to creating my own altar this year, I also made Pan de Muerto. My grandma loved my baking, and my uncle Pat couldn’t eat a lot of sugar or carbs, being a diabetic, so as my offering to them this Day of the Dead, I thought this was appropriate on so many levels. Plus, it’s a day for celebrating life too, and what’s more celebratory than baking delicious bread & enjoying it!?

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PAN DE MUERTO (BREAD OF THE DEAD) (from Look What We Brought You From Mexico! by Phyllis Shalant)

Makes 8 to 10 servings

Ingredients:

• ¼ cup milk
• ¼ cup (half a stick) margarine or butter, cut into 8 pieces
• ¼ cup sugar
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 package active dry yeast
• ¼ cup very warm water
• 2 eggs
• 3 cups all-purpose flour, unsifted
• ½ teaspoon anise seed
• ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 2 teaspoons sugar

Directions:

1. Bring milk to boil and remove from heat. Stir in margarine or butter, ¼ cup sugar and salt.
2. In large bowl, mix yeast with warm water until dissolved and let stand 5 minutes. Add the milk mixture.
3. Separate the yolk and white of one egg. Add the yolk to the yeast mixture, but save the white for later. Now add flour to the yeast and second egg. Blend well until dough ball is formed.
4. Flour a pastry board or work surface very well and place the dough in center. Knead until smooth. Return to large bowl and cover with dish towel. Let rise in warm place for 90 minutes. Meanwhile, grease a baking sheet and preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
5. Knead dough again on floured surface. Now divide the dough into fourths and set one fourth aside. Roll the remaining 3 pieces into “ropes.”
6. On greased baking sheet, pinch 3 rope ends together and braid. Finish by pinching ends together on opposite side. Divide the remaining dough in half and form 2 “bones.” Cross and lay them atop braided loaf.
7. Cover bread with dish towel and let rise for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, in a bowl, mix anise seed, cinnamon and 2 teaspoons sugar together. In another bowl, beat egg white lightly.
8. When 30 minutes are up, brush top of bread with egg white and sprinkle with sugar mixture, except on cross bones. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes.

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I made mine a bit differently. I used about a ½ teaspoon anise extract in the actual dough, seeing as how I had no anise seed. I used 100% butter, not margarine. Also, obviously, I made my bread in a round shape and covered it with a rough-shaped cut-out dough skull & crossbones. Of course, as the bread bakes & rises the shapes don’t exactly stay together but I think that adds to it. You can also paint the dough or color parts of it using food coloring. The anise didn’t make it overwhelmingly “licorice-y” at all, so don’t be afraid to do it. It actually was so subtle, I could barely taste it. I put this bread in the ‘quick & easy’ category because I was surprised at how simple it was to make. I think it definitely makes things easier if you have a stand mixer with a dough hook attachment, however. The crumb of the bread was fantastic, too.

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I hope all my family had a wonderful Day of the Dead, wherever they are in the great beyond. Maybe they came to pay a visit & saw my altar for them.

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“As a well-spent day brings happy sleep, so a life well used brings happy death.” Leonardo da Vinci

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And so the Halloween season starts. SO EXCITING. By now, if you’re a regular reader, you know that Halloween is my most favoritest holiday. Last year, I put together a compilation post of some of my best Halloween ideas, but I did it before I posted any new ones, so be sure to check out the NEW compilation post and also Halloween category if you’re in search of ideas. Anyway, Halloween & me are BFF’s from way back. Seriously. I’m kinda obsessed with this holiday. It goes back further than me, though, it was my great-grandmother Rooney’s favorite holiday & my maternal grandparents loved it too, so in turn my mother always loved it. So growing up my house was always filled with different kinds of papier-mâché pumpkins & ghosts & goblins; many of which were vintage, handed down through the generations. As a matter of fact I see much of it in Martha’s Halloween magazines each year, labeled as ‘rare’ or ‘sought after.’ I have two pumpkins from the 1940′s that hang in my windows with lights in them that are probably worth a pretty penny. Not that I’d ever sell. As it is, my dumb ass just last week broke the last jadeite bowl of my grandmother’s that I had left in an act of stupidity.

So anywho, in the new 2011 Martha Stewart Halloween magazine (aka my 2nd bible, the first being this), stewed & honey-drenched figs are featured along with cheese as part of a Halloween menu. Ironically, the day I bought the magazine *cough*way back at the beginning of September because I’m insane*cough* I had also bought a delicious looking pound of fresh figs at my favorite market. Also equally ironic was that that evening, Punk Domestics posted a link on Facebook titled something along the lines of “Fig it up.” Hm. Were figs trying to send me messages? Are they trying to mess with my subconscious?

*cue theme from ‘Psycho’*

Not likely. It was just fig season, is all. But my story is far creepier. Either way, I got the message: time to work on those figs!

I hadn’t planned on preserving them, bit upon further inspection a few were ripening, and if you know figs you know that happens quite quickly. And once it does, it’s an express train to no-good town. So I decided to make some fig preserves, knowing full well I can’t leave well enough alone & that they would soon turn into something else…

The Common fig (Ficus carica) is widely known for its edible fruit throughout its natural range in the Mediterranean and Middle Eastern region, Iran, Pakistan, northern India, and also in other areas of the world with a similar climate, including Arkansas, Louisiana, California, Georgia, Oregon, Texas, South Carolina, and Washington in the United States, south-western British Columbia in Canada, Durango, Nuevo León and Coahuila in northeastern Mexico, as well as areas of Argentina, Australia, Chile, and South Africa.

Figs can also be found in continental climate with hot summer, as far north as Hungary and Moravia, and can be harvested up to four times per year. Thousands of cultivars, most named, have been developed or come into existence as human migration brought the fig to many places outside its natural range. It has been an important food crop for thousands of years, and was also thought to be highly beneficial in the diet.

Figs can be eaten fresh or dried, and used in jam-making. Most commercial production is in dried or otherwise processed forms, since the ripe fruit does not transport well, and once picked does not keep well.

-Wikipedia

It looks lovely in the sunlight…

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As it got closer to October, I thought figs were an appropriate thing to use around this time of year. Seeing as how not only are they plentiful & in season, but they also look a bit sinister in the form of jam or preserves. Blood red & seedy, it could be any kind of body part or bodily organ in a jar for your Halloween pleasure. As a matter of fact, even when not in the form of preserves & just sliced figs look a bit strange. Plus, it pairs well with cheese, so it’s great to have a small plate of sliced figs or jar of preserved figs open for your Halloween party, with some Humboldt Fog cheese (as Martha recommends) or Brie, or even Mascarpone cheese & crackers. Alternately, you could make haunting little fig cookies, such as I did. You know, fiendish figlets; cookies somewhat like Fig Newtons… but scarier. Muahahaha. They even resemble cut-up fingers, sort of, especially if you roll your dough strips a bit thinner. Very Halloweenie. And also kind of vampirical (is that a word?) when you think about it. You cut through the flesh of a fig, which if ripe is almost bruised like human flesh, and you get to the bloody middle. How creepy & morbid am I!

I used Black Mission figs, which are a very sweet variety, therefore I added some lemon juice to my preserves as to add a little balance (and to add some acidity for preservation, just to err on the side of caution). I also chose to add a smidgen of super-finely chopped crystallized ginger, and by smidgen I mean smidgen. I didn’t want it too overwhelming, just a slight hint of it. Another excellent option is anise, if you like that, or even lemon zest. But just the fig alone is divine, however, so don’t sweat it if you’re not into the additions. I used (and slightly altered) an incredibly easy Emeril Lagasse recipe that you don’t need to process in a water bath; you can just jar it and refrigerate it for immediate use. And if you’re using it just for the cookies or for a date/time not too far in the future, and you’re just going to refrigerate it, then you can do that.

Speaking of those cookies…

It’s also pretty lovely in artificial light, wrapped in dough.

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FIG & GINGER PRESERVES

Ingredients:

• 1 pound figs, washed
• 1 cup sugar
• ⅛ cup lemon juice
• ¼ – ½ teaspoon finely chopped crystallized ginger (or even more if you want a significantly more powerful ginger flavor)

Directions:

1. In a medium saucepan, mix figs and sugar together and cook on low heat, uncovered, about 30 minutes. After the figs break down slightly, about 10-15 minutes, add lemon juice and ginger, then stir.
2. If processing, pour hot preserves mixture into a hot, sterile 1-quart or 2 (1-pint) glass canning jars, filling jar to within ⅛-inch from top; wipe rim and seal jar with lid. Put jar in water-bath canner or on rack set in a deep kettle and cover with hot water by 1 to 2 inches. Bring to a gentle simmer (180° to 185° degrees), and process, covered, 5 minutes. Transfer jar to a rack using tongs and let cool completely. Store in a cool, dark place. If not processing, pour into a warmed jar and cool then refrigerate and/or use immediately.

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FIENDISH LITTLE FIG COOKIES (adapted from The Boastful Baker/Desserts by the Yard by Sherry Yard)

Ingredients:

• 1 stick unsalted butter, softened
• ½ cup sugar
• ½ teaspoon grated orange zest
• 1 large egg white
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
• 1 8-oz. jar fig & ginger preserves

Directions:

1. Cream together the butter, sugar and orange zest in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, for 2-3 minutes on medium speed. Scrape down the bowl and paddle. Add the egg white and vanilla and beat in. Scrape down the bowl and paddle again. Add the flour and beat on low speed until the dough comes together. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for a minimum of 2 hours, or overnight.
2. Place racks in middle and lower third of the oven and preheat the oven to 350° degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
3. On a floured surface, roll the dough out into two 6 x 8″ rectangles. Cut each into 4 equal strips. Spoon a line of filling down the center of each strip. Fold the dough over the filling and pinch the edges together. Place on the parchment-lined baking sheets, seam side down. Place baking sheets in the freezer for 10 minutes.
4. Using a serrated knife, slice each log on the diagonal into 10 cookies. Bake, rotating the baking sheets from top to bottom and front to back halfway through, for 12-15 minutes, until golden. Remove from the oven and allow to cool on a rack.

The more I look at them, the more they look eerie. Maybe it’s just me, but they remind me of a Halloween candle I used to have that was in the shape of a hand, coated in flesh colored wax, but then when you burned the fingers… the wax inside was red. These are some spooky little cookies, huh?

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This recipe can be adapted to use whatever kind of figs you have, actually almost any kind of jam, preserves or paste (i.e. guava) as well. The full recipe includes directions on making a fig filling instead of my preserves, if that floats your boat. I like mine for this time of year because they’re a redder color than the traditional fig filling, adding to the creepy vibe. You could also roll the dough into strips, fill it, fold it and them gently roll it thinner & cut out different shapes or just use the dough to make thumbprint style fig cookies. Use your imagination, that’s what this time of year is all about, isn’t it?

I sprinkled some orange sugar on each cookie before baking (black sugar would work well too!), and then when they were cooled, I stacked ‘em up and stuck in some cute little labels; similar to cupcake toppers I guess. I created them myself in Photoshop and have oh-so-kindly prepared & uploaded a .PDF file for your use, should you wish to use them for your own fiendish fig cookies. All I ask is that if you post them on your website or blog, please give credit where it’s due. If you have any questions or trouble with the PDF & you desperately want to use it, e-mail me & I’ll see if I can help you out.

Otherwise… enjoy eating your fiendish fig cookies. Eat them before they eat you, or serve them to your favorite vampire.

Image courtesy of the wonderful HBO

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*ahem* Oh, wow, how did that picture get there? Ha. Okay, last week in my Halloween compilation post, I mentioned I’d be sharing Halloween legends & their Celtic origins in detail this year. And so, here’s a scary little vampire tale for you to kick things off, in keeping with the season:

Did you ever hear of the Irish Vampire “Dearg Due”? No, not the infamous Dracula who was created by an Irishman named Bram Stoker but a true Irish Vampire that haunts central Ireland. The very name, Dearg-due means “red blood sucker” in Irish. She is a fiend that seduces men with her beauty and then sucks them dry of their blood.

Ancient Celtic folklore speaks of an Irish girl well known through the Irish countryside for her great beauty. To her father’s fierce dismay she fell helplessly in love with a poor local peasant. Her father condemned their love and arrange for her to marry a wealthy business man who was anything but nice to her. So angry with her father and distraught by her plight she committed suicide.

Legend said she was laid to rest near Strongbow’s Tree in Waterford. On one cold, windy Irish night she rose from her shallow grave. She then hunted her domineering father and abusive husband and sought her vengeance by sucking their bodies dry of blood until they took their last breathe and died.

From such evil acts she will eternally be known as Dearg-due. The Red Blood Sucker Vampire who is forever dammed to rise once a year and to use her beauty to lure men to their deaths.

-source The Irish Jewelry Company

Maybe all this is because that the day I was born, and throughout her labor with me, my mother had been watching Princess Diana‘s marriage to Prince Charles. Maybe it’s my love of all things historical. Maybe it’s because I like to bake, and will use any excuse to do so. Who knows? At any rate, I decided to make scones.

The scone is a small British quick bread of Scottish origin. Scones are especially popular in the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Ireland, but are also eaten in many other countries. They are usually made of wheat, barley or oatmeal, with baking powder as a leavening agent. The scone is a basic component of the cream tea or Devonshire tea.

The original scone was round and flat, usually the size of a medium size plate. It was made with unleavened oats and baked on a griddle (or girdle, in Scots), then cut into triangle-like quadrants for serving. Today, many would call the large round cake a bannock, and call the quadrants scones. In Scotland, the words are often used interchangeably.^[5]

When baking powder became available to the masses, scones began to be the oven-baked, well-leavened items we know today.^[6] Modern scones are widely available in British bakeries, grocery stores, and supermarkets. A 2005 market report estimated the UK scone market to be worth £64m, showing a 9% increase over the previous five years. The increase is partly due to an increasing consumer preference for impulse and convenience foods.^[7]

Scones sold commercially are usually round in shape, although some brands are hexagonal as this shape may be tessellated for space-efficiency. When prepared at home, they take various shapes including triangles, rounds and squares.^[8][9] The baking of scones at home is often closely tied to heritage baking. They tend to be made from family recipes rather than recipe books, since it is often a family member who holds the “best” and most-treasured recipe.^[10]

So in addition to my many other scone recipes, both savory and sweet, here is one more. A recipe for simple scones by USA WEEKEND columnist Pam Anderson that can be altered to feature whatever you like; cranberries, raisins, currants, chocolate chips, white chocolate, etc. and by adding orange or lemon zest. You could probably even just have them plain, with a little clotted cream, if you’re into that kind of kinky stuff.

I used chocolate chunks as opposed to chips. Mmm.

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SIMPLE SCONE RECIPE

As you may be, I was a bit unsure as to what levain was exactly.

Levain is a bread leavening agent used traditionally in France and today by artisan bakeries and hobbyists around the world. It produces breads with rich aroma, pleasant structure and excellent keeping properties. Levain is a type of pre-ferment which is made in two fermentation steps from an active sourdough-starter culture, flour and water. It yields a rather dry and porous dough which may be kept refrigerated for up to a week.

A primary-culture levain may be prepared from a wheat-rye dough which takes about 54 hours at 27°C (81°F) to build to a pH range of 4.4-4.6.^[1] If its temperature drops below 10°C (50°F) it affects the culture or natural flora and leads to the loss of a particular aroma in the baked bread.^[2]

The levain is added to the bread dough, normally replacing the baker’s yeast. In order to make 4 lb (2 kg) of levain bread dough some 1 lb (500 g) of levain is needed.

Now, technically, since this recipe uses yeast, it’s not a traditional levain bread. But whatever, who cares. Apparently, if you leave out the yeast, it will still rise. I went with the Cookbook Chronicles on this one, and used it.

Levain makes use of a pre-ferment known as a “starter”, also known as a biga or poolish.

• Biga and poolish are terms used in Italian and French baking, respectively, for sponges made with domestic baker’s yeast. Poolish is a fairly wet sponge (typically made with a one-part-flour-to-one-part-water ratio by weight), while biga is usually drier.^[4] Bigas can be held longer at their peak than wetter sponges,^[5] while a poolish is one known technique to increase a dough’s extensibility.^[6]
• Old dough (pâte fermentée) may be made with yeast or sourdough cultures, and essentially consists of a piece of dough reserved from a previous batch, with more flour and water added to feed the remaining flora. Because this is a piece of old dough, it has the typical ingredient of salt to distinguish it from other pre-ferments.^[7]
• Sourdough starter is likely the oldest, being reliant on organisms present in the grain and local environment. These starters generally have fairly complex microbiological makeups, most notably including wild yeasts, lactobacillus, and acetobacteria.^[8][9] They are often maintained over long periods of time. The Boudin Bakery in San Francisco for example, has used the same starter dough for over 150 years. A roughly synonymous term in French baking is levain.
• Mother dough often refers to a sourdough, and in this context the term starter often refers to all or a piece of mother dough;^[10] however, mother dough may also refer to a yeast pre-ferment;^[11] so the process^[12] used in relation to the ingredients and fermentation times is important to understanding yeast versus sourdough methods. A roughly synonymous term used in French baking is Chef.^[13]

Fermentation starters (called simply starters within the corresponding context) are preparations to assist the beginning of the fermentation process in preparation of various foods and fermented drinks. A starter culture is a microbiological culture which actually performs fermentation. These starters usually consist of a cultivation medium, such as grains, seeds, or nutrient liquids that have been well colonized by the microorganisms used for the fermentation.

In descriptions of national cuisines, fermentation starters may be referred to by their national names:

• Qū (simplified: 曲; traditional: 麴, also romanized as chu) (China)
• Nuruk or Nulook < HS code: 2102.20.2000 > (누룩), meju or Mae-joo < HS code: 2103.90.9040 > or Mae-zu (메주) (Korea)
• Koji (麹) (Japan)
• Ragi (Southeast Asia)
• Bakhar, ranu, marchaar (murcha) (India)
• Bubod (Philippines)
• Loopang (look pang Thai: ลูกแป้ง) (Thailand)
• Levain (France)
• Bread zakvaska (закваска, sourdough) (Russia, Ukraine)
• Opara (опара), (Russia), a starter based on yeast

These starters are formed using a specific cultivation medium and a specific mix of fungal and bacterial strains.^[1][2]

Typical microorganisms used in starters include various bacteria and fungi (yeasts and molds): Rhizopus, Aspergillus, Mucor, Amylomyces, Endomycopsis, Saccharomyces, Hansenula anomala, Lactobacillus, Acetobacter, etc. Various national cultures have various active ingredients in starters, and often involve mixed microflora.^[1]

Industrial starters include various enzymes, in addition to microflora.^[1]

I may be a geek, but this stuff fascinates me.

But let me be honest. I had made my starter at the beginning of the week, and by the time it was ready to use my uncle had passed away. I actually made this bread the day after my uncle was buried, on a cold, windy, rainy day… because I felt like I needed to do something, and I had to make sure the starter didn’t deplete by taking out a cup anyway. So basically, I felt like it was either throw away the one cup of starter, or use it, and I hated to throw it away. But in the end, I’m really glad I did make it, because it relaxed me and it was delicious. And I needed something warm and delicious and comforting. It turned out to be the best bread I’ve ever made. And it was also basically my dinner that night.

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SOURDOUGH STARTER

Ingredients:

• 3 packages active dry yeast
• 1 cup warm water ( 105-115 degrees F)

Starter feed:

• ¾ cup sugar
• 3 tablespoons instant potatoes
• 1 cup warm water (again, 105-115 degrees F)

Directions:

1. To make the starter, mix the yeast and warm water in a small bowl. Put into a plastic container, seal, and refrigerate for 3-5 days.
2. To make the starter feed, combine the sugar, potatoes, and water in a small bowl and stir into the starter. Cover loosely (to allow some of the pressure to escape as the gases build) and let stand at room temperature for 5-12 hours. The mixture will be bubbly.
3. When ready, take out 1 cup to make bread and loosely cover the starter and return to the refrigerator. Feed again after 3-5 days. If not making bread after feeding the starter, take out 1 cup and discard it to avoid depleting the starter. NOTE: do not put the lid on tight.

HOMEMADE LEVAIN (from Cookbook Chronicles)

yields 1 large loaf

Ingredients:

• 1 cup starter (see above)
• ¾ cups water
• 1 tsp fresh yeast
• 1 tsp sugar (optional)
• 2 ½ cups bread flour
• 1 ¼ tsp kosher salt
• 1 tbsp olive oil for greasing the bowl

Directions:

1. In a large mixing bowl, stir together the starter, water, yeast, sugar (if using), and bread flour. Transfer the mixture to the bowl of a stand mixer. Using the dough hook attachment on medium speed, beat the dough for 7-8 minutes until elastic. Beat in the salt. At this point, the dough should clear the sides and bottom of the bowl, and climb up the hook. It should not be too sticky when you press it with your finger, and should pass the windowpane test when stretched.
2. Transfer the dough to a bowl lightly oiled with 1 tbsp olive oil. Rub the olive oil over the entire surface. Cover the bowl with a towel, and allow it to proof until doubled. (This will take anywhere from a few hours to overnight, depending on how warm your house is.)
3. When your dough has doubled, punch it down. Lift the dough, and stretch lightly with your fingers–you can hold it up on one side in the air and just let gravity stretch the dough for you. Fold the dough in half. Flatten and shape the dough into a rough rectangular shape, then roll it up like a cinnamon roll. Tuck the ends of the dough neatly underneath and use your fingers to pinch the seam close. Your dough should now resemble a fat baguette.
4. Generously flour a baking sheet with ¼ cup of flour. Transfer the log of dough on top of the flour, then sprinkle some of the flour over the entire surface of the dough.
5. Cover with a towel, and allow the dough to rise for 2-3 hours. At this point, the dough should be nicely puffed but not quite doubled in size. Spritz the top lightly with water.
6. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Place a pan of water on the bottom rack. (If using baking stone, let it warm up in the oven.)
7. Bake the bread directly on the baking sheet for about 50 minutes, (Or if using, transfer the dough to a baking stone.)  After 50 minutes, the crust should be browned and crisp. When you pick up the loaf, give it a light thump on the bottom. It should sound hollow.
8. Allow the bread to cool before slicing.

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Alright, so, the starter was easy enough. So was the bread dough itself. I was a bit worried about the rising, and the quality, only because as rebellious and devil-may-care as I can be I’m also a huge worry wart when it comes to my baked goods. I stress over everything and have a terrible habit of peeking in the oven while things are baking (DON’T TRY THIS AT HOME! DOING THAT WILL CHANGE THE TEMPERATURE OF THE OVEN AND YOUR CUPCAKES & CAKES WILL BLOW UP!! … kidding… but really you should do as I say not as I do). But all my worrying was for nothing, because the only words I can use to describe this bread are ‘fucking‘ & ‘amazing.’ Seriously. SO WORTH MAKING. Easy, and yes, time-consuming (due to the starter, mainly) but so worth it. The dough is incredibly easy to maneuver, isn’t too sticky or too stiff at all. The recipe has minimal ingredients and as long as you have a stand mixer with a dough hook, you’re in business. Again, I would not recommend using a hand mixer to make bread. Nuh-uh. Bad idea.

I ate mine with big hunks of Aurrichio provolone cheese. But it’s awesome for sandwiches, dipping in sauces, and with soup as well. Hell you could use it to make grilled cheese too if you wanted. Whatever you do with it, it’s fucking fantastic. I might have to make the time to make this bread more often. And around this time of year, how awesome is it to bust out with some homemade sourdough bread at Sunday dinner? Pretty awesome. Which is just what I did- I made it again for Easter… this time, with some “slashes” on top (I also left it in for a tad longer to get a browner, crisper crust).

Look at her, all ready to beat someone with her whisk! Or make cupcakes, whatever!

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If you want cuteness like that, and by cuteness I mean the bib not the baby- I don’t think John is willing to share her… then you can go to my Cupcake Rehab webstore and buy stuff. I have an assload of things for sale from hoodies to bibs (duh) to coffee mugs to dog bowls! Seriously. Buy some stuff, take pictures, and send me the pics. I’ll add ‘em to the C.R.my page & you’ll be (quasi-) famous. But I can’t promise it’ll make you as cute as Angelina.

Back to the eats. What’s fair is fair, and while it’s Easter time for Christians, it’s Passover for the Jewish people. Each holiday & religion hold to their own traditional foods & desserts, as do the specific ethnicities and races within each religion, just as they hold to the traditions of the religions themselves. I myself am neither Christian nor Jew, but I certainly don’t discriminate against delicious food items. I embrace them all!

Hamentashen is more traditional around this time of year, but honestly, since when have I been traditional? Actually that’s not true, I’m very old-fashioned. At any rate, I don’t happen to like hamentashen at all, so rugelach it is!

Rugelach is one of my absolute favorite “cookies.” I like the chocolate ones, and I like the filling to have a touch of cinnamon. I also like the cinnamon sugar. I’m not into the fruit filled version. I used to love the ones from the 2nd Avenue Deli… Jay used to work right near it, but that was before the two of us got together (unfortunately). And back when my dad was still working, he’d randomly pick up a bunch in a 2nd Avenue Deli tin and I’d eat all the chocolate. Once he got them as a gift for someone, and I finagled it open, ate two chocolate ones and resealed it. Shh, don’t tell.

Rugelach aren’t difficult to make. It’s similar to rolling a croissant, or a chocolate croissant. This particular dough is made with cream cheese, although there are many different varieties.

Rugelach (Yiddish: רוגעלך) (other spellings: rugelakh, rugulach, rugalach, ruggalach, rogelach (all plural), rugalah, rugala (singular)) is a Jewish pastry of Ashkenazic origin.

Traditional rugelach are made in the form of a crescent by rolling a triangle of dough around a filling.^[1][2] Some sources state that the rugelach and the French croissant share a common Viennese ancestor, crescent-shaped pastries commemorating the lifting of the Turkish siege in 1793^[3] (this could be a reference to the Battle of Vienna in 1683). This appears to be an urban legend however, as both the rugelach and its supposed ancestor (the Kipfel or Kipferl) pre-date the Early Modern era, and the croissant in its modern form did not originate earlier than the 19th century (see viennoiserie).

An alternative form is constructed much like a strudel or nut roll, but unlike those, the rolled dough and filling is cut into slices before baking.^[4]

The name is Yiddish, the Jewish language of eastern Europe. The ach ending (ך) indicates plural, while the el (ל) can be a diminutive, as, for example, shtetlekh (שטעטלעך, villages) is the plural of shtetl (שטעטל, village), the diminutive of shtot (שטאָט, town). In this case, the root means something like “twist” so the translation would be “little twists,” a reference to the shape of this cookie.^[3] In this context, note that rog (ראָג) means corner in Yiddish,^[5] so it is possible that a more accurate translation would be “little corners.”

Alternatively, some assert that the root is rugel, meaning royal, possibly a reference to the taste.^[6] This explanation is in conflict with Yiddish usage, where the word keniglich (קעניגליךּ) is the dominant word meaning royal.^[7]

Finally, in modern Hebrew, they are known as roglìt (רוֹגְלִית), a postbiblical Hebrew word meaning “trailing vines”.^[8] The Yiddish word ruglach probably came first. The modern Hebrew is probably a neologism, chosen for its similarity to the Yiddish and its descriptive meaning.

Rugelach can be made with sour cream or cream cheese^[1][2][3] doughs, but there are also pareve variants with no dairy ingredients,^[9] so that it can be eaten with or after a meat meal and still be kosher. Cream cheese doughs are the most recent, probably American innovations, while yeast leavened^[9][10] and sour cream doughs^[11][12] are much older.

The different fillings can include raisins, walnuts, cinnamon, chocolate, marzipan, poppy seed, or fruit preserves which are rolled up inside.

I’ve been wanting to make rugelach for a long time. I sort of combined 4 or 5 recipes I found to make one of my own. I think it turned out fantastic! Except one word of advice: if you don’t have a stand mixer, this dough is not going to happen for you. It’s so thick that it slowed Lola down and she made all kinds of “Rrrrrr” noises. But she can handle it. And there’s no way you can mix it by hand, you need to cream the butter and cream cheese together and even using a hand mixer isn’t gonna work out well for that. You know how cream cheese is… many a mixer has broken under it’s wrath.

Chocolate rugelach

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CHOCOLATE RUGELACH

Ingredients:

• 8 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
• 2 sticks (½ pound) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
• ¼ tsp. salt
• ½ vanilla extract
• ¼ cup and 2 tablespoons sugar, divided
• 1 tablespoon cocoa powder
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon
• ½ cup melted bittersweet chocolate, cooled but still “liquidy”
• 1 egg, beaten

Directions:

1. Beat softened butter and cream cheese in large bowl on medium speed of mixer until blended and smooth. Gradually add flour and ¼ cup sugar and vanilla, beating on low speed until well blended. Divide dough into 3 equal parts; wrap individually in plastic wrap. Refrigerate anywhere from 1 to 4 hours or until firm enough to roll.
2. Heat oven to 375°F. On lightly floured surface, roll one piece of dough into 9-inch circle (keep remaining dough in refrigerator). Cut circle into 12 wedges. Place about 1 teaspoon melted chocolate at wide end of each wedge; spread about three-fourths of the way up wedge. Stir together 2 tablespoons sugar, cinnamon and cocoa powder; sprinkle over melted chocolate, sprinkle over melted chocolate. Starting at wide end, roll toward the point. Place cookies, point sides down, about 1 inch apart on a sheet of parchment paper covering an ungreased cookie sheet. Brush with beaten egg.
3. Bake 15 to 20 minutes or until golden. Remove from cookie sheet to wire rack. Cool completely. Repeat procedure with remaining dough and filling.

Cinnamon sugar rugelach

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The dough I made is a sweet dough, if you’d like a not-sweet version just remove the sugar and vanilla. If you’d like to add a little something extra, sprinkle with some sugar after brushing the dough with the beaten egg. Other options for fillings are apricot (1 cup apricot preserves plus ¾ cup chopped walnuts), cinnamon sugar (4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, ½ cup sugar, 2 teaspoons cinnamon) or raspberry-raisin (1 cup of raspberry jam and ½ cup raisins).  Or you can be totally rebellious and come up with your own filling!

(Psst… wanna know a sweet shortcut to the chocolate filling? Bosco chocolate syrup plus a sprinkling of cinnamon. Trust me, it works and it’s delicious. Just don’t use too much syrup, you’ll end up with a gooey mess.)

To me, they’re perfectly sweet, not too sweet, plus the cream cheese adds a little something special. I devoured way more  in one sitting than I should’ve. A little basket of these is a perfect hostess gift.

In Sicily, where St. Joseph is regarded by many as their Patron Saint, and many Italian-American communities, thanks are given to St. Joseph (“San Giuseppe” in Italian) for preventing a famine in Sicily during the Middle Ages. According to legend, there was a severe drought at the time, and the people prayed for their patron saint to bring them rain. They promised that if he answered their prayers, they would prepare a large feast to honor him. The rain did come, and the people of Sicily prepared a large banquet for their patron saint. The fava bean was the crop which saved the population from starvation and is a traditional part of St. Joseph’s Day altars and traditions. Giving food to the needy is a St. Joseph’s Day custom. In some communities it is traditional to wear red clothing and eat a Sicilian pastry known as a zeppola on St. Joseph’s Day.^[6][7] Sweets are popular because St. Joseph is the patron saint of pastry chefs.^[8]

Upon a typical St. Joseph’s Day altar, people place flowers, limes, candles, wine, fava beans, specially prepared cakes, breads, and cookies (as well as other meatless dishes), and zeppole. Foods are traditionally served containing bread crumbs to represent saw dust since St. Joseph was a carpenter. Because the feast occurs during Lent, traditionally no meat was allowed on the celebration table. The altar usually has three tiers, to represent the trinity.^[7][9]

Some villages like Belmonte Mezzagno used to burn wood and logs in squares on the day before St.Joseph, as thanksgiving to the Saint. This is called “A Vampa di San Giuseppe” (the Saint Joseph’s bonfire).^[7]

In Italy March 19 is also Father’s Day.

Saint Joseph’s Day is also celebrated in other American communities with high proportions of Italians such as New York City; Kansas City, MO; Buffalo; Chicago;^[8][10] Gloucester, Mass.; and Providence, Rhode Island, where observance (which takes place just after Saint Patrick’s Day) often is expressed through “the wearing of the red”, i.e., wearing red clothing or accessories similar to the wearing of green on Saint Patrick’s Day. The observance of St Joseph’s Day (and wearing of red) by Italian Americans communities which are also home to significant Irish American communities can take on the overtone of a challenge by the Italian Americans to the power and relevance of those Irish communities and Saint Patrick’s Day.^[11]

Yeah, I’m fairly sure that photo I created there will offend someone. Eh. I do what I can. I never said this website was endorsed by the Vatican.

Anyway I’m far from religious (obviously), but I do remember from my Catholic high school/junior high school days that St. Joseph’s Day is sort of the equivalent of St. Patricks’ Day, except without the green beer & excessive drinking, but with the addition of pastries. Which I can totally get down with. I also remember my Italian friends sort of complaining that St. Joe’s Day was overlooked in favor of the *cough*more fun*cough* St. Patrick’s Day. Although let’s not forget that St. Patrick was Anglo-Roman, which is technically “Italian”… since you could say the Romans were the first Italians. But at any rate, for these purposes, let’s go with the general populations idea of polarizing the “holidays”, causing ethnic divides and of course, slander. I do love to start trouble, you know. *wink*

Anyway in turn, since fair is fair, I figured one saint deserves as much as another. Since I did a lot for good ol’ St. Patty, I decided to make something for ol’ St. Joe using my absolute favorite Italian import- Nutella. And what did I decide to make with Nutella? Homemade pop-tarts, courtesy of Smitten Kitchen!

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I’m not sure if Pop-Tarts are a universal concept, so I’ll do a quick explanation courtesy of Wikipedia:

Pop-Tarts is a brand of rectangular, pre-baked toaster pastries made by the Kellogg Company. Pop-Tarts have a sugary filling sealed inside two layers of rectangular, thin pastry crust. Some varieties are frosted. Although sold pre-cooked, they are designed to be warmed inside a toaster. They are usually sold in pairs inside foil packages, and do not require refrigeration.

Popular flavors include chocolate, apple, frosted blueberry, frosted strawberry, frosted brown sugar cinnamon, cherry, and s’mores.

Pop-Tarts are Kellogg’s most popular brand to date in the United States, with millions of Pop-Tarts sold each year.^[1] They are distributed mainly in the United States, but also in Canada, the United Kingdom and Ireland. Pop-Tarts were discontinued in Australia in 2005 and are now found only in import stores.^[2]

Before I get all crazy-preachy about making this recipe I will state: I do like Pop-Tarts®. I do. The s’mores kind are my favorite, and admittedly, I’ve only ever had those or the chocolate, but I can say that for what they are they’re good. And heated up, they’re better. I’m not 100% anti this stuff. But that said, who would (or could) turn down a homemade “toaster pastry” with a flaky, buttery, pastry crust if they had the choice? Probably not many. However I just needed to say that I do enjoy those store-bought, preservative-filled, chemical-laden little boxes of “pastry.” What can I say? I’m a child of the ’80′s. Crucify me… (sorry, bad joke).

HOMEMADE POP-TART CRUST

Yield: 9 pop-tarts

Ingredients:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks, or 8 ounces) unsalted butter, cold and cubed
• 1 egg
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 1 egg, lightly beaten (to brush on pastry)

Directions:

1. To make the crust, whisk together the flour, sugar, and salt. Using your fingers or a pastry blender, work in the butter until it is the size of peas and the mixture holds together when you squeeze it. Whisk together the egg and milk and add to the dough. Mix together with a fork until everything is evenly moistened. Knead briefly on a floured surface, if necessary, until the dough comes together.
2. Divide the dough in half. (At this point you can wrap each in plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 2 days.) If you refrigerate the dough, let it come to room temperature for about 15 minutes before rolling out. Roll out one piece of dough to about 1/8-inch thick, in a 9½ by 12½ rectangle. Using a sharp knife, pastry wheel or bench scraper, trim the rectangle to 9×12 inches. Cut the sheet of dough into nine 3×4 rectangles. Using a spatula, transfer the rectangles to a baking sheet that has been lined with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Brush the lightly beaten egg on each of the rectangles. Spoon a tablespoon of filling into the center of each rectangle, leaving a ½-inch of space around the edges.
3. Roll out and cut the second piece of dough in the exact same manner as you did the first. One at a time, place a second rectangle of dough on top of the nine assembled ones. Using your fingers, press around the seams of the dough to make sure they are sealed. Press the tines of a fork around the edges of the rectangles. Prick the tops of the rectangles in multiple spots to allow steam to escape.
4. Refrigerate the pan with the pastries (you don’t need to cover them) for about 30 minutes. In the meantime, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until lightly browned. Cool slightly before serving. Store pastries in an airtight container at room temperature for up to one week.

I made my dough the afternoon before, divided it and let it chill until the next afternoon (because I ended up being to tired to make them once evening came). I found that to be the best bet, as the dough was totally chilled and easy to work with and this way I didn’t get impatient and take it out too soon. As far as the filling, like I said, I used straight Nutella. But if you go to the Smitten Kitchen, you’ll find the ingredients for strawberry jam filling and cinnamon/brown sugar filling. And anything is possible! Marshmallow Fluff would be awesome mixed with Nutella /chocolate ganache. I made mine two different sizes, some small and some regular pop-tart size. I felt like for some people the full size ones would be too much.

I can’t tell you how much of a HUGE hit these were. This was my second time making them, the first time being last month, and they were so enjoyed that I decided to do a repeat performance. I still haven’t gone past the Nutella filling, mainly because I don’t like fruit fillings and the Nutella is just so easy… but when the weather gets warmer I think a few fruit ones will have to be made for family; I know my father & mother are big jam people. And by that I mean fruit jam, not musical jams. Although they like those too… who doesn’t like a good, loud jam?

Also, the King Arthur Flour website’s version of these little “toaster pastries” has a great idea for those leftover dough scraps:

Sprinkle the dough trimmings with cinnamon-sugar; these have nothing to do with your toaster pastries, but it’s a shame to discard them, and they make a wonderful snack. While the tarts are chilling, bake these trimmings for 13 to 15 minutes, till they’re golden brown.

At this point there’s nothing left to say except: DO IT. I’m battling a wicked nasty flu and they even made me feel (slightly) better. DO IT. NOW. And if you’re a Nutella freak like I am, I’ve got other recipes using it you might wanna take a peek at.

Don’t you just love bread? I certainly love bread. All kinds of bread. Soft white bread, dense 9-grain bread, whole wheat bread, sandwich bread, artisan bread, ciabatta bread, sourdough bread… you get the idea. I’d never go on a diet where bread was a no-no. Actually, I’d never go on a diet, period. Thankfully I’m blessed with good enough genes so I can fit into my jeans. Hah. Lately I’ve been on sort of a carb-kick, well actually a bread-kick, and the desire to make my own was upped to the highest levels possible. Especially after making some garlic knots. I have been craving homemade bread with salty, creamy butter for ages now. I just needed to get off my lazy ass and make some, which is where this post comes in.

Abby’s Sweets has a recipe for French bread from Taste of the South magazine and just looking at her pictures of it sold me. It sounded very easy, the rising times didn’t seem incomprehensible, and I figured it was worth a shot. And it really was easy. I made it and when I was finished I actually looked at the clock and was amazed; it hadn’t taken much time at all. I was sitting there, eating warm slices of delicious bread before I knew it. Therefore, I put it in the ‘quick & easy’ category, although I’m aware that those words to some people imply opening a can or defrosting something in the microwave. Those people should either close this page right now, or attempt to make something more complex than a Hungry Man dinner. YOU CAN DO IT. I promise. This bread does not involve a starter and it comes together really easily.

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Okay so, I love making breads, but the thing that I hate is the kneading. Sure, I could just leave it in the mixture & have the dough hook mimic the kneading, but I think hand-kneading really makes a difference, so I always try to do it. But boy, did I get a workout with this one! 10 minutes of kneading this bread and my muscles rivaled Popeye‘s, without the benefit of spinach. It really is a stiff dough. I used 5 cups of flour and it was more than enough, but it’s one of those things, you have to play it by ear. Or uh, by hand? Add more flour as needed, if the dough is sticky, add more. If it’s not, then don’t.

Lola wanted some face-time again, and I can’t blame her. She did all the heavy-lifting & hard work. All I did was buy the ingredients, measure them out, knead the dough, grease the bowl, divide the dough, shape the loaves, bake them… hey, wait a minute. I did most of the work! Sneaky mixers, tryin’a take all the credit. She’s still beautiful though, so here she is. Love her. Appreciate her. Be jealous of her. My mixer can kick your mixer’s ass any day, and not get the slightest chip in her enamel.

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(Honestly, if there’s anyone out there reading this who doesn’t have one of these & bakes a lot or is contemplating getting one but is on the fence- stop whatever you’re doing & just order one. It will change your fucking life. BUY ONE. NOW. Go. I’ll wait for you… *lengthy pause* Done? Good. You won’t be disappointed.)

FRENCH BREAD (from Abby’s Sweets/Taste of the South)

Le pain ingredients:

• 2 cups warm water
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 (.25 oz) package active-rise yeast
• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 5 ½ -6 cups bread flour, divided
• ¼ cup cornmeal

Le pain directions:

1. In a medium bowl, combine warm water, sugar and yeast. Let stand until foamy, approximately 10 minutes.
2. In the bowl of a large stand mixer, combine yeast mixture, 1 tablespoon oil, salt and 3 cups flour. Using the dough hook attachment, beat for 2-3 minutes, scraping sides of bowl as needed. Stir in enough of remaining flour to make a stiff dough. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead until smooth, approximately 1o minutes.
3. Grease a large bowl with remaining 2 tablespoons oil. Place dough in bowl, turning dough to coat all sides. Cover, and let rise in a warm place, free from drafts, until doubled in size. About 1 ½ hours.
4. Punch dough down, and divide in half. Shape dough into 2 (approx. 17″ x 3″ inch) loaves.
5. Spray 2 baking sheets with nonstick cooking spray. Sprinkle evenly with cornmeal. Place each loaf on a prepared baking sheet. Make 4 cuts diagonally across the top of each loaf. Cover, and let rise in a warm place, free from drafts, until doubled in size, about 30 minutes.
6. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
7. Bake until crispy and golden brown, about 30 minutes.

Just a side note: Only use stainless steel, Pyrex or plastic bowl for the dough. Don’t use aluminum or any other reactive metal- it’ll mess with the rising. It’s also important to use bread flour, or a flour with a high-gluten content. That gives the bread it’s heft, and it has a higher protein content which results in the perfect texture. You could use all-purpose, and get a decent bread out of it, it just won’t be as chewy or have the right feel to it. I’d just use the bread flour if I were you. And if you do not have a KitchenAid stand mixer, or a stand mixer at all, especially one without a dough hook… I don’t recommend using a hand mixer. Even if it has a dough hook attachment. You’ll end up with a burned-out motor and a doughy mess. You’re better off using your hands if anything. But like I said- get a stand mixer!

I don’t like measuring, and I certainly don’t like being told how big or small to make my bread. So when it came to shaping them into loaves, I just winged it. No idea how long or wide they were. They were not 17″ though. I made mine more misshapen/rustic, and slightly shorter & wider. It’s an absolutely gorgeous bread when finished baking; it would make a beautiful grilled cheese (especially with this recipe), an amazing bruschetta, and a perfect hearty sandwich bread.

However… like I said, it’s fantastic alone with just butter.

Speaking of love, I love garlic knots. I can’t remember a time when I didn’t, I just always remember having them with a pizza whenever it was delivered (and sometimes when just eating it by the slice). Back from the time I was a wee little one, I remember getting delivery Italian food from the place that used to be right near the supermarket we went to, we’d either get a pizza & knots or some dinners (I’d always get baked ziti) and… garlic knots! Those knots were not the best I’ve ever had, by far, but simply sentimentally good. On the other hand, there were a few places I went in High School that had hard-as-hockey-pucks, dry, teeny tiny, not-made-with-real-garlic “garlic” knots and those were just an epic fail. At times, that can be heart-breakingly sad for someone like me who loves & adores food so very much. The worst? Going someplace with divine pizza that has shitty garlic knots. Ugh. Then I got to college & discovered the vast variety of pizza joints in NYC & their varying levels of garlic knottery. Some places, from the very looks of them I didn’t bother trying any. Others, seemed promising but weren’t as flavorful as I’d hoped. Finally I forgot my search & settled on the deli/pizza place across the street from F.I.T. that was cheap & quick.

So yeah, like I said, eating garlic knots can be a wonderful experience, or a slightly horrifying waste of time. I’ve had ‘em all- and I mean ALL; good ones, bad ones, small ones, large ones, hard ones, soft ones, ones made with real garlic, ones made with garlic powder. I’ve been mildly disappointed to gravely disappointed, somewhat impressed to overly ecstatic. And the latter are the ones that prompted me to make some myself.

Jay & I go to this little local pizza place/restaurant all the time. It’s really got delicious food, surprisingly delicious… seriously, the best chicken parmigiana I ever ate. But the real reason I think we keep going back are the garlic knots. You get 4 of ‘em in the bread basket, but we always end up asking for more. They’re huge, garlicky, olive oily and have a dash of parmesan cheese & parsley, with the perfect amount of saltiness every time. So good. I literally lust for them. I crave them at random times. It was because of that, really, that I decided to try my hand at making my own. All I had to do was a Google search on recipes for garlic knots, and wound up at this beautifully written (& photographed) recipe at White On Rice Couple.

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So mine aren’t perfect, let’s get that straight right now.  My “knots” aren’t the best. At the time I made these, I didn’t have my new oven thermometer, so they got a bit browner than I’d like (but now I do have one,  & I’ve learned that almost every time it’s on, my oven gives a different temperature reading, sometimes it’s right on 350, other times it’s too low… go figure, I have an oven poltergeist). I also didn’t chill my dough, I just used it fresh, which might have made a few minor differences. But they do look beautiful, and they tasted pretty good too.

GARLIC KNOTS (taken directly from White On Rice Couple)

Ingredients:

Dough

• 1 ¾ cup warm water (@115°F)
• ¼ cup olive oil*
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 ½ tablespoons active dry yeast
• approx. 5 ½ cups all-purpose, unbleached flour*

Garlic Coating

• ⅛ cup olive oil
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 4 cloves garlic, finely crushed
• ¼ cup finely chopped fresh Italian parsley
• sea salt to taste

*plus extra olive oil and flour for making the knots

Directions:

1. Combine water, ¼ cup olive oil, sea salt, sugar, and active dry yeast in a large resealable container or bowl. Mix to dissolve yeast.
2. Add flour.  Mix to incorporate flour, cover, and set in a warm spot to proof until doubled in volume (usually 1-3 hrs depending on initial water temp and warmth of proofing area). (A sunny table outside on a warm summer day is perfect for proofing!)
3. Chill the dough for a bit (will keep fine in fridge for several days if you want to make the dough ahead of time) to make it easier to handle (this can be skipped if you don’t have the time) then set up your knotting station.  Put out a large wooden cutting board and oil liberally.  Grab a rolling dowel or pin and oil.  Grab a pizza cutter or something similar to slice dough in strips. Put container of flour within easy reach. Line several sheet pans with parchment paper or silpats and place within easy reach.
4. Oil your hands to help keep dough from sticking to them. Divide the dough in two parts to make it easier to handle.  Take the first half, slap it onto the oiled board several times to flatten.  Using the dowel, spread into an even rectangle approx. 5″x16″ and ½″ thick. Slice the rectangle into ½″x5″ strips.
5. Rotate the board 90° and sprinkle dough strips and board with flour.  Taking the strip nearest to you, roll it back and forth to create an even rope. Tie into a knot (over, under, and through) and place on lined sheet pan. Place knots about an 1 ½″ apart.  At first it may seem awkward making the knots but with a little practice it will become easy.  Flour is your friend to help keep the dough from sticking to itself while forming the knots.
6. Continue making the rest of the knots with the second half of the dough. After each sheet pan fills up, cover with a dry sack towel, and place in a warm, draft-free spot to rise.
7. Preheat oven to 400° F.
8. After knots have doubled in size, take off dry sack towel and place sheet pans in the oven.  Bake for approx. 12-15 min. or until golden.
9. While knots are baking, make garlic coating.  Gently warm olive oil, butter, and garlic in a small saucepan (if you like your garlic with less of a bite, cook it for a few minutes in oil/butter mix until soft & slightly golden).  Add chopped parsley and set aside.
10. After removing knots from oven, while still warm, either brush with garlic coating, or place knots in a large bowl and toss with garlic coating. Season with sea salt to taste. Best served warm, but still good when at room temp.

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This is not my last time making these, for sure. I’ll perfect them yet… just you wait & see.