When Ryan and I were in Edinburgh we bought a bottle of whisky. Because, you know, that’s one of the things you do (according to the guide books) when you go to Scotland. We picked out a cute shop along the Royal Mile and browsed around. I asked a woman who worked there what she recommended for people who wanted to have some whisky but aren’t regular whisky drinkers. After giving us some helpful advice she showed us a few bottles. We chose the one that she said was light, had a nice flavor, had no burn, and wasn’t too expensive. It was exactly what I wanted. 

Since then, we’ve had some – but not much because in general we aren’t big drinkers. At least, we’re not at the level of having Scotch on the rocks to unwind after a long day at the office (à la Mad Men). So we have this beautiful bottle and I wanted you use it. Mainly, I wanted to see if I could cook with it. I looked up some recipes, found some things, but everyone said don’t cook with single malt whisky because you’re just wasting it. Ugh, fine. 

Finally I stumbled onto a Scottish recipe called cranachan, which is a dessert that uses whisky but doesn’t cook it. Ideal, right? Even better, it’s so easy to make. It’s cream, oats, raspberries, whisky and just a few other ingredients. Blended all together the whisky flavor is smooth and harmonious alongside some honey and vanilla. It was so good that from now on the only way I want to have whisky is with whipped cream and sugar.

In the photos I assembled the cranachan in these cute glass espresso cups – but I also made some in regular disposable clear plastic cups. And if you did that, I think this dessert would be perfect for a barbecue. Simply assemble the cranachan ahead of time, pop them in the fridge, and then whip them out when it’s time have dessert. A sweet boozy treat for your guests, it’s simple and cooling for eating outside, and it looks cute and fun too.

This recipe is adapted from Harper’s Bazaar. The only adaptation is this: they said whip the cream until it comes to soft peaks and I didn’t do that. I totally intended to do that, but I walked away from the mixer for a minute and when I returned it was proper thick whipped cream. I didn’t have another pot of cream, so I went with it. And actually, I’m glad I did. Because after you beat the cream you’ll need to add liquid ingredients to it, which will soften the cream up a bit anyway. If the cream had been soft already, I think adding the liquid would have made everything too drippy. Making the cream thick also means that you can be a little less careful when folding in the other ingredients. All in all, I was pretty pleased that my inattention led to such great results.

Messy level: Pleasingly quick and mess free. Very few dishes are needed, nothing is sticky, and that’s just wonderful.

Cranachan

 

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Prep time

15 mins

Cook time

5 mins

Total time

20 mins

 

Serves: about 6 depending on size of cup

Ingredients

• 60g/3/4 cup of oatmeal
• 200g/about 1½ cups of raspberries, divided (can be more than this amount)
• 1 tablespoon of confectioner's sugar
• ground black pepper, to taste
• 600ml/ 2½ cups of double cream
• 4 tablespoons of clear runny honey
• 3 tablespoons of malt whisky
• ½ vanilla pod

Instructions

1. Heat a medium sized skilled over medium heat. Toast the oats for about 5 minutes, or until they start to smell toasty and are a little bit brownish.
2. Measure out 2 tablespoons of oats to use for garnish. Set all the oats to the side to cool while you prepare everything else.
3. Put the raspberries, confectioner's sugar, and a little bit of pepper together in a small bowl. Using a fork, or a potato masher, mash up the fruit until you have a fairly smooth puree. Taste and add a little more sugar or pepper depending on your preferences. Once to your liking, set aside.
4. Put the cream in a large bowl and using a mixer (or your arm!) mix over medium speed until the cream is thick, set, and looks like whipped cream.
5. Cut open the vanilla pod. [Need help? See how to do it here} Using your knife scrape out the insides and dump them into the cream. Gently fold the vanilla into the cream.
6. Add the honey and whisky and gently fold them into the cream.
7. Add the oats to the cream and gently mix them throughout.
8. Finally, add the reserved raspberry puree. Mix it into the cream so you can a gorgeous pink ripple. Don't mix it all the way otherwise the whole thing will be pink.
9. Line the bottom of a clear cup or ramekin with the whole raspberries you set aside at the beginning. Top with your cream mixture. Alternate layers of cream and raspberries until you cup is full. Make sure the top layer has at least 1 or 2 raspberries.
10. Using the 2 tablespoons of oats you set aside at the beginning, sprinkle the oats on top of your cranachan for garnish.
11. Serve and be delighted.

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Friends, it’s my birthday on Sunday. It’s not just any birthday it’s a big one. It’s my thirtieth! So in celebration of my birthday this week’s two recipes will highlight some of my favorite flavors with one sweet and one savory recipe. Today we’re starting with the sweet – a recipe for strawberry lemon tarts.

Lemon tarts are my absolute favorite dessert and I’m still searching for my perfect tart. I love the combination of sweet and tart and I like that it feels light but is still sort of silky and decadent. Although I’m sometimes swayed by intense chocolate concoctions, when I go out I try to order lemon tarts because I find it so satisfying for my sweet tooth. And since I don’t have the perfect recipe for lemon tarts or a go-to bakery where I can buy some, I never get tired of eating them. Constantly seeking the epitome of deliciousness has its benefits. 

But lemon tarts alone aren’t enough to be my birthday celebration food – I had to add strawberries. Strawberries are my absolute favorite fruit and I could eat a whole bowl full in one sitting. In fact, I have eaten a whole bowl by myself but often times I feel guilty for not sharing. I love strawberries because they are a symbol of summer and hot sunny weather (and my birthday is the first day of summer so it feels in perfect alignment). Sure, you can get strawberries throughout the year but off-peak strawberries are all looks and no substance. Summer time strawberries on the other hand are sweet, juicy, and bursting with flavor.

So, when you make this recipe make sure you have some extra strawberries for snacking. You know you’re going to want to eat a few.

Adapted from Macaroni and Cheesecake

Messy level: I find the preparation for this fairly messy because there’s a lot of cutting, juicing, blending and food processing that you have to do. But, when it comes to assembly it’s straightforward and mess-free.

Strawberry Lemon Tarts

 

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Prep time

15 mins

Cook time

40 mins

Total time

55 mins

 

Ingredients

Crust:

• ¼ cup granulated sugar
• ½ cup/113 grams unsalted butter, softened
• 1½ cups all purpose flour
• ¼ teaspoon salt

Filling:

• ½ cup fresh squeezed lemon juice (about 3-4 lemons)
• 2 teaspoons lemon zest (about 2 lemons)
• 1½ cup strawberries
• 1½ cups granulated sugar
• 3 large eggs
• ¼ cup all purpose flour
• ½ teaspoon baking powder
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• Confectioner’s sugar for dusting

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F/180°C degrees.
2. Line a 9 x 13 pan with aluminum foil. Grease the foil with butter or cooking spray.
3. Start with the crust. In a large bowl using an electric mixer cream together the butter and sugar.
4. Add the flour and salt to the butter mixture. Mix until it looks like crumbs.
5. Press the crumbly mixture into the prepared pan.
6. Bake for about 15-18 minutes, or until lightly golden on the edges.
7. Remove from the oven and set aside.
8. Now for the filling. Put the strawberries and lemon juice in a blender. Blend until smooth (or as smooth as your blender can get it)
9. Either in the blender, or in a bowl with an electric mixer, add the lemon zest, sugar, an eggs to the strawberry puree. Blend until smooth.
10. Add the flour, baking powder, and salt to the strawberry mix. Mix until completely smooth.
11. Pour the filling over top of the crust once.
12. Bake for approximately 25 minutes, or until the filling is set with just a bit of a jiggle.
13. Remove from oven and let cool completely.
14. Dust lightly with confectioner’s sugar.
15. Cut and serve. Store extra in the refrigerator.

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This past Saturday Ryan and I had my friend Sarah and her boyfriend Ben over for dinner. Since moving here, it was only the second time we’d had people over for dinner, so I was a little nervous. I cleaned the whole flat and planned a menu that I knew how to make. And this is an important tip: you’ll be a better dinner party host if you make dishes you’ve made before. Seriously, don’t make something for the first time when you’re having people over. If you know what you’re doing, you’ll be more confident, less stressed, and you’ll know your guests will like the food. I decided to serve a salad, steamed broccoli, and baked rigatoni. Not fancy, but tasty and allows for big portions.

Since such a big pasta bake can be really heavy, I decided I wanted dessert to be a fruit tart. I decided to try out passion fruit because it would be silky and light. I’ve also never made anything with passion fruit before, so I was curious about using it. And, I was good and did take my own advice. A few days before my dinner party I decided to do a dry run and make a practice passion fruit tart. 

I went to the store and bought a dozen passion fruits. They are such a gorgeous fruit! A beautiful deep purple on the outside, a slight hint of magenta on the outer edge, and vibrant marigold flesh. The problem though with passion fruits, is they are kind of small and have lots of seeds. If you were having a passion fruit straight you can eat the seeds, but for a tart I wanted a clean puree.

So I scooped out the flesh and did my best to strain, press, and pick out all of the seeds. It was exhausting work and took me close to an hour, and still a few seeds got into the tart. It was also really messy and my hands and counter were all sticky. This leads me to my my second piece of advice: buy passion fruit puree from the store. It has got to be less expensive and will be way easier. Save yourself the headache.

This tart is absolutely delicious. It’s tart and juicy, with just a whisper of creaminess. The texture is smooth and luscious. My favorite part though might have been the pastry crust. I’m not usually that into crust, but this pastry was sweet, crumbly, and buttery. Overall, it felt a little decadent without being heavy.

But, if I’m being honest, I have to tell you the rest of the story. It took so much work to create my own passion fruit puree that I was put off from making this recipe again. I didn’t have the time to go to the store to buy puree, so I decided on the day of the party to make a lemon tart instead. I made the same pastry for my lemon tart and that came out perfectly. But I curdled the lemon curd and for some reason I decided maybe baking it would help heal my ruined tart. It didn’t help at all. The tart came out looking really gross and unappetizing. I ended up sending Ryan, one hour before our friends arrived, to the store one hour to buy something for dessert. So you see? My advice is important. Don’t make something new the day of a dinner party. Practice is really important! It helps you know how much work is ahead of you and it will give you confidence. Most importantly, you won’t have to run to the shop.

Adapted from Butter Baking.

Messy level: If you make the passion fruit puree, this is a super messy recipe. But, if you buy the puree it’s not so bad. The pastry has a lot of butter, which means it will stick to your counter a bit as you roll it out and it can be a bit crumbly – but it’s nothing to really worry about. You might end up with crumbs and bits of sugar on your counter, but it’s truly an easy clean up.

Passion Fruit Tart

 

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Cook time

25 mins

Total time

25 mins

 

Original recipe was written in grams. I've done my best to convert the measurements to cups, but they might not be perfect translations.

Author: Butter Baking

Serves: 8

Ingredients

pastry

• 175g/12½ tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
• 100g/1 cup confectioner's sugar, sifted
• pinch salt
• 1 egg yolk
• 250g/ 2½ cups plain flour

Passion fruit filling:

• 150ml/ ½ cup heavy cream
• 105g/ ½ cup caster (superfine) sugar
• 5 eggs
• 165g/ slightly more than ¾ cup passion fruit puree

Instructions

1. In a large bowl, cream the butter, confectioner's sugar and salt with an electric mixer. Mix until light and free of lumps. It is imperative that you sift the confectioner's sugar. I know it's annoying, but this will help make sure everything is smooth.
2. Add the egg to the butter and sugar mixture. Beat until combined. Scrape down the sides as necessary.
3. Add in the flour and mix until just incorporated.
4. Once everything is mixed, use your hands to gather the dough together. When it's in the bowl, it might look a little crumbly, but it will press together. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap, and refrigerate 2 - 3 hours.
5. Once the pastry has rested, remove it from the fridge and well grease a 10 inch tart tin with butter.
6. Put the pastry in between two sheets of parchment paper. Using a rolling pen, roll out the pastry until it is thin, or about 1/16" thick. (You can do this straight on the counter, but using the parchment means you help prevent sticking)
7. Remove one piece of parchment paper. Flip your rolled out dough over and place it dough-side down on the tart tin. Remove the other piece of parchment paper. Press the dough it into the sides and crevices of the case. It's ok if you leave some over hang at this stage.
8. Place the tart shell in the fridge for 20 minutes and preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C.
9. Once it has rested again, line your tart shell with baking paper and fill with pie weights, dry beans, or rice. This is done so when you pre-bake it, the tart won't puff up too much.
10. Place the tart tin on a cookie sheet and bake for 20 minutes. Then remove the weights/beans/rice and cook for another 5 minutes.
11. As the pastry is baking, make your filling. In a large bowl, whisk together the cream, sugar, eggs and passion fruit puree.
12. Once the pastry is done blind baking, slide the tray out slightly, but not all the way, from the oven. While it's all still in the oven, pour the passion fruit mixture into the pastry, filling it right up to the top. You're doing this while it's in the oven so that you don't spill!
13. Bake for 20- 25 minutes, until just set in the center.
14. Allow to cool slightly. Cut off any excess pastry that might be hanging off the edges. This will give you a clean look. Then put the tart in the fridge to cool completely. It tastes best when it's cold!

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When people find out I like to cook and that I write a blog they always ask me what is my favorite thing to cook. And I’m super eloquent and say things like, “um..erm…well… I don’t really know.” Super helpful, right? But when I really think about it, my favorite thing to make is cookies. I love that it’s a bunch of ingredients, and many of them you wouldn’t eat as they are, like flour, eggs, and baking soda; but then all together those ingredients become something delicious. I like that there are fancy looking cookies and simple drop cookies. And don’t get me started on cookie cutters. I would amass an even larger collection if I had the space.

Today’s cookies I really like because they are simple to make and have a really cool crackle look. And the best part is you don’t have to do a lot of work to acheive it. Seriously. You let science and baking do the work for you. In the interest of full disclosure, these cookies were supposed to be red velvet, but as you can see from the pictures they are more brown than red. The cookies didn’t end up red because I followed the recipe too closely and ignored my better judgement. In general, recipes are helpful, but sometimes your eye can tell you something is wrong even if the paper is saying it should be fine. I think most of the time, listen to your eye. That’s a weird sentence, and I hope you know what I mean.

Here’s where I think I lost the red color: first, I bought fancy eggs and their yolks were the deepest, most golden orange I had ever seen. These are the eggs that Brooklyn hipsters, organic farmers, and pro-locavore movement books tell you about. I’m only sorry I didn’t take a picture of how gorgeous the eggs were. Anyway, the recipe called for mixing 1 1/2 teaspoons of food coloring into the egg mixture. I did, and it looked decidedly maroon. I thought the dark eggs may have led to a dark color. But, no matter, I was going to add the flour and lighten things up.

Only, that was a dumb thought because the white flour was mixed with brown cocoa powder, which only made the whole thing darker. Now I was panicked, because it was clear this wasn’t going to be brilliant red like the magazine picture. So I tried throwing on a little more food coloring, but by the time the flour is in the batter, the whole thing is getting thick, and it’s much harder to mix in a liquid. In the end, I think my cookies achieved the burgundy color that only seems to appear in a men’s dress shoe. Appetizing, I know, but I do think that color is nice and special in its own way.

Don’t let my color mistakes dissuade you, these cookies are worth it at any color. They are impossibly moist and cake-like in consistency. The were so delicious I ate three as I was taking pictures of them and then two I was done. If you can get them to be bright red, I think they would be an amazing Valentine’s Day treat.

Adapted, ever so slightly, from Food Network Magazine, December 2014.

Messy level: Two spoons. Like most cookies, you need two bowls, some mixing utensils, and cookie sheets. You will need a third bowl for confectioner’s sugar so you can roll ball of dough in it. That’s the messy part because no matter how careful you are, you’re likely to inhale a confectioner’s sugar cloud.

Crackle Cookies

 

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Prep time

1 hour 20 mins

Cook time

18 mins

Total time

1 hour 38 mins

 

Serves: 24 cookies

Ingredients

• 2 oz white chocolate chips
• 1¼ cup all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 2 large eggs
• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• red food coloring
• ¾ cup granulated sugar (in the UK I use caster sugar)
• 1 cup confectioner's sugar (you might not need this much)

Instructions

1. Put white chocolate in a small microwaveable bowl. Microwave for 30-second intervals, stirring in between, until smooth. This took me 60 seconds.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt.
3. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, vegetable oil, and food coloring. Start with 1½ teaspoons of food coloring and add more until you have the color you like.
4. Whisk the white chocolate and sugar into the egg mixture until smooth.
5. Stir the flour mixture into the egg mixture until it is smooth.
6. Transfer the batter to a large square of plastic wrap. Wrap it all up and pat it into a rectangle. Make sure it is tightly wrapped, then put it in the refrigerator for 1 hour, or up until over night.
7. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Preheat the oven to 300°F/150°C.
8. Put the confectioner's sugar in a bowl. Start with ½ a cup, then add more as needed so you aren't wasting.
9. Roll tablespoon size pieces of dough into a ball. Dip them in the confectioners sugar and coat completely.
10. Flatten the balls slightly, then dip them in the confectioner's sugar again.
11. Arrange the cookies 2 inches apart on your prepared sheet. Note: If you're going to bake 2 sheets at a time, swap the cookie sheets between top an bottom halfway through baking.
12. Bake for 16-18 minutes, or until the cookies are puffed a bit and firm.
13. Let cool, then stuff your face.

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I bet you have some idea of the ridiculous picture I have in my head. Imagine: a restaurant, dressing up a little bit, a fascinator hat, pinky in the air, and a three-tier tray with tiny sandwiches and sweets. I know it’s not really going to be like that and my little fantasy is probably closer to a stereotype than anything else. Regardless, I still want to go to tea and Ryan and I have been collecting a few suggestions for where to go.

Until that day though, I’d like to pretend that these cookies would be  one of the sweets served at tea time. They are simple looking and dainty in size. The cookies have a subtle citrus flavor while also feeling a bit like a decadent treat. Sounds like a nice tea-time pairing to me.

I was also drawn to this recipe because I love desserts that use citrus. My usual go-to are lemon desserts, but I wanted to expand my horizons and using grapefruit felt exciting and unusual. Grapefruit is nice because it has a little bit of lemon’s tartness while also being a bit sweeter. Eat these cookies however you like, but I’ll eat them while pretending I’m at tea with Ryan in London.

Adapted from Martha Stewart.

Ingredients

Cookie:

zest of 1 grapefruit,  plus 1/4 cup of juice

1 cup sugar

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup cake flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened

2 egg yolks

Filling:

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened

2 cups confectioners’ sugar

1 tbsp honey

3 tbsp grapefruit juice

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°.

2. In a small bowl, combine the zest and 1 tbsp of sugar.

3. In a medium bowl, mix together flours, baking powder, and salt.

4. Using the paddle attachment on an electric mixer, beat the butter and remaining sugar on medium-high for 2 minutes, or until light and fluffy.

4. Add egg yolks and beat until combined. The dough will turn a gorgeous yellow. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.

5. Mix in the sugar-zest mixture.

6. Add flour mix in two batches, alternating with the juice. Mix until combined.

7.  Collect dough into a disk shape and wrap with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

8. Flour your work surface and roll out the disk of dough to about 1/8″ thick. Using a 2″ round to cut out circles. Place cookies on parchment paper lined baking sheet about 1″ apart. These cookies don’t spread much as they bake so they can be pretty close together.

9. Bake until the edges start to turn golden. For me, this took 10 minutes. Martha Stewart recommends 18-20 minutes. So, set your timer and check them regularly.

10. Let cool completely before adding filling.

11. For the filling, using an electric mixer to beat the butter and sugar until very light and fluffy – about 4 minutes. Then add the honey. Once the honey is incorporated, add the juice 1 tbsp at a time. Mix until creamy.

12. Spread filling onto the flat side of one cookie. Put another cookie on top of the filling with the flat side down. Store cookies in the fridge because butter cream will melt!

Messy level: I’m giving this two spoons. Anything with flour is inherently messy for me, but this recipe isn’t too different from sugar cookie type recipes. The grapefruit is actually the messiest part. During the zesting it releases a lot of oils and that makes things a little sticky. Also my juicer is too small for a grapefruit so I got a lot of juice on the counter. If you have a better juicer, you should be fine.

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The reason it’s perfect is because of the balance of tart and sweet. I think it mirrors the opposite ways people feel about this holiday. Some people are very anti-Valentine’s Day and some people love all the decorations, chocolates, and flowers. I’m lucky that Ryan is so accommodating because I both dislike and want to celebrate Valentine’s Day, all at the same time. Yes, I think going out to a fancy dinner is an important thing for couples to do, but why do I have to go out when it’s going to be crowded with an over priced prix fixe menu? So he took me out last week to a place I really really wanted to go, even though it was in Bethesda. And he buys me flowers because even though I don’t want fancy plans, I want pretty red roses that make me feel girly. So, I want it both ways and that’s why citrus squares are perfect.

This dessert isn’t heart shaped, but it is a little pink. It’s sweet, but it’s not chocolate. And it’s tart enough to fly in the face of a traditional Valentine’s Day. Use two forks to make it a romantic treat.

This recipe is adapted from Sweetly Serendipity. You want 1 cup total of citrus juice. You might not get exactly 1/2 cup from 3 blood oranges, or 1/4 cup from one lime, but use a combination of lemons, limes, and oranges and you’ll get enough a juice.

Ingredients:

Crust:

2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt

Filling:

6 large eggs
2 cups granulated sugar (you can add up to 1 cup more if you like it really sweet)
3-4 blood oranges (zest from 3 oranges, and squeeze 1/2 cup of juice)
1 lemon (zest and 1/4 cup of juice)
1-2 lime (zest from 1 lime and 1/4 cup of juice)
1 cup all-purpose flour
Confectioners’ sugar, for dusting

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°.

2. Start with the crust. Using the paddle attachment on an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar until it’s light and fluffy. I like to do it for about 2 minutes.

3. In a separate bowl, combine the flour and salt. Then slowly add the flour mixture to the butter. Combine until just mixed.

4. Flour your hands and gather the dough into a rough ball. Place in the center of a 9×13″ baking pan. Use your hands to press the dough into the bottom of the hand. Keep flouring your hands as the dough begins to stick to you.

5. Put in the fridge to chill for 20 minutes. Use these 20 minutes to zest and juice your oranges, lemon, and limes. You’ll end up with tri-color zest and some gorgeous dark pink juice.

6. Bake the crust for 15-20 minuets, until it is very lightly browned. Take out and let cool for 5 minutes before adding the filling.

7. In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, sugar, zest, juice, and flour. Whisk until it is fully combined.

8. Pour the filling over the crust. Bake for 30 minutes until the filling is set. My oven runs hot so the filling was set in 25 minutes.

9. Let cool to room temperature and then sprinkle with confectioner’s sugar.

Messy level: The messiest part of this recipe is preparing the zest and the juice. I had zest, juice, and seeds everywhere. Part of the reason was that I didn’t give myself enough space to work and I knocked something over, which then hit my little juice, which then spilled everywhere. But it’s also dirty because my hands were covered in sticky juice and the fruit oils. My hands also turned orange from working with so much citrus. The good part though, was the whole apartment ended up smelling like fruit.

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