{TWD2} Thanks, Dorie, for a wonderful FIVE years!!

So, here I am. The last post for TWD, the first TWD which started in January 2008. It took me a full year to catch up and complete all the recipes I missed. 67 to be exact! And six of them in December. So here we go:

2 December 2008 Hosted by Noskos of Living the Life the bakers made:

Linzer Sables

I had never made sables before. They are a lovely butter cookie that is filled with a jam or other treat. I used Cherry jam and instead of almonds, walnuts, or hazelnuts, I used pecans. Lots of pecans here in the south. They were perfect with a nice subtle nutty taste. And the cherry jam fit well with the pecans. You can find the recipe on her blog or on page 134 of BFMHTY.

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December is a popular month for cookies. On December 16, 2008 we followed up with

Buttery Jam Cookies.

While the sables had the jam between the cookies these had the jam IN the cookie. And since I had the Cherry jam that is what I used in these tasty, biscuity cookies. There were little chunks of jam all through the cookie giving little surprises with every bite!

Thanks to Heather of Randomosity and the Girl for this sweet little treat. The recipe is on her blog. It’s also on page 80 of Dorie’s book.

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December also brought two tarts into the kitchen. On 6 December 2012 we made a

Honey-Almond Fig Tart It was delicious. A sweet honey-almond custard paired with ripe juicy figs. {From my friend’s tree!} I made the full recipe of custard but only two 6″ tarts. Usually I make less custard but past experience has taught me that more IS better! The tart was hosted by my friend, Kayte of Grandma’s Kitchen Table. The recipe is on her blog, or will be because Kayte is on hiatus right now and her blog is in hibernation. You can find it on page 373 of BFMHTY.

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The other tart (12 December 2011) was the…

Puffed Double Plum Tart

And please forgive the photography. There was no way this was going to be pretty. {Or at least mine wasn’t!!} I used a regular black plum slice and prunes that had been poached in black tea with cinnamon rather than wine, orange juice, zest and anise. And while not pretty it was definitely yummy! 1/8 of a recipe gave me one small tart just for me. I knew no one else would even touch it! This was chosen by Julie of Someones in the Kitchen (or page 378 of Dorie’s book).

{Hang in there, almost done. I have to do all six today because the next available Tuesday is Christmas!}

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We eat ice cream all year round. Which is a good thing because on December 13, 2011, TWD bakers pulled out their churns and made:

Unbelievably Good Chocolate Blueberry Ice Cream

I have to admit. I was a little iffy about this one. Chocolate and BLUEBERRIES!! No way that was going to be good. I. Was. Wrong! It was delicious. I know – Trust Dorie, Trust Dorie!! Story is, she didn’t care for the combo either when she was young, but like me, she has since come to her senses!! Yay! Dorie!!

Thanks to Lauri of Slush for hosting this week’s TWD choice.>

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Last (well almost) but not least –

REAL Butterscotch Pudding

And by real I mean REAL Scotch in the pudding! Really? Yes, Really! Unfortunately, I didn’t have any scotch. Fortunately, my VGF did! A tiny bottle of Chivas Regal in her Hub’s underware drawer (Yes, Really!) which she gifted me {Prolly to her Hub’s chagrin!} and there was just enough to make 6 little pudding treats.

One word – GOOD!! Topped with a little whipped cream infused with just a tad of Scotch! BETTER!! And Donna, of Spatulas, Corkscrews and Suitcases, our host for this week, made her pudding into a PIE! What a GREAT idea! Next time!! Now that I know how easy pudding is to make from scratch. The reicpe is on Donna’s site and on page 386 of BFMHTY!

Okay. That’s it, that’s all… Okay, not quite. I still have one more cake to make. It has been the hardest to find the ingredients for. But I found what I needed and so….. but that’s another post!!

Thanks TWD for a wonderful five years of baking, learning, eating, gifting, and friend gathering. I will never forget anything!!

 

{TWD2} Down to the wire with Pudding, Pots, and Pears

Back on November 8, 2008, TWD members made Rice Pudding. I was not one of them because at the time I. Could. Not. Find. Arborio rice. What! What is that? Was the response I got here in Podunk, USA. SHEESH!!! NOW it is everywhere. And I’ve used it quite a bit since I found it, but never did get around to making the Rice Pudding. Have now!!!

And it came out perfectly (I had tried it before and it was a miserable failure.) I made 1/2 of the recipe which gave me two nice helpings. One vanilla and one chocolate. B liked the chocolate and I prefered the vanilla so we were both happy. It is not the most photogenic dessert, at least not the chocolate….

Isabelle chose the recipe that week and you can find the recipe on her blog. It is also on page 412 of BFMHTY.

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November 29, 2011 Normandy Tarts appeared in TWD kitchens.

I made about 1/3 of the filling recipe, used pears instead of apples and ended up with a 4″ mini tart. The pears were at B’s request. Good little tart chosen by my friend Tracey of Tracey’s Culinary Adventures. It was her second time to host and her Tart is Gorgeous!! You can also find the recipe in BFMHTY on page 304.

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I did skip one recipe for March back when – Chocolate Pots de Creme. {March 1, 2011}

We had made the Caramel Pots de Creme in May of 2011 and they worked out well so I wasn’t worried about the chocolate. 1/2 of recipe resulted in 4 4″ ramekins of chocolate delight. Thank you Christine of Cats in the Kitchen. LOVED these. Recipe is on her blog and on page 390 of Dorie’s book.

That’s all. I posted the Far Breton {1 November 2011} in September. I still have’t made the Chestnut Cake. Still no chestnuts to be found except in large portions and I am only making mini cakes these days since it is just the two of us. MAYBE by the end of the year I will get it made.

I missed a lot of December picks – six to be exact. I will be busy!!

 

{FFwD} crispy, crackly apple-almond tart

The thing about apple tarts is that they usually aren’t as sweet as some desserts. And that’s a good thing. I love apple desserts. And if they include custard and filo dough, well… ’nuff said.

This was basically a simple dessert. Layers of buttered filo dough topped with a thick (very thick) almond cream and covered in sliced Gala apples. Now top that with some almond flavored whipped cream…

….and you have a finger lickin’ tasty treat.

And I do mean finger-lickin’ because you can pick this up and ‘eat it out of hand’ as Dorie says.

This was supposed to be made with almond flour but I didn’t have any. I used regular four and a good deal of almond extract. This gave me an admirable almond cream. But it was very thick and difficult to spread on the fragile filo dough. Not to worry, careful and slow did the job. Dorie glazed her tart with a jelly glaze but I sprinkled mine with a cinnamon sugar instead. It was good.

I am sure there were others out there who made a few changes in Dorie’s apple tart. Go on over to and check out the apple tarts. You can find the recipe on page 458 in Dorie’s around my french table.

 

{TWD2} Oranges and Coffee

Okay, I realize I am out of sinc here with some of the treats from Tuesdays with Dorie, but my computer is vacationing and all I have is my laptop and my camera. Usually not a problem except I cleaned off the camera and downloaded my pics into the computer. So, until my errant computer returns home I am going with what I have.

On the last Tuesday of the month several of us meet up for book club. Not the usual book club where we all the read the same book and discuss it. Nope! We have a book exchange. Bring a book you really enjoyed and let someone else take it home. I have been introduced to some really great books this way from authors I did not know about: Geraldine Brooks’ A Year of Wonders about the Plague. Monica Pradhan’s The Hindi Bindi Club about a group of young women in the US struggling to fit Indian culture with American (complete with recipes). The rather whimsical Being Dead is No Excuse by Gayden Metcalfe and Charlotte Hays The Official Southern Ladies Guide to Hosting the Perfect Funneral. I was not surprised to see most of the funerals I grew up with in their book.

So what does all this have to do with Tuesdays with Dorie? First, it gave me a chance to make a cake I knew would probably NOT be eaten at home and, Second, I found fresh figs on my friends tree which enabled me to make another TWD cake that would NOT have been possible otherwise. It was a Win/Win/Win night!!

Most of you know I am NOT a coffee fan. I. Drink. Tea! Period!! So on May 5, 2009, when the TWD bakers were making Tiramisu I was missing out!! And I say missing out because I had always thought I would not like it because I do not like Coffee!!!

Tiramisu Cake

But I did like this cake. Kahlua and coffee are the flavorings and they are wonderful together. Really!! Two flavors I never liked before. Do Now!!

This is not your usual tiramisu which is made with lady fingers. It is a yellow cake which is soaked with a kahlua/espresso syrup and then layered with a mascarpone Kalhua frosting. Oh! My! And then add in some chopped chocolate between the cake layers. Sprinkle the top with cocoa. Oh! My! There wasn’t much left when I came home from the Book Club.

Definitely a repeat. BTW I made 1/2 of the recipe and it was enough for a nice little 6″ double layer cake in my new pans (Thanks to Nancy!) who told me where to find them.

This delightful treat was chosen by Megan of My Baking Adventures. Unfortunately, her blog is no longer up. I could not find the recipe anywhere else on line. Guess you will just have to purchase Dorie’s Baking From My H0me to Yours if you want to make this cake. Find it on page 266.

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Tarts are so incredibly easy to make. Yes, it does have a crust, but not a rolled one. A tart crust is crumbly and difficult to roll so one simply presses it into a tart pan. And this was the case when the TWD bakers made….

Fresh Orange Cream Tart

on April 8, 2008.

It was quite tasty and refreshing. I did make a couple of changes. While the recipe called for blood-orange or Valencia OJ, all I had on hand was good ol’ everyday OJ. Worked just fine. And I topped it with a few Manderine orange slices (actually satsumas in a can). 1/4 of the recipe resulted in two 6″ mini tarts. Perfect for just the two of us!! It was the choice of Mary of Starting From Scratch. {Her blog is no longer up so you can find the recipe On The Balanced Baker’s Blog}

This one is definitely on the repeat list. The recipe is on page 334 of Dorie’s BFMHTY.

 

{TWD2} Gooey Chocolate, Buttery Lemon, and Ice Cream.

April is going to be a busy month of baking. Since 2008 when The TWD Group started I have missed 9 of the recipes. I will try VERY hard to finish them this month. Keep your fingers crossed for me.

April 1, 2008, the bakers made Dorie’s Gooey Chocolate Cake. Basically it is the Molten Chocolate Cake that was so very popular years ago. I made one, once, years ago. This is the first one since then. The recipe is made in muffin cups which means everyone gets there own little chocolate cupcake with a warm liquid chocolate center. Unless they are made in MY kitchen.

I used a cupcake bundt pan and baked them for only 10 minutes. When we cut into them they were warm and wonderful…

….and SOLID!!!

Lava fail!! Lava fail!!

But delicious with a touch of whipped cream on top. I will try those again.

The cake was chosen by Leigh of Lemon Tartlet where you can find the recipe. Or on page 261 of Dorie’s book.

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From Warm Chocolate Cake we go to Ice Cream.

Coffee PB Cup Ice Cream Tart

Dorie gave us lots of leeway with this Ice Cream Tart. While it was supposed to be made with coffee store bought ice cream I am not a coffee fan so I went with another variation. Using Dorie’s Vanilla Ice Cream base I made ice cream and tossed in some chopped PB Cup minis. Dorie made her crust with almonds but says we could use other nuts so I went with Honey Roasted Peanuts. Since the peanuts are salted I left out the salt called for in the recipe. THIS. WAS. GOOD. And so easy. Make a crust, throw in some ice cream and call it delicious.

Thanks to Jessica of Domestic Deep Thought for her cool pick. TWD made this on April 5, 2011. And after looking at Jessica’s tart I realized I forgot the layer of chocolate on the bottom of the tart. GOOD reason to make it again!Dorie’s tart recipe is on page 358 of BFMHTY on Jessica’s blog.

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April 8th, 2008, was the day TWD bakers made Mary of Starting From Scratch‘s pick of this buttery Lemon Tart…

The Most Extraordinary French Lemon Cream Tart

THIS was a very BUTTERY tart. VERY Buttery!! I served it with a little raspberry coulie

Dorie says to chill the custard filling until ready for use. I did that and it turned hard. I had to bring it to room temp plus in order to put it into the crust. Not sure what I did wrong, but…..

The butter flavor overpowered the lemon flavor. Again, I am not sure where I went wrong. Still good tho’! Mary’s blog is no longer live but you can find the recipe on several blogs including Ashley’s Eat Me Delicious or on page 331 of The Book.

 

{TWD2} Soft Chocolate and Raspberry Tart

Still catching up with the Dorie Recipes I missed over the last four years. I had three left for March but only managed to complete two.

Soft Chocolate And Raspeberry Tart

Chosen for March 16, 2010, by Rachelle of Mommy! I’m Hungry, it is a soft pudding in a sweet crust which is filled with fresh raspberries. We loved the pudding but didn’t care for it with the raspberries. Probably because we are just not raspberry fans.

I made the whole recipe which resulted in 3 – 4″ mini tarts and one ramekin of just pudding.

You can find the recipe on Rachelle’s blogor on page 354 of Dorie’s BFMHTY

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From March 22, 2011, we have…

Honey Nut Brownies.

My order from KAF came in just in time for these brownies. KAF has some 4″ give-a-way containers. I used two of those and two silicone cupcake sleeves for 1/2 of the brownie recipe. What gives these brownies their distinctive flavor ( and their name) is the honey. You can definitely taste the honey and it mixed well with the nut mix (almonds and pecans). The only problem was the overly sweetness of the brownie. 1/2 of a brownie was more than enough. Was still good.

This brownie was chosen by Suzy of Suzy Homemaker and you can find the recipe on her blog or on page 102 of Dorie’s Baking From My Home to Yours.

The recipe I didn’t get to is the Brioche Raisin Snails (March 18, 2008) on page 56/57. I won’t skip it.

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{Donna Hay Wednesday} Easy Apple Tart

Did you notice the title. EASY Apple Tart. That is an understatement. It should be Super Duper Esy Apple Tart because tht is exactly what it is. If you have an apple and some puff pastry you can whip this baby up in about 15 minutes including the baking.

You can have all that deliciousness in a snap. Seriously!! A Snap!! Slice your apples. Toss with cinnamon, sugar and melted butter, place on a square of Puff Pastry and BAKE!! That’s IT!!!

And if you want it really over the top, put a small large scoop of vanilla ice cream on top!!!
And if you really want decadence, sprinkle some cinnamon sugar on top. Or would that be TOO much?? NOT!! (I thought of that AFTER we had eaten the tart!)

You can find Donna’s Easy Apple Tart on her webpage.

And check over with Kayte, Chaya {our newest participant}, and Gaye and see what they did with their Super Duper Easy Apple Tart!

 

{TWD:BwJ} Chocolate Truffle Tartlets

What?

Already the 2nd Tuesday for the New Baking with Julia? Where did last the two weeks go?

SWOOSH!! Gone!!

But even though we had two weeks since the last BwJ I didn’t get to this tart until Monday. If I had know how easy it really was I would have made it weeks ago.

Actually, I did know, I just didnt’ have any biscotti and I didn’t want to make it with other cookies, although it would have worked just fine.

The filling for this tart {Baked by David Ogonowski} is a simple “bittersweet creamy chocolate truffle concoction” that has crunch added in with the bits of biscotti. I didn’t have time to make any so I picked up a bag of biscotti bites and they worked fine. I only made 1/4 of the filling recipe and that filled, well, one 4.5″ tart. (I made the full pastry recipe knowing I could use it for SOMETHING!!)

The differing textures of the cookie in the creamy filling was interesting. The added in white chocolate bits and the milk chocolate didn’t stand out but did add to the richness of the flavor.

You can see that it was a creamy filling (unless I undercooked it!) and it was GOOD!! And I am so glad it is now GONE!

Swoosh!!

Spike of Spike Bakes and Steph of A Whisk and a Spoon were the hosts for this week’s TWD:BwJ so you can find the recipe on their pages. And their’s are beautiful!!

You can also find it in Baking with Julia on page 382/383.

 

{TWD2} French Pear Tart

Think back to January 6, 2009. Do you know what was baking in your oven?
If you were a member of TWD that year, you had THIS lovely tart in there.

French Pear Tart

This tart was special because Dorie chose it for the group to bake. And hers is beautiful (DUH!!)
The tart calls for one of Dorie’s crusts – either the Sweet Tart or the Sweet Tart with Nuts. I had some shortbread crust left so I used that. It did add extra sweetness but just made the tart even better. The pear halves are sliced thinly and fanned out over the almond cream.

When out of the oven you can either brush with an apple jelly glaze, or, as I did, dust with powdered sugar.

The recipe is on Dorie’s Site so go there. This is so simple to put together you will want to make it EVERY nite!!!

I’m catching up on the TWD treats I missed before joining so you will be seeing still more of Dorie’s treats over the next few weeks.

 

{TWD} Sweet and Sour Tart

Nope, it’s not an ASIAN cake. But it is an interesting combination of flavors. The sweetness of Pumpkin Pie made with the slight tartness of Sour Cream.

Sour Cream Pumpkin Pie (or Tart)

Chosen by Judy of Judy’s Gross Eats {and, no, it doesn’t mean what you think!!} it was just in time for the Fall Season and Thanksgiving. I know there were several bakers who made it early for Turkey Day.

1/2 the recipe was the perfect amount for 4-4″ minis. Two “homey” little pies and two “classy” little tarts.

Both were rich and creamy as Dorie described them. And there was just the hint of rum in the filling. There was actually more than a hint in the whipped cream we put on top!!

The other choice for this week’s TWD was Normandy Apple Tart chosen by my good friend, Tracey, of Tracey’s Culinary Adventures. Since we still had some of the Alsatian Apple Tart left I went with the pumpkin. Sorry Tracey. I loved your pick as well, but….. (It’s top choice for rewind!!)

The recipe for the Pumpkin pie/tart is on Judy’s Blog and the Normandy Apple Tart is on Tracey’s. Try them both. I know they are good. They are Dorie’s Recipes after all!!!!!