Baby Blueberry Scones

We’ve been up to our ears in miniature things lately… from tiny clothes to tiny toes. So why not some baby scones? I’ve tried tons of different recipes and methods and finally found a winner.  This dough is easy to pull together and you don’t need to break out a mixer.  Even with a 10 week old keeping me on my 10 toes, this recipe is doable. Promise.  What’s better is that they are done in less than 15 minutes and really are delicious.  

The current favorite “fillings” in my house are blueberry lemon scones and chocolate chip.  I have also made mixed berry, cherry almond and cinnamon sugar.  You can be as creative with the fillings as you like.  You’ll see why I’m referring to them as fillings when you check out the roll  ‘em up and slice method below.  

You can make this dough right before baking or make ahead and refrigerate overnight. I found them to rise a tiny more when they sat overnight. Either way, they rise beautifully and because of how they bake, the scones have a great texture; unlike any I’ve tasted.  

I’m on borrowed time as the little lady is getting ready to rise, herself, but get your ovens ready and read on.

Makes about 20 mini scones or 10ish larger ones         

3 cups all-purpose flour

⅓ cup sugar

¾ tsp salt

1 TBS baking powder

¼ cup nonfat dry milk*

1 stick/4 oz unsalted cold butter

½ cup milk or buttermilk

2 large eggs

2 tsp vanilla extract

Blueberry:

1-2 cups (approx) of blueberries

zest from ½ lemon

Chocolate:

½ (approx) cup mini chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 450℉

1. Prepare baking sheet lined with parchment or silicone mat. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, nonfat dry milk and whisk to combine. Set aside.
3. Using a measuring cup, add milk, vanilla and eggs.  Mix with a fork or whisk to break up the eggs. Set aside.
4. Cut up cold butter into 6 pieces and add to dry ingredients.  Using your hands and working quickly to avoid butter melting, break up pieces of butter and knead into flour mixture.  Do not mix the butter so that it forms a cohesive dough.  Keep butter pieces visible throughout the mixture.
5. Prepare a cutting board or clean a counter top and lightly flour.
6. Add the wet ingredients into the flour/butter mixture and gently mix in with a spatula.  There should be some dry patches throughout the dough.  Do not over mix!
7. Begin to pull the dough together while mixture is in the bowl then dump contents onto prepared board or counter top
8. Working quickly, pull dough together so that mixture has little to no dry patches but butter pieces are still visible throughout the dough.
9. Shape into a rectangle.  Roll out dough out to about ¼ to ½ inch thick with a floured rolling pin.
10. Using a knife or dough scraper, divide dough in half.  Add filling leaving a small border at the ends and roll up dough.  Make sure the roll is seam side down.  Brush with egg wash and sprinkle with raw sugar before slicing the dough.  Slice on a diagonal for a triangle shape. Repeat with other filling on remaining dough.  

    

    
    

11. Place scones on a prepared baking sheet.  For mini scones, bake for 5 minutes then shut off oven.  IMPORTANT!  Leave scones in oven for another 6 minutes without opening the door. Remove scones from baking sheet and place on cooling rack a few minutes.  Serve with butter, jam, maple syrup, whatever you like.

       

These are best on the day they’re baked.  And speaking of freshly baked, don’t you just want to gobble up those little feet?!  

          

                          

Enjoy!

MJM + t

Bacon, Avocado and Tomato Jam Grilled Cheese

Has it been this long? Really?!  OK, let’s get on with it...sandwiches..simple. This little concoction has everything I love. Some ways to make this more whole foods friendly are to use uncured bacon (basically, all the goodness of smoky, salty bacon without the nitrates) and use a legitimate sprouted whole grain brain like Ezekiel.  The delight of this sammie is the combo of all the ingredients. I highly recommend using all of them.  Tomato jam sounds fancy but you’ll see how simple and delicious it is.  In fact, it’s awesome on almost anything...burgers, alongside steak, chicken. Really, anything. Swap out another cheese if you’re not into the amazing taste of sheep’s milk Manchego, but I like how it stands up to the unctuous avocado and bacon.

On to semantics. Technically, I don't "grill" this sandwich as you would with a typical grilled cheese. I melt the cheese on the bread then build the sandwich with the remaining ingredients. I'm not into warm avocado or greens, but if you want to heat the whole shebang, have at it. Heat a griddle pan or large frying pan over medium heat and lightly grease with butter or some leftover bacon grease. Add composed sandwich and toast each side until cheese is melted.   

Serve it solo or alongside your favorite soup.  Pop this recipe into the rotation and I know you’ll be happy.

Makes 1 sandwich

2 slices whole grain bread

4-6 slices bacon

¼ avocado, smashed

Enough Manchego cheese to cover each slice of bread

10-12 grape or cherry tomatoes, sliced in half

Handful of spinach or other greens

1. Line a plate with paper towels and set aside.  Heat large skillet on high.  Add bacon slices and fry for a few minutes on each side.  Cook longer if you like crispy bacon.  Once the bacon is cooked to your liking, turn off the heat.
2. Remove bacon from skillet and place on paper towels to absorb excess grease.
3. Carefully drain off all but enough bacon grease to coat the bottom of pan.  I like to ball up some paper towels and, using tongs, sop up the grease I don’t need, and just toss the paper towels in the trash.
4. Re-heat the pan to medium and add tomatoes.  Cook until tomatoes break down and are the consistency of jam.  Taste and add any salt, black pepper or crushed red pepper you like.
5. Grate or thinly slice the cheese and, using a toaster oven or broiler, melt the cheese on each slice of bread.
6. While the cheese is melting, slice avocado and using a fork, mash the avocado until spreadable.  Season if you’d like, but consider the salt in the bacon and cheese.
7. Assembly time.  There’s no wrong way to do this, but I like to build sandwiches with ingredients on both sides of the bread with the meat and greens in the middle.  On each slice: spread avocado on top of the melted cheese, then tomato jam, greens and finally bacon.  Combine each side and boom. Magic.

Enjoy! I most definitely did…

MJM

    

 

Mini Lemon Tarts

Just at the cusp of summertime and these are my favorite mini treats. Tangy, sweet, lemon goodness topped with lemon cream and raspberry purée. I like to use a few small tart pans instead of one big pan because these pack a punch and sometimes, you just want a little taste.  You can make the crusts ahead of time and fill the tarts the morning before you serve these treats.

As for the crust, you can use a cookie bottom or a standard tart crust...which I think is pretty boring.  Go cookie. It will definitely be tastier.  The super simple way to make a cookie crust is to use, well, crushed up cookies.  This is a place where you want to use cooled (or, eek, store-bought) cookies.  Grahams, butter or anything else that’s simple would work here.  I happened to freeze some buttery almond bites that I made a few weeks ago that worked perfectly for the bottom of my tart.  You could make these little snowball cookies one day, then crunch up the leftovers for your tart on another day.  

This recipe yields enough filling and crust for about 4-5 mini tarts (4.75 x 1 inch tart pans).  You’ll likely have a little leftover...but the nice thing about making these mini tarts is that all these ingredients freeze well.

I included two quick recipes for lemon whipped cream and raspberry drizzle that can be used for just about any other dessert, too.

Cookie Crust

2 cups buttery almond cookie crumbs or vanilla wafer cookies

pinch salt

6 TBS butter, melted and cooled slightly

1. Using a food processor, add cookies and salt until they are finely processed.  Add melted butter and pulse until all ingredients are incorporated.    
2. Evenly press cookie crust dough into each pan and up the sides.  Use a measuring cup to help smooth the crust on the bottom of each pan.
3. Cover and refrigerate about 15 minutes to help butter set the crust.  If not using the crusts the same day, refrigerate up to 1 week or freeze up to 6 months.

Lemon Curd Filling

(4-5 mini tarts)

9 large egg yolks, room temperature

1 ½ cups sugar

8 TBS (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature

¾ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

½ tsp powdered gelatin

¼ tsp salt

Special tools: candy thermometer or instant read thermometer and mesh strainer  

1. Place mesh strainer over medium/large bowl and set aside.

2. In a heavy bottom saucepan, add egg yolks, sugar and butter. Whisk over low heat until butter is melted.  Add lemon juice, gelatin and salt. Attach candy thermometer to side of saucepan or check temp with instant read thermometer.  Continue to whisk ingredients over low heat until mixture reaches 196℉.  
3. Strain immediately to remove any lumps.
4. Pour filling into prepared tart crusts and allow to cool a few hours until filling is set.  Filled tarts can be stored in the refrigerator 2 days in advance.  If not filling tarts right away, lemon curd can be refrigerated up to 5 days or frozen until to a few months.  Curd will need to be gently loosened before filling tart shells.  The best way to do this is either over very low heat in a saucepan or in the microwave.  If using the microwave, only heat in 20 second increments and stir frequently until filling is loose enough to fill the tart shell.  Refrigerate filled tarts a few hours until set.

Lemon Cream

2-3 TBS lemon curd at room temperature and not solidified

½ cup whipping cream

confectioners sugar to taste

1. Whip cream and curd to firm peaks.  Add sugar if needed.
2. Top entire tart with cream or dollop in the middle

Raspberry Drizzle

1 pint fresh or frozen raspberries (defrosted)

sugar to taste

splash lemon juice

1. Combine raspberries, sugar (1 tsp at a time), and lemon juice to food processor and pulse until smooth.  Taste and add sugar if needed.
2. If you hate seeds like I do, strain mixture before using. To drizzle with ease, pick up one of these bottles. To make the effect in my pic, drizzle the raspberry in a swirl over the cream and carefully drag a toothpick through the drizzle.  Play with it and make your own design. Leftover drizzle is perfect over ice cream, chocolate cakes… store in the fridge or freezer.

Enjoy!

MJM

Buttery Almond Bites

These little cuties are great multi-purpose cookies.  Nutty, toasty, buttery and sweet.  They’re perfect on their own with coffee or tea.  They’re a delightful addition to any dessert table and leftover cookies make for a delicious crust for tarts or pies like this one here. Sweet treats that are low maintenance and you don’t even have to worry about having any eggs on hand.  

Quick tip on nuts!  Buy in bulk as nuts can be expensive in those little bags on the shelves of the bakery aisle.  And, you should check expiration dates as nuts can go rancid quickly...Go bulk on these babies. Any leftover nuts can be frozen for when you need them again.  Everybody wins!  Happy baking.   

½ cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

¾ cup sugar

1 cup all purpose flour

1 tsp vanilla extract

½ tsp almond extract

1 cup almonds,roughly ground

Confectioners sugar for dusting

Preheat oven to 300℉

Grease cookie sheet or place silpat baking mat on the sheet

1. Cream softened butter and sugar until light and fluffy with hand mixer or stand mixer with paddle attachment. Add vanilla and almond extracts; mix to incorporate.
2. Add flour and almonds and mix again to combine.  
3. Drop teaspoonfuls of batter on prepared cookie sheet and bake for 25 min.
4. Let cool about 5 minutes of sheet and place about ½ cup confectioners sugar in bowl.  Dredge the still-warm cookies in the sugar and set aside. These little guys taste best when completely cooled.
5. Leftover baked cookies can be stored in an airtight container for 1 week for best taste or frozen up to 2 months. Raw dough can be refrigerated for about 2 weeks or frozen up to 2 months.  The best thing about freezing the baked cookies is that they can be ground up and used as a delicious cookie crust for tarts or pies!

Enjoy!

MJM

Cozy Cassoulet

Perfect for a rainy April day.  Fresh rosemary and thyme, cured pork goodness, simple chicken thighs, drumsticks and creamy beans make for a rich, comforting and complete dinner.  Toss in some lovely aromatic veggies like fennel and carrots and you’re in business.

Traditionally, this dish is made with duck and pork which is delightful.  But, but duck is not always available.  Chicken is easy and accessible. Buy organic or from a trusted local farmer’s market.  It matters. Really. Now, onto the cassoulet!

4 bone-in chicken thighs, skin on

4 drumsticks, skin on

4-6 oz diced pancetta (or bacon if you want a smoky flavor)

1 yellow onion, diced

2 medium carrots, diced

1 fennel bulb, diced

1 Tablespoon fresh rosemary, finely chopped

1 Tablespoon fresh thyme

3-4 cloves garlic, minced

2-4 cups fresh chicken stock,

15 ounces cooked beans, cannelinni, small white or pinto (if using canned, be sure to rinse and drain well)

olive oil

salt/pepper

Preheat oven to 375℉

Equipment:

Sheet pan, lined (jelly roll pan), large skillet and baking/casserole dish

1. Line a rimmed baking sheet (jelly roll pan) with aluminum foil and set aside.
2. Coat chicken parts with olive oil and season generously with salt/pepper. Place on prepared baking sheet, skin side up, and roast for about 40 minutes or until skin is browned and most of the fat has been rendered. Set aside.
3. Heat large skillet to medium-high, add pancetta or bacon and cook until fat is rendered and meat is browned.  Add onions and garlic and cook until tender. Add carrots, fennel, thyme and rosemary and cook until vegetables have softened.  Be careful not to caramelize or burn the vegetables, lower heat if necessary.  Cook about 15-20 minutes after adding carrots, fennel and herbs. Off heat, mix in the beans. Transfer mixture to baking/casserole dish.
4. Nestle the chicken, skin side up, into the mixture, slowly add stock and place in oven.  Cook until chicken is fully cooked through and vegetables are browned and bubbly, about another 40 minutes. Check intermittently while cooking.  You may need to add more stock if the baking dish looks dry. I don't worry to much about over cooking as dark meat chicken is quite forgivable, especially when braising in a sauce. That said, don't let it cook for hours!
5. I like to serve this in a wide bowl to contain the sauce.  Serve with toasty bread.

Enjoy!

MJM

*Adapted from Curtis Stone's Chicken Cassoulet with Fennel and Bacon

Mexican Night Continued: Chili Lime Shrimp Tacos with Soft Corn Tortillas

Tacos. Awesome.  Honestly, my favorite part are the fresh, corn tortillas.  The filling is just window dressing. You can add anything to these.  Don’t like shrimp? Add chicken, skirt steak or beans.  While it’s always nice for someone else to be making and serving you a margarita, I have constantly been disappointed by restaurant tacos- even at self-proclaimed traditional spots.  Sometimes, they don’t even make or offer corn tortillas!  Maddening.  Buy a tortilla press.  I like the cast iron ones.  They are not expensive and take up less room than any kitchen appliance I own- and that is saying something.  The results are also a thousand times better than any of those rubbery, 1000-count bags you buy at the grocery.  You use a few and the rest end up in the back of your freezer….I know how it goes.      

I digress...

Well seasoned and properly prepared protein and sliced avocado topped with a squeeze of lime filled into a warm, soft corn tortilla is magic on a plate. Simple ingredients, delicious results. Now, go. Cook.  

Corn Tortillas

2 cups MasecaⓇ Corn Flour, do not substitute corn meal!

1 1/4 cups water

1/4 tsp salt

1. Add masa and salt to bowl and add water.  Mix to combine and form dough.  Divide dough in half and keep doing so until you reach 16 relatively even dough balls.  

2. Prepare tortilla press by placing a piece of plastic wrap on both plates, then press down using the handle.  Here’s what it looks like:

3. Heat a skillet to medium high; cast iron, non-stick or stainless will work.  Check heat by sprinkling a little water in the pan.  If it quickly sizzles and evaporates, you’re ready to go. Preheat oven to lowest temperature.

4. Place tortilla in pan and cook for about 1-2 minutes. Flip over and cook another 1-2 minutes. Remove tortilla from pan and place onto a cookie sheet or oven safe plate.  Lightly cover with foil and place in warm oven if you’re making a bunch.  I like to keep them in the oven if I haven’t finished cooking my filling yet so they stay warm.  Continue until all tortillas are made.  That’s it.       

Chili Lime Shrimp

About 6 Tacos

18 large shrimp, cleaned and deveined

1 ½ tsp Chili powder

½ tsp cumin

Fresh lime juice to taste

Large pinch salt

Olive oil

1 avocado, sliced

Cilantro, chopped for garnish

1. Toss cleaned shrimp with Chili, cumin, salt.  Cook now or let sit 15-20 minutes.

2. Heat large skillet to medium high.  Lightly coat bottom of pan with olive oil and when oil is glistening, add shrimp.  If you have a smaller skillet, saute the shrimp in batches to avoid steaming them.  Cook shrimp until just opaque and pink in color.  About 3-4 minutes. Unsure? Test one at 3 minutes by cutting in half to see if center is cooked through.  Unless you buy jumbo sized shrimp, cooking time should not exceed 4 minutes.

3. Place cooked shrimp in mixing bowl and add lime juice and chopped cilantro.  Add salt if necessary.

4. Assembly:  3-4 shrimp per taco, 2  slices of avocado, maybe a dollop of tomatillo salsa and you’re in business.    

Enjoy!

MJM