I've been bitten by the baking bug. Maybe it's boredom, maybe it's my sweet tooth taking control of my brain, or maybe it's my inner Betty coming to bloom. Whatever the driving force, I can't leave a supermarket without throwing chocolate chips, self-rising flour or caster sugar into my cart. I've taken to storing cookie dough in the freezer to throw on a cookie sheet when friends come over. I send Giff to the office once a week with a tupperware full of caramel slice, lemon bars, and M&M's biscuits for his co-workers. They've started emailing me with requests. Yesterday, I fled my cold apartment to the cafe-cum-bookstore, plopped myself down in the cooking section, and flipped through the pages of Julia Child's epic Mastering the Art of French Cooking, long after my chai tea had gone cold. I think I've fallen off the chopping board.
Nevertheless, the results have been delicious. Here is a recipe from yesterday's efforts, apple dumplings with homemade whipped cream and cinnamon syrup. Yum. . .
Basic Pie Crust
1 ½ cups unbleached white flour
½ teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons sugar (optional)
½ cup chilled butter
3 to 4 tablespoons ice water
By hand, combine flour, salt and sugar in a large bowl. With a knife, pastry cutter or fingers, work in butter until mixture resembles course meal. Sprinkle ice water onto crumbly dough, and, with your hands, push the dough from the sides of the bowl to the center to form a ball that holds together. Transfer to work surface. Cut the dough in half, place one half on top of other and press down. Repeat 3 or 4 times until all the water in incorporated into the dough and it clings together. Gather dough particles together into a ball and wrap with plastic wrap. Chill for at least 30 minutes before rolling.
Apple Dumplings
4 medium-sized tart cooking apples (I used Granny Smiths)
Brown Sugar to fill apple cores
4 tabs butter
Cinnamon for sprinkling
Cinnamon Syrup
½ cup sugar
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons butter
1 scant cup water
Roll pie crust out to 1/8 inch thick. Cut into four 6-7 inch squares. Peel and core 4 apples and place one on each square. Fill the cored holes with brown sugar, dot with butter and sprinkle with cinnamon. Bring 2 opposite points of each square up over the apple and stick together by moistening edges. Do the same with other opposite corners and place in baking pan. Refrigerate until chilled.
Meanwhile prepare cinnamon syrup by boiling together for 3 minutes sugar, cinnamon, butter and water.
Pour 1 cup cinnamon syrup around dumplings in baking pan and bake at 450° for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 350° and bake for 35 minutes until golden brown.
Serve with syrup from pan and partly whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.
Enjoy!
1 ½ cups unbleached white flour
½ teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons sugar (optional)
½ cup chilled butter
3 to 4 tablespoons ice water
By hand, combine flour, salt and sugar in a large bowl. With a knife, pastry cutter or fingers, work in butter until mixture resembles course meal. Sprinkle ice water onto crumbly dough, and, with your hands, push the dough from the sides of the bowl to the center to form a ball that holds together. Transfer to work surface. Cut the dough in half, place one half on top of other and press down. Repeat 3 or 4 times until all the water in incorporated into the dough and it clings together. Gather dough particles together into a ball and wrap with plastic wrap. Chill for at least 30 minutes before rolling.
Apple Dumplings
4 medium-sized tart cooking apples (I used Granny Smiths)
Brown Sugar to fill apple cores
4 tabs butter
Cinnamon for sprinkling
Cinnamon Syrup
½ cup sugar
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons butter
1 scant cup water
Roll pie crust out to 1/8 inch thick. Cut into four 6-7 inch squares. Peel and core 4 apples and place one on each square. Fill the cored holes with brown sugar, dot with butter and sprinkle with cinnamon. Bring 2 opposite points of each square up over the apple and stick together by moistening edges. Do the same with other opposite corners and place in baking pan. Refrigerate until chilled.
Meanwhile prepare cinnamon syrup by boiling together for 3 minutes sugar, cinnamon, butter and water.
Pour 1 cup cinnamon syrup around dumplings in baking pan and bake at 450° for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 350° and bake for 35 minutes until golden brown.
Serve with syrup from pan and partly whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.
Enjoy!
1 comment:
Hi Katy,
Your blog is so fun to read! I better taste some of your new treats when you get back to NY.
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