I’ve always been a huge fan of Chinese 5-spice. The aroma and flavor are just pure magic. This peppery-sweet mixture provides endless options for its use.
Perhaps the most amazing thing about this spice blend is how well it compliments both sweet and savory dishes.
In this recipe, the apricots offer a subtle sweetness to these cookies, while the Chinese 5- spice adds a spicy perspective and chopped pepitas add a nutty crunch. Blend that all together with oatmeal & raisins and you get a nice range of flavors.
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Apricot Raisin Five-Spice Oatmeal Cookies
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Instructions
Cream butter & sugars together well. Add egg & vanilla; beat until light & fluffy.
Sift together flour, five-spice powder, nutmeg, salt & baking soda.
Fold the dry ingredients into the creamed mixture. When the dry ingredients are almost incorporated, add the oatmeal, raisins, apricots & seeds.
Chill the dough for about an hour before baking for best results.
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Scoop onto parchment lined cookie sheet about 2 1/2 inches apart. Bake for about 10 minutes. Do not over bake or the cookies will lose their chewy texture.
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Avocados are a gift of Mother Nature! It’s no secret we love avocados, I’ve lost count of how many ways I have found to use avocados over the years. I’m always surprised how versatile avocados are for cooking and baking.
If you want to reduce the amount of fat used in baking, there is no better product substitute than the avocado fruit. Avocados can replace butter and eggs but be aware that the dough will be slightly green in color even after baking. The texture of avocado is soft and creamy like butter and can simply be substituted cup for cup with butter. Unlike butter, avocados won’t melt so it might be beneficial to slightly increase some of the liquids being used. As an egg substitute, use up to ⅓ cup of avocado pulp for each egg. If you find that your cake is browning too quickly, just reduce the heat and increase the baking time.
These avocado lemon cakes serve as the perfect base for numerous different combinations such as blueberries, or maybe some chopped nuts, or a handful of toasted coconut.
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Avocado Lemon Cakes
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Instructions
Cakes
Preheat oven to 325 F. Spray a 6-cup mini Bundt pan with baking spray.
Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda & salt in a bowl.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the pureed avocado & butter with the sugar until completely combined. Beat in egg. With the mixer on low speed, beat in lemon juice/milk mixture until just combined.
Add flour mixture in 3 additions, mixing each addition until just combined. Once the flour mixture is incorporated, increase speed to medium & beat for 20 seconds longer. Be careful to not overmix. Divide batter between the 6 mini cups.
Bake until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Cool cakes in pan on a rack for 10 minutes before inverting to cool completely.
Lemon Glaze
In a small bowl, combine enough fresh lemon juice with powdered sugar to make a glaze consistency. Drizzle over cooled cakes. Garnish with pepita seeds or pistachios & lemon zest.
No sooner is Christmas behind us than the next ‘special’ event is coming up fast, Valentine’s Day. It isn’t a true holiday, but it sure gets treated like one. Most every mainstream holiday has some candy or treat representing it. Christmas has candy canes, Halloween has candy corn, and Valentine’s Day has chocolate and strawberries.
There’s also a lot more romantic history to strawberries than meets the eye. Our favorite red berry dates back to Ancient Rome where it was considered the symbol of Venus, the goddess of love, because of its bright red color and intoxicating taste. The fruit looks so alluring in fact, that strawberries were carved into church altars and cathedral pillars in medieval times to represent perfection. Legend has it that when two people split a strawberry, they’ll fall in love.
Strawberries are one of nature’s true pleasures; they do not contain much sugar, but they have a sweet and wonderful taste, so they can be enjoyed without any guilt!
Brion & I have never felt the need to give gifts on ‘occasions’ but rather just a card with a loving and sincere verse. As we grow older, it comes clearer every day, the special privilege it is to simply have each other to share life with. I thought these little strawberry love notes were fitting for a Valentine blog.
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Strawberry Love Notes
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Instructions
Pastry
In a bowl, combine flour, baking soda, baking powder & salt. Cut in shortening with a pastry blender or your finger tips. In a 1/2 cup measure, place the beaten egg & vinegar then add enough ice water to fill measuring cup. Make a well in flour mixture & add wet ingredients. Mix with a fork until combined into a pastry dough. Chill until filling is ready.
Filling
In a bowl, combine strawberries, sugar, cornstarch & vanilla. Set aside.
Assembly
On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough until it is about 1/8-inch thick. Open a 4 x 51/2-inch paper envelope & use as a pattern. Reduce the pattern to make a smaller envelope if desired. Cut pastry into 6 envelopes & 12 small heart shaped cut outs.
Fill pastry with strawberry filling, but not on the back flap. Following the folds of the paper envelope, fold the cut out pastry, leaving the upper flap open.
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Place a couple of heart shaped cut outs on folded edges of the pastry envelope. Place pastries on parchment lined baking sheet. Brush with egg wash then sprinkle with sanding sugar.
Bake pastries for 15-20 minutes or until lightly browned. Do not remove from baking sheet until completely cooled.
Recipe Notes
- I used an AIR-BAKE pan so the tops would not overbake by the time the bottom was browned.
Millet is not just a key ingredient in bird seed and animal feed. While it is used for these purposes, millet has been an important food source for a large part of the world’s human population dating back to prehistoric times!
It’s a primary ingredient in flatbreads, beer and other fermented beverages, and porridges. Though technically a seed, millet functions like a whole grain, and you can cook with it like you would other whole grains such as rice or quinoa.
The name ‘millet’ refers to several different varieties of a cereal grass, the most common in North America being the proso variety, while ‘pearl millet’ is the most common variety cultivated worldwide. India and parts of Africa are where millet is thought to have evolved.
Millet falls on the sweeter end of the whole grain scale; some people liken the flavor to corn. It also readily takes on the flavor characteristics of the ingredients in a sauce or a dressing. The small, butter-yellow grains cook up light and fluffy, similar to couscous. When ground to a flour, millet’s soft, starchy consistency makes it ideal for gluten-free baking. On its own, millet can taste somewhat bitter, which is why it’s best blended with other mild flours; doing so allows millet’s other flavor notes (buttery, nutty, grassy) to shine.
Millet is available pearled or hulled: opt for hulled, which is the true whole-grain variety (hulled still retains plentiful fiber, as only the outermost layer is removed). Out of the hull, millet seeds look like tiny yellow beads with dark dots on the side where the plant’s stem was attached.
Millet is one of the ways in which you can add the perfect gentle crunch to baked goods such as this millet tea cake.
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Millet Tea Cake
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Instructions
Preheat oven to 375 F. Line a 9 x 9-inch baking pan with parchment paper making sure to have overlap on the sides for easy removal from the pan.
Whisk oats, flour, sugars, baking soda & salt together. Add buttermilk, oil, egg, vanilla, millet & dates. Whisk to blend. Stir in 1/3 cup boiling water & let stand for 5 minutes. Scrape into baking pan & level out with a fork.
Bake cake 25-30 minutes or until tester inserted into center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes on a wire rack. During the cooling stage drizzle cake with lemon curd if you wish. Slice & serve warm or at room temperature.
‘Tis the season for fall flavors! Nature is offering an abundance of root vegetables such as carrots, parsnips, sweet potatoes and fruits to make use of in our fall baking.
Thinking about autumn can bring about some pleasant thoughts. While it is common to think about cozy scarves and pumpkin lattes, the symbolic meanings of autumn are more profound than you think. Ancient cultures, science and astrology have associated many aspects of this beautiful season to human life. These symbolic associations are powerful reminders that Mother Nature has an incredible influence on our lives.
These fall cookies are full of green zucchinis, deep orange carrots and bright red apples, colorful representations of the changing season ahead.
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Carrot Cake Cookies
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Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
In a large bowl, stir together oats, flour, flaxseed, cinnamon, cardamom, baking soda & salt.
In a medium bowl or liquid measuring cup, whisk together applesauce, honey (or maple syrup), egg & vanilla. Mix in the melted butter.
Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and stir until just combined. Gently fold in the nuts/seeds, grated zucchini, carrot & apple.
Use a large scoop or measuring cup to drop 1/4-cup portions of dough onto the prepared baking sheets. Use your fingers to gently shape the cookies and flatten slightly, as they won't flatten on their own during baking.
Bake 14-15 minutes, until set and lightly golden. (If baking more than one pan at a time, be sure to rotate the pans halfway through the baking time.)
Let cookies cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.
Limoncello, (pronounced lee-mon-CHAY-low) the Italian lemon liqueur, is known for its refreshing sweet and tangy flavor. It is made from lemon rinds, alcohol and sugar. Although, traditionally served as an after dinner drink, it is a wonderful ingredient to use in cooking and baking.
Families have passed down recipes for limoncello for generations, as every Italian family has their own recipe. In the winter of 2013, Brion and I spent some time travelling Italy. It was in Sorrento where we tasted limoncello for the first time and loved it. As we walked through the quaint artisan shops packed together onto a maze of medieval alleys, we came across one that sold liqueurs & confectionery. One of the treats that they made were limoncello sugar coated almonds … to die for!
Limoncello origins are disputed. Some say it was created by monks or nuns while others credit the wealthy Amalfi Coast families or even local townsfolk. In any case, its roots are in Southern Italy, primarily along Italy’s Amalfi Coast and the Sorrentine Peninsula known for their meticulous lemon cultivation. These lemons are considered the finest lemons for making limoncello. Prized for their yellow rinds, intense fragrance, juicy flesh and balanced acid.
Today, I’m using limoncello not only in the cake but the glaze as well. This is definitely a refreshing cake, great for a summer picnic or dinner.
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Glazed Limoncello Cakes
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Instructions
Cake
Preheat oven to 350 F. Spray an 8-inch square cake pan with cooking spray or baking pans of your choice.
Whisk sour cream, white sugar, canola oil, eggs, 3 tablespoons limoncello, and lemon zest together in a large bowl.
Sift flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in another bowl. Add flour mixture to sour cream mixture; stir with a wooden spoon until batter is just combined. Pour batter into prepared cake pan or pans.
Bake for about 35 minutes OR until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool cake(s) in the pan for 5 minutes.
Glaze
Whisk powdered sugar and 2 tablespoons limoncello liqueur together in a bowl until glaze is thin and smooth. Drizzle glaze over the top of the cake. Cool cake completely before serving. Top with a bit of whipped cream if desired.
Recipe Notes
- You may need a bit more glaze if you have made individual cakes as I did here.
Over the years, I have used guava paste numerous times. I found it was equally as good in both sweet and savory preparations, adding a nice ‘zing’ due to the natural acidity in guava fruit.
This specialty ingredient is made by cooking together guava fruit and sugar until it is very, very thick and then leaving the mixture to dry to remove excess moisture. This results in a paste that keeps well and is very flavorful. Guava paste is typically sold in short, wide cans or plastic packaging.
Guava paste is an ingredient found in many Cuban, Caribbean and South American recipes. A common pairing with cheese as an appetizer or baked into pastries as part of the filling. Also known as goiabada or pasta de guayaba, has a sweet, floral taste lending a distinct and tropical flavor to anything it is used in.
Today, I’m using it in some scones with cream cheese. Should be good!
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Guava Cream Cheese Scones
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Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 F. Line a round 8" baking pan with parchment paper.
In a bowl, whisk together flour, sugar & baking soda. With fingers, cut in cold butter & cream cheese until mixture resembles small peas. Do NOT over work dough. Carefully stir in guava paste cubes with a fork.
In a small cup, beat egg slightly then combine with buttermilk & vanilla. Add wet ingredients to flour mixture, stirring ONLY until combined.
Pour dough into lined baking pan, spreading evenly. Sprinkle with sanding sugar. Bake about 20 minutes or until golden & tests done. Slice into 8 wedges & serve warm.
Who can turn down cake for breakfast? It says right there in the recipe that ‘Served warm, it makes a delicious breakfast bread’. Although, bread might be stretching the truth a bit too far. Its cake, let’s be honest.
Oats are like the chameleon of the breakfast table, occupying many forms and disguising themselves as a bevy of morning meal options. The baked oats trend has been converting skeptics in huge numbers these days.
This lightly sweetened, apricot oat cake is a breakfast cake that celebrates apricots. A combination of regular all-purpose flour with oat flour results in the perfect crumb and a lovely flavor. Because oat flour is surprisingly light and retains moisture makes it perfect for pairing as well with the coarser, grittier texture of cornmeal. The slightly sweeter taste of oat flour not only complements the corn flavor, it also lets you use a little bit less sugar.
There’s just something comforting about breakfast cake in the morning!
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Apricot Oat Breakfast Cake
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Instructions
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Spray an 8-inch round baking pan with cooking spray. Combine apricot halves and boiling water and let stand 15 minutes to soften. Drain apricots and arrange in bottom of pan.
In medium bowl, whisk together oat flour, white flour, cornmeal, brown sugar, ginger, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
In separate bowl, stir together whole egg, egg whites, buttermilk, and olive oil. Make well in center of dry ingredients. Pour egg mixture into well, stirring just until moistened. Pour batter over apricots and smooth top.
Bake until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Cool on wire rack for 10 minutes. Turn cake out onto rack to cool completely. Dust with confectioners’ sugar if desired.
Recipe Notes
- It’s super easy to make your own oat flour. You’ll need a food processor or a good blender, and oats, that’s it! You use raw oats, any type, and process for a few seconds until they turn into a fine powder.... oat flour!
- TO MAKE OAT FLOUR USE:
- 2 1/2 cups oats - use steel cut or rolled
- Put the oats in a food processor or high speed blender. Blend until the oats become a fine powder. This will only take a few seconds in a high speed blender, and a little bit longer in a food processor. Store the oat flour in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
- 1 1/4 cup oats will yield approximately 1 cup flour.
Plantains aren’t meant for eating right out of the peel, but they are transformed into a gently sweet dessert when caramelized.
It’s easy to confuse a plantain with a banana because they look so much alike. Both fruits come from the same family of plants. Though they look alike, the biggest differences between bananas and plantains is in their flavor profile, size, skin thickness and how they’re used in the kitchen.
Like bananas, they start green and progress to yellow and then a dark brown-black as they ripen. The darker they are, the sweeter they’ll be. Plantains can be eaten at any stage of ripening, but you’ll need a knife to peel them.
Plantains are starchier and usually larger and tougher than bananas, with a much thicker skin. Very versatile in that they can be boiled, baked or fried.
We grew to like plantains after our extended stay in Ecuador some years ago. Every so often they are a nice treat to have again.
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Plantain Ginger Cakes
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Instructions
Caramelized Plantains
Slice plantains into slices of equal thickness. In a small saucepan, combine butter & sugar; cook until butter has melted & sugar has dissolved. Cook until syrup has thickened; add sliced plantains. Gently stir to coat plantain well. In the bottom of 8 ramekin baking dishes, arrange overlapping slices. Divide any remaining syrup between them. Set aside.
Cake
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In a bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, spices & salt.
In another bowl, beat the butter with sugar until light & fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time then the vanilla. Slowly add one third of the flour mixture & half a cup of the coconut milk. Mix until incorporated.
Add the second third of the flour mixture & the other half of the coconut milk. Finish with the final third of the flour mixture. Mix until all the ingredients are well combined. The batter is smooth & fluffy. Pour the batter over the caramelized plantains, dividing it evenly between the ramekins.
Bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown & a toothpick inserted in the centers comes out clean. Transfer ramekins to a cooling rack & allow to cool for 10 minutes. Loosen the edges of the cake with a spatula & carefully turn each ramekin upside down onto serving plates.
Recipe Notes
- For something different, I decided to make my plantain cake in an oblong tart pan so I could cut it in 'fingers'. Use whatever baking dish you chose, the cake is very adaptable.
