Roasting intensifies the flavor of fruit and creates an appealing texture especially in unripe fruit. To often, many of our store bought fruits picked before they are ripe are quite tasteless. The fact that stone fruits like peaches, plums, nectarines and apricots are seasonal, makes them seem almost more valuable.
Whether you prefer to bake, roast or grill your fruit, the options for its flavor are only limited by your imagination. When it comes to the herbs and spices you can use, think beyond traditional choices. Consider star anise, ginger, cardamom or mint, sage and lemon verbena to name a few.
A summer favorite for me are those little sweet-tart fresh apricots. In comparison to other stone fruits they seem to be undeservedly, under appreciated. Even if baking is not a summertime pursuit, you can always make good use of your barbecue.
Apricots stuffed with crushed almond-flavored amaretti cookies and mascarpone, then drizzled with apricot brandy are absolutely ‘divine’. You can prepare the apricots before you sit down to eat then bake them in the oven or on the barbecue. They will be ready to top with a dollop of ice cream for dessert.
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Roasted Apricots with Mascarpone & Apricot Brandy
Votes: 1
Rating: 5
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Votes: 1
Rating: 5
You:
Rate this recipe!
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Instructions
Preheat oven or barbecue to 375 F.
Arrange the halved apricots to fit snugly, cut side up, in a shallow oven or barbecue dish. Mix crushed biscuits with the mascarpone. Spoon into the cavity of the apricots & sprinkle with the brandy or orange juice.
Bake for about 15-20 minutes until tender & serve warm or cold with ice cream.
Not a pie at all, traditional whoopie pies are two thin chocolate cakes sandwiched around a white frosting. The origin of the whoopie pie is somewhat controversial. Some people say they were invented in Medieval Germany and brought to the USA by immigrants. Women would bake cakes and use leftover batter and icing to make these special treats. The little cake sandwiches were placed in children’s lunch boxes, where upon discovering them, cries of ‘whoopie’ were shouted. From the basic chocolate and vanilla formula of the past, a whole host of varieties have since taken the stage.
I love the pastel shades of Spring and try to incorporate them into anything I can. When I was shopping the other day, I happened to see some little colorful French Macaron cookies in a bakery window. As great as they look, I personally have never cared for the ‘meringue’ type cookie. Nevertheless, it gave me some inspiration for some ‘spring’ whoopie pies. Adding a few new flavors to the chocolate and vanilla batters along with some flavored Mascarpone fillings takes whoopie pies (cookies) to a whole new level.
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'Spring" Whoopie Pies with Mascarpone Filling
Votes: 1
Rating: 5
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Ingredients
Basic Vanilla Cookie Batter
MASCARPONE FILLINGS - Raspberry, Blueberry, Apricot & Strawberry Preserve
Ingredients
Basic Vanilla Cookie Batter
MASCARPONE FILLINGS - Raspberry, Blueberry, Apricot & Strawberry Preserve
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Votes: 1
Rating: 5
You:
Rate this recipe!
|
Instructions
Preheat oven 350 F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat butter, sugar & vanilla until light & fluffy. Beat in egg. In another bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda & salt. Add flour mixture to butter mixture alternately with buttermilk.
In separate small bowls, divide vanilla batter into 4 equal portions. Leave one plain, to the second dish add pistachio nuts & a tiny bit of green food color gel. To the third dish add 2-3 Tbsp Chambord liqueur & red food coloring. To the fourth add lemon zest & yellow food color.
FOR CHOCOLATE BATTER: Follow directions in the first paragraph, adding cocoa along with flour mixture. Using a small scoop or heaped tablespoon, spoon mixtures onto baking sheet. Allow room for spreading. Bake for 10-12 minutes. DO NOT OVER BAKE. Remove from oven & transfer to wire rack.
While whoopies are baking prepare Mascarpone fillings. For every 60 grams of Mascarpone use 2-3 Tbsp of one of the preserve flavors.
When the whoopies are cold, match each with whoopie half with its closest partner size. Spread with a knife or use a piping bag to cover the flat side of one whoopie half of each pair generously with filling. Top each with its matching half, flat side down & gently press together.
Recipe Notes
- Another flavor you might enjoy is lemon curd which can be purchased in the preserve section of the grocery store.
- For chocolate filling, add a little cocoa powder & powdered sugar to some Mascarpone.
- For some of the vanilla whoopies, I made a Rosewater flavored filling with 1 tsp margarine, 60 gm Mascarpone, 3 Tbsp powdered sugar & 3/4 tsp rosewater.
