Are you a Pastry Chef?

I am not a pastry chef, but I do love fresh made cheese danish. I wanted to try and make a few of these for a fun breakfast treat. I searched the Internet and found and easy to do recipe for great tasting cheese danish. Much to my surprise, with the help of some frozen pastry dough, they were really simple to make. The name says it all Easy Cheese Danish recipe.



I picked up the needed supplies at the store on Friday so that we could have just out of the oven delights on Saturday.
I followed the recipe as written on the food network, but I did put the cheese filling in the frig for about 20 minutes since I forgot to thaw the pastry dough. Once the dough was warm enough to unfold, I continued with the recipe as written. I cut the dough into quarters and filled like this.




By this time I was getting too hungry. I skipped the step that says chill for 20 minutes once the pastry is filled. I just could not wait any longer. So into the oven went the pan, and 20 minutes later I had warm cheese danish. I added a little icing just like my favorite bakery. It is just a quarter cup of confectioners' sugar and a teaspoon of water, but it is so so good.
For a twist you can add a little jam just before baking, and that would be really great too! Next time I will give that a try.

Delicious Dessert

Last night we decided to make a great dessert from our Bon Appetit magazine. Each month I get the magazine delivered, and each month we make a few recipes from it. I figure, I have the subscription, I might as well try as many new recipes as possible. We made the blueberry shortcakes with lemon thyme biscuits. They were so good, and perfect for warm weather, since you can serve them with ice cream.
The preparation was super easy, and quick too. The blueberry mix could have been made a few days before, but since we were not pressed for time we made it all at once. I also cut the recipe in half since it was just two of us eating, and it worked out fine.
We sat on the front porch, and enjoyed our delicious dessert.

Everything Please!

I love baking. I wanted to have some everything bagels, so I took down my book The Bread Baker's Apprentice, and got to work. The bagel recipe is easy, and most delicious. It is an overnight recipe so make sure you don't want to eat them until the next morning. I use a great mix of garlic, poppy seeds, caraway seeds and salt for the topping. They are so good, it is like having a bagel from the local bagel shop, only better, because you made it!

If you are interested in Bread Baking or Bagel making, I would recommend that book. My copy is never far from the oven, it is filled with great recipes and wonderful baking tips! If you have a successful bagel story I would love to hear about it. There is nothing better than a bagel straight from the oven slathered with cream cheese!

Baking Apprentice

I have gotten another great item in the mail. This one will bring joy all winter long. With the onset of the winter chill, I am in the mood for bread and soup. I purchased The Bread Baker's Apprentice by Peter Reinhart. When I got the book, I opened to the first page, and was captivated. I could not put it down. The story telling with the instruction was mesmerizing. I learned so much and now I have my first loaves of Pain 'a l'Ancienne. This bread doesn't look like previous loaves I have made, this looks, dare I say, similar to the ones in the book?!! I am so excited about this new book, I will have bread all season. I am learning the art of bread baking, not just a recipe, but the art. Bread is one of my weaknesses, so now I can make my own, whenever the mood strikes. I must wait until the bread cools now before indulging in the fruits of my labor!

Blueberries disguised in Chocolate Brownies

Not that you would need to disguise the delicious summer blueberries from Michigan, but what a combo, blueberries and chocolate. I made a 9x13 pan of these amazing brownies that I found here. The recipe said that it was vegan, which is all well and good, but I did not have any soy milk, or intend on buying it just for the recipe. I substituted regular whole milk. The pan of blueberry chocolate brownies may be the best brownie I have ever eaten, and frankly, I could not stop eating them. I had some before dinner, after dinner, after we went to dessert at a friends house where we had a mango tart, and some just before bed with a glass of whole milk! Needless to say the pan is almost empty now!
I just was in the mood for some blueberries, but I also wanted chocolate, so I searched google, of course, and now I have my new favorite brownie. I don't think I will ever make them any other way. For the original recipe you can click here .
This is how I made them, less vegan, sorry!
Blueberry and Chocolate Brownies

Ingredients
2/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, plus
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips I added a few extra for fun!
10 ounces blueberry preserves (spreadable fruit, smooth, no whole blueberries)
1/4 cup milk
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup canola oil
21/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup fresh blueberries

Before starting Preheat your oven to 325 degrees, and grease the 9x13 pan.

In a small bowl melt 2/3 cup chocolate chips in microwave in short intervals to avoid burning.
In a large mixing bowl combine bluberry spreadable fruit, milk, sugar, canola oil and vanilla. Mix this until smooth. I stirred it by hand, to preserve the quite in the house.
Sift in flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir this batter until it too is smooth. It is okay to taste it, no eggs! Don't fill up because next you add the melted chocolate, and then the batter really gets good.


Once you are satisfied that the batter is stirred add in remaining 1/2 cup of whole chocolate chips (plus a few extra) and fresh blueberries.
Pour the batter into the baking pan and bake for 40 minutes. Though it is tempting to try the brownies just out of the oven I suggest you let them cool. I burnt my tongue, but oh was it delicious.
Share if you want, but they are so good you might just want to keep them all for yourself!