a rosemary cake for the books

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while thanksgiving day celebrations are particularly special, gathering around the table with a group of good friends is one of my absolute favorite things about this time of year (along with snow covering the ground and snuggling under blankets). lucky for me, there are usually at least a few "friendsgivings" and my friends really know how to do it up good! 

we attended the first of these gatherings of the year last night, and well... i'll take any opportunity to make dessert for a group of people, but a friendsgiving gives me the chance to make something out of the ordinary! i spent some time looking for recipes and as soon as i saw this cake, i couldn't stop going back to it. i was curious about the texture that would come from cornmeal and a sweet rosemary dish, but more than anything i couldn't believe i had never thought to make buttercream frosting from brown butter. absolutely genius! 

if you've never had brown butter before, you're in for a treat. browning the butter caramelizes the milk solids and brings out an incredible nutty flavor in the butter. to me - it's pure heaven! 

I used some whole wheat pastry flour to add a little heartiness to the cake, but you can use 3 cups of white flour if you prefer. 

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this recipe was just so slightly adapted from adventures in cooking. 

ingredients: 

2 cups all purpose white flour

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour 

3/4 cup cornmeal

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

2 1/4 cups sugar

6 eggs

1 cup olive oil

1/3 cup apple cider

1 tablespoon vanilla etxract

1/4 cup fresh rosemary, chopped

for the frosting: 

1 1/3 cup butter

3 cup powdered sugar

3 tablespoons honey

instructions: 

first things first, you'll need to brown the butter. if you've never made brown butter before, check out this video from America's Test Kitchen (they're the experts!). once the butter is nicely browned and smelling deliciously nutty, transfer it into a small bowl lined with parchment paper and set it in the freezer so it will harden. (after doing this, i couldn't help but wonder why i don't keep brown butter in the fridge at all times!)

while the butter is cooling, get started on the cake. 

first, you'll want to mix together the dry ingredients in a medium bowl, including the flours, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. whisk them to combine thoroughly and remove any clumps. 

in a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, with a hand mixer, or some strong arms - mix the eggs and sugar until thick, about one minute in a stand mixer. next, add the olive oil, apple cider, and vanilla and mix to combine. add the flour mixture in thirds, allowing it to incorporate completely in between each addition. Once all the flour is incorporated, stir in the chopped rosemary. 

divide the batter evenly between three buttered and floured eight inch cake pans.

bake at 350 F for 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. set pans on a cooling rack for ten minutes, then turn cakes out onto rack to cool completely. 

while the cakes are baking, start making the frosting. remove the butter from the freezer and let it soften. when the butter is soft, whip the powdered sugar and honey with the butter until smooth. then take a taste - it's delicious! 

when the cakes are cooled and the frosting is ready, frost and assemble the cake. garnish with a sprig of rosemary. 

Rhubarb Galette

a few years ago, i created perfect little rows of rhubarb in my galette, with the red skin showing. 

adapted from Alice Waters' Rhubarb Galette 

with the arrival of this spring daniel (my leading man) exclaimed his belief that there is no one in the world who loves rhubarb more than i do. and to be honest, it might be true! last year, i spent many of my days in an educational garden with an oversized rhubarb patch. it was rare i left without at least a small handful of stalks... and sometimes it was an overflowing bagful! i was so concerned as this spring approached that i wouldn't have my own rhubarb patch... but lo and behold a few volunteer rhubarb plants have appeared perfectly situated on the edge of our newly cleared garden. it just may be a rhubarb miracle! 

there have been rhubarb pies, chutneys, cocktails, popsicles, grilled rhubarb and more to come out of my kitchen - but this galette never misses a spring. you see, the galette is a favorite of mine for it's simplicity and rustic charm - be it filled with rhubarb, pears, cherries, or butternut squash and caramelized onions. just try this one, and i'm fairly confident you too will be hooked! 

this year we served this galette with a hearty scoop of homemade strawberry sorbet (100% last year's local strawberries, nothing more!), but it's also wonderful with fresh whipped cream or vanilla ice cream. 

this year, i just piled the rhubarb on 

ingredients: 

for the crust: 

1/2 cup all purpose flour 

1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour 

1/2 tsp sugar 

pinch salt 

2 Tbsp flour 

6 tbsp butter (i use shetler dairy local butter, the higher quality your butter, the better your crust) 

3 1/2 tbsp ice water 

for the filling: 

1 1/2 pounds rhubarb 

1/3 cup plus 2 tbsp cane sugar 

1/4 cup almonds or almond flour (see note) 

1 tbsp butter, melted 

optional jasmine glaze: 

1/2 cup cane sugar 

1/2 cup water 

2 bags of jasmine tea 

instructions: 

first, prepare your crust. this can be done by hand or gently pulsed in a food processor. i've always made my crusts by hand, for while the allure of the food processor is strong, you'll never overwork a dough by hand.

whisk together the flours, sugar, and salt in a medium bowl.  i prefer a shallow and wide bowl for ease of working the dough. add 2 tbsp of the butter (be sure it is cold, and cut into cubes before adding). use a pastry cutter or two knives to cut the butter into the flour until it the pieces of butter are well-combined with the flour. add the remaining butter and cut it into the mixture until the butter pieces are about the size of peas. sprinkle in the water and use your fingers to toss it into the dough. once the water is fully integrated, gently press the dough together into one ball. flatten it into a disk, wrap in plastic, and place in the fridge for at least half an hour. 

next, create the base for your filling. use whole almonds if you have a high powered blender that can turn them into flour (i do this with the dry blade on our vitamix which is made for making flours). to do so, blend almonds, flour, and 2 tbsp sugar together until uniform. if you don't have this tool, just stir together almond flour, flour, and 2 tbsp sugar. 

when the dough is about ready to come out of the fridge, wash your rhubarb and slice it into matchsticks that are about 3 inches long and 1/4 inch thick. toss in a bowl with 1/2 cup sugar and let sit until you're ready for it. 

now, flour your countertop generously, remove dough from fridge and roll out into the best circle you can create (it isn't a big deal how round it is, we're going for a rustic look here!). when you're finished, it should be about a 14 inch circle and about 1/8 inch thick. brush off any excess flour and transfer dough to a sheet pan lined with a silpat or parchment paper. 

to assemble, sprinkle your almond mixture evenly over the dough, leaving a 1-2 inch boarder clean. evenly spread your rhubarb over this area, leaving any excess sugar and moisture in the bowl. you can make perfect little lines, a spiral, or just pile them on - it's up to you! fold the clean edges up and over the rhubarb, working your way around the circle and being careful to avoid tears in your dough. brush the edges with melted butter, and sprinkle with a little sugar if you wish. 

bake at 400 degrees for 30-45 minutes, rotating every 15 minutes so it cooks evenly, until crust is golden brown. 

glaze

if you want to use the optional glaze, you'll just need to make an infused simple syrup (a handy skill to have!). in a small saucepan, combine sugar and water. cook over medium heat until the sugar has completely dissolved. add tea bags (or loose leaf tea, which you can strain off once it's steeped) and let steep for 10-20 minutes, turning the heat off after about 5 as the water will evaporate quickly. the syrup should smell strongly of jasmine when you're finished. 

brush a thin coat of glaze lightly over the galette while it cools. you'll have some extra left over which can be mixed with club soda over ice for a refreshing drink!

blueberry crisp with ginger and lime for midwinter joy

the town where i live, traverse city, is surrounded by an incredible amount of farmland, much of it orchards and other fruit farms. so while we have a wonderful supply of veggies at market, there is also an abundance of fruit -- particularly stone fruits and of course plenty of berries. last summer, daniel and i purchased our first ever chest freezer and started putting away the bounty, thinking joyfully about having local fruit through the entire winter. i would leave the market twice a week with both panniers (bike bags) loaded with what we needed for meals plus whatever fruit would fit. 

after a summer of markets, we had over 50 pounds of blueberries, maybe 20 quarts of sweet black cherries, a flat plus some of strawberries, two gallons of raspberries, 4 or so gallons of peach slices, and some other little surprises (like pesto!). plus of course the canned goods. i couldn't help but think we had a serious food hoarding problem. 

but now, it's april - the outdoor farmers market starts again in just a few weeks, and we've had an incredible winter of smoothies, crisps, and other fruit treats. AND, we only have a few gallon bags of fruit left - i guess we didn't go totally over the top after all! 

first of all, if i've learned anything about freezing fruit in northern michigan -- it would be to always always always freeze pitted sweet cherries. it's worth the splatter of black cherry juice all over your kitchen from an afternoon of pitting when you take your first sip of an almond cherry vanilla smoothie (or with chocolate!). Recipes for those coming soon, I promise! 

but for now, one of my favorite reminders of summer during the depths of winter - blueberry crisp. this dessert is delicious and easy to throw together with things around the house (so long as you have a freezer full of blueberries). 

ingredients: 

3/4 cup cane sugar 

3 Tbsp white flour 

7 cups blueberries (fresh or frozen) 

3 Tbsp lime juice 

3/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour 

3/4 cup brown sugar 

1/2 cup (4oz) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1in cubes 

1 1/2 cups thick rolled oats 

1/2 tsp cinnamon 

1 tsp ground ginger 

pinch of sea salt 

directions: 

in a small bowl, mix together the cane sugar and white flour. 

place blueberries in a 9x13 baking dish and sprinkle sugar mixture and lime juice over top. stir until well combined, then spread evenly in dish. 

combine whole wheat pastry flour, brown sugar, oats, and spices in medium mixing bowl (i like to do this with a whisk). add butter cubes and work into flour mixture with hands until it is well combined and resembles a course meal. this is most easily done by rubbing the ingredients between your thumb and fingers. 

sprinkle this mixture evenly over the berries. 

bake at 400 degrees for about 35 minutes, or until topping has turned golden brown and blueberries are bubbling up through the topping in places. 

let cool for at least 15 minutes before serving. this dish is great warm with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream. it's also great on it's own at room temperature (for dessert or breakfast...).