Smoked Salmon (LOX) Crisps with Lemon Wasabi Cream Cheese

Posted on December 31, 2011 by Lisa

These smoked salmon or LOX, (although the former is hot smoked, and the latter is cold smoked, but smoked nonetheless) crisps with lemon wasabi cream cheese are perfect holiday hors d’oeuvres! Luscious marinated smoked salmon on top of black sesame tuiles with a decorative and delicious piping of lemon wasabi cream cheese. So much flavor in one bite!

This post was scheduled to go up at midnight, but I scheduled it a few hours earlier, so in retrospect, this is Lisa of New Years past speaking. Let me explain…

The reason I initially scheduled this for midnight was because I was invited by Lora of Cake Duchess and Sanjeeta of Lite Bite to take part in a Virtual Party Bloghop to welcome in 2012 , and that’s when they asked us to put it up; at or after midnight.

Smoked Salmon Crisps with Lemon Wasabi Cream Cheese. Perfect party hors d'oeuvres!

I kind of cheated and scheduled this post for 9:30 pm because these smoked salmon crisps are so amazing, and so amazingly easy to whip up, that there’s still a ton of time to make it for a New Years brunch. Plus, on the East and West Coasts, you would have plenty of time to whip it up tonight if you’ve got some smoked salmon on hand! My other reasoning is, it’s already 2012 in other parts of the world, like Europe, for instance. My ancestors hail from Russia, so let’s pretend I’ve already celebrated with champagne (and vodka?). I’m three sheets to the wind (not really ever since I would have thrown up already) and ready for sleep. Boy it’s cold here!

S Novym Godom!

Smoked Salmon Crisps with Lemon Wasabi Cream Cheese. Perfect party hors d'oeuvres!I borderline burned my first batch of tuiles, as you can see above.  Thankfully I had enough batter left to compensate.

That said, there’s a bunch of great food bloggers taking part, so once all the posts are up, (this party is on until January 7th), just clicking the linky at the bottom of this post will take you to a gallery of gorgeous dishes to celebrate the New Year. The Twitter hashtag is #Welcome2012.  Join us all week long!

Logo created by Heather of Farmgirl Gourmet

What’s great about these smoked salmon crisps is that these aren’t just perfect for the holidays..they can be anytime hors d’oeuvres or appetizers.  Just one would make a great amuse bouche, so I’m thinking this suits all three categories.  I think I need to create an hors d’oeuvres and/or canapes category.

That being said, the recipe is by Thomas Keller, from his French Laundry cookbook.  You do not have to smoke your own salmon to make this.  I don’t own a smoker (gave it away years ago because I hardly ever used it, but now wish I didn’t) so I did the next best thing; I bought my smoked salmon from a Jewish deli that smokes their own salmon.  There you go! There are also great packaged Novia Scotia salmon brands and lox in the supermarkets, so you don’t need a great Jewish deli nearby to make these.

Smoked Salmon Crisps with Lemon Wasabi Cream Cheese. Perfect party hors d'oeuvres!

Thomas Keller is brilliant; a culinary virtuoso, so I really didn’t think I was going to change a bit of this recipe.  Then it came to me..smoked salmon, LOX, LOX and cream cheese on a bagel. Bagels with cream cheese and lox has been a food staple every Sunday since childhood.

I now dub these ‘bagels with cream cheese, lox and onions, REFINED’.  Oh, and with a lot less calories too, if you don’t eat 3 dozen of them.

Speaking of bagels, do any of you order your bagels ‘scooped’? This is where they tear out the doughy innards before filling it with whatever you choose, to cut carbs and calories.  I’m sorry, I will try to eat as healthy as I can, but no way in hell am I ever giving up those doughy innards when I treat myself to a bagel with cream cheese, lox, onions, (and sometimes capers if they have them) or whatever I’m craving that day. It’s sort of sacrilege to me; the best part of the bagel!

I totally digress.

Creme fraiche is a lovely, tangy topping, and easy to make, but to welcome in 2012, the New Yorker in me felt these called for cream cheese, so I used cream cheese. When I tasted my cream cheese topping, it needed a little kick. Wasabi goes extremely well with salmon, and provided that kick (plus, I love it), but you don’t have to use it, because it’s fine without it.

One small caveat (another favorite and oft-used word of mine), the baking time for the tuiles in Chef Keller’s recipe was too long.  My first batch burned, as you can see in the above photo collage. Maybe this is because I baked only one sheet at a time, so if you’re going to do the same, 8-10 minutes is perfect, but start checking at 6 minutes.

ALSO, how about sprinkling the tuiles with everything bagel seasoning instead of just black sesame seeds?? The flavor boost will be incredible!!

Smoked Salmon Crisps with Lemon Wasabi Cream Cheese. Perfect party hors d'oeuvres!

As a sort of test, I also made some tartines with herb cheese and smoked salmon, but everyone liked these much better! To be candid, tartine is just a fancy schmancy French name for a slice of bread or toast with stuff on it, or to quote the fabulous Chrissy Tiegen, whose book I worship, “shit on toast”.

Speaking of “shit on toast”, could Shit on a Shingle, aka SOS, be considered a Tartine? Yes! It could! It’s creamed, chipped beef (or ground beef) on slices of open-face toast!

SO, one last thing before I get to my top posts of 2011.  As part of this virtual New Years party, we were given a list of things to do.  One was optional, asking us to name and link to bloggers who inspired us in 2011.  People who know me in real life would say one thing..  “Nope, she never picks out people and leaves others out, so she won’t do that”.  Yes, that’s the truth. I’m the type of person who will drive my kids crazy by making them invite everyone in the class to their birthday parties when they’re in elementary school, and I still have enough reign/authority to do so.

BUT, to be honest, this is not even a case of leaving people out. The truth is, every single food blogger I know or don’t know but read, inspires me in some way, shape or form.  There’s no way I can just choose 5 or 100, it just isn’t possible (Please don’t misunderstand, there is NOTHING wrong with choosing favorites, whether it be people, places or things; it’s just how I operate), so I’ll leave it at…

YOU ALL inspire and affect me in so many different and positive ways.

I’m quite the softy; a big blob of goo. I can’t ignore, exclude or hurt people. Someone has to do something pretty mean or awful to me for none of the above to apply. Being too nice is not always a good thing in life, and some take advantage and walk all over you, or make things up about you just because they know you probably won’t speak up, but hey, maybe it’ll serve me well somewhere down the road.  Now back to our scheduled programming, minus the wahhh.

Smoked Salmon Crisps with Lemon Wasabi Cream Cheese. Perfect party hors d'oeuvres!

Herein lies my top posts of 2011.  I decided to forgo the usual top 10, 11 for 2011, or 12 for 2012.  Instead, 2+0+1+1 = 4, and I prefer odd numbers, so here are my TOP 5 posts of 2011.

1. My Much Discussed Levain Copycat Cookie – This was my first post ever, and it still gets the most hits every year.

2. Possibly the Best Burger Buns Ever – And they are still possibly the best burger buns ever.

3. Biscuit Joconde Imprime/Entremet – Peanut Butter and Chocolate all Decked Out – I loved this so much, I’ve made it twice since.  Best Lowel Ego Light photo ever (for me).  Could never replicate the lighting and sharpness of this photo again – weird Lowel Ego juju moment.

4. Three Pies in One – Cheesecake Pumpkin Pecan Pie – Need I say more?

Homemade Sponge (aka Honeycomb) Candy5. Candy, Candy, Candy I Can’t Let You Go – Almost everything candy, from tempering chocolate to pate de fruits.

Well..that’s all folks!  Wishing you all a Happy and Healthy New Year!!  See you in 2012!  Don’t forget to click the linky below!

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Click here to enter your link and view this Linky Tools list…

Oh, one more thing! Please do not ever cook smoked salmon or lox (like scrambling it in a hot pan with eggs, or adding it to a casserole or quiche to bake) because you will ruin it. Place it in or on a dish after it is cooked.

That is all.

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Smoked Salmon (LOX) Crisps with Lemon Wasabi Cream Cheese
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Yield: 2 to 3 dozen salmon crisps, depending on size of tuiles
 
Recipe for tuiles and salmon adapted from Thomas Keller's French Laundry Cookbook
ingredients:
Tuiles
  • 4½ tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons sugar
  • ½ teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1 chilled large egg white
  • 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • Black sesame seeds (or everything bagel seasoning!)
Smoked Salmon Topping
  • 4 ounces sliced smoked salmon or lox, finely chopped
  • 1½ teaspoons very finely chopped shallot
  • 1½ teaspoons very finely chopped chives, plus a few snipped, for garnish
  • ¼ teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
  • Freshly ground white pepper
Lemon Wasabi Cream Cheese Topping
  • 4 ounces (half a package) cream cheese
  • 2 tablespoons heavy cream
  • ½ teaspoon grated lemon zest
  • pinch of white pepper
  • pinch of salt
  • ¼ to ½ teaspoon wasabi powder or paste (optional)
directions:
  1. Preheat the oven to 400F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. In a medium bowl, whisk the flour with the sugar and salt. Add the egg white and whisk until smooth. Whisk in the butter until smooth and creamy.
  2. Spoon about a teaspoon of the batter, each 3 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets and spread to 2-inch rounds. I make my own tuile batter stencils so I get uniform shapes. To do that, take a plastic cover from an empty tub of margarine, rice pudding, or whatever you have on hand, cut off the thick rim, then draw your shape onto the side you won't be spreading batter on. Poke a hole in the middle with a knife, then cut out your shape following the outline. You can see mine in the collage above.
  3. Sprinkle with the sesame seeds and bake in the upper and middle third of the oven for about 8-10 minutes, shifting the pans from top to bottom and front to back, until the tuiles are golden and fragrant. Let cool.
  4. While tuiles are cooling, make the lemon wasabi cream cheese topping. In a medium bowl combine the softened cream cheese, salt, wasabi powder (if using), white pepper and heavy cream. Beat until smooth and fluffy Stir in the lemon zest and place into a piping bag with the tip of your choice, or a ziplock bag with one end snipped off. You can just spoon it on each salmon crisp if you prefer. Set aside.
  5. Make the smoked salmon topping. In a medium bowl, combine the salmon with the shallot, chopped chives, lemon zest and a pinch of white pepper. Spoon the salmon onto the tuiles and top with a small spoonful or piping of the lemon wasabi cream cheese. Garnish each crisp with a few snipped chives. Make Ahead - The tuiles can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days.
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Posted in Amuse Bouche, Appetizers, Asian, Cookies, Holiday, Hors d'oeuvres, Seafood, Vegetables | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 54 Comments

Salted Caramel Apple Sourdough Challah

Posted on December 27, 2011 by Lisa

This Salted Spiced Caramel Apple Sourdough Challah is loaded with fluffy, sourdough pockets of gooey, salted caramel apples.  I think it’s one of my favorite challah creations ever!

Remember back in ’09 I told you all about Herbie, my then almost 2-year-old sourdough starter made using Nancy Silverton’s grape starter method?

Salted Caramel Apple Sourdough Challah

Remember how I told you I was going to introduce him to all of you once my knee was better, and I could start standing to knead some really amazing sourdough breads?

Well, that day never came because I was a bad mama.  Once my knee healed, and I was out and about on two legs, I kind of forgot about him in the back of the refrigerator. When I remembered, it was probably three months since his last feeding.  I tried to revive him, but there was mold, and the small amounts I took out, minus the mold, and fed..eagerly waiting for him to blow his first bubble of life, had already been given its last rites. Plus, he smelled rank; a smell that was clearly sourdough starter rigor mortis. It just wasn’t going to happen.

I bid Herbie a sad adieu as I poured his thick liquid soul into the trash can.

Of course I later found out that he could have been saved by taking a tablespoon of him from the very center (his –sniff– heart), and giving him mad defibrillation with flour, sugar and water.  Just one tablespoon and Herbie would still be here. UPDATE: you know how we all backup our computer files? Well, I wish I had known about THIS.

I could have had a bunch of Herbie ‘backups’.

Salted Caramel Apple Sourdough Challah

Batter like sourdough starter aka Herbie II

Oh well..no use crying over dead sourdough starter.  He gave me the best breads of his wild yeasty life, and I could eventually reincarnate him someday.  Well, that day has come, and may I introduce you to Herbie II? About 1 month ago, I decided to do it once again using Nancy Silverton’s grape starter method (recipe below).  There was no way any commercial yeast will ever step granule or cake in any sourdough starter I make.

Capturing wild yeast from everything around us, the air, atmosphere, our kitchens, etc, is the most amazing thing to watch develop, almost like gestating a baby, although not as wondrous and exciting (obviously) because this baby is not one you can cuddle and love and well, be human with.  But you can watch it grow stronger and stronger, giving you the most complex, wonderful tasting breads, all with a lovely crumb and crust.

Firm sourdough starter

My weird intuition struck again…

Our Daring Bakers Host for December 2011 was Jessica of My Recipe Project and she showed us how fun it is to create sourdough bread in our own kitchens! She provided us with sourdough recipes from Bread Matters by Andrew Whitley as well as delicious recipes to use our sourdough bread in from Tonia George’s Things on Toast and Canteen: Great British Food!

Salted Caramel Apple Sourdough ChallahYikes, I overfilled each strand, so it was hard to braid.  Next time, less is more.

So, I had already started gestating Herbie II, and one week later, it’s announced as the Daring Bakers challenge.  Although I loved that the challenge recipe for starter was all about capturing wild yeast, I’d already fermented enough grapes to capture Herbie II’s wild yeast, so there was no sense in starting another one.  I’m not a multi-starter type baker; one is enough, and from that one I can make all kinds of starters for a variety of breads, and whatever is left over from those, is given away or used to the last drop.  You will never see half-filled jars all over my kitchen or in my fridge labeled rye starter, oat starter, potato starter etc, unless they can be used up at once.

Don’t get me wrong, I think it’s cool that people do that, but if I could kill one starter with neglect, could you imagine the massacre of one plus?

Yes, as I’ve said before on this blog, I have the potential to be a sourdough serial killer. GASP.

Salted caramel apples for Salted Caramel Apple Sourdough Challah

So I needed to bake a bunch of challah braids for Hanukkah.  I’d wanted to try Maggie Glazer’s recipe for sourdough challah for a long time, so I figured this would be a great time to do it.  I had already planned on filling one of my traditional challahs with a homemade salted caramel with apples, which I haven’t been able to get out of my mind for months now, so why not sourdough challah with salted, spiced caramel apples? Tangy, sweet, salty. YES.

Salted Caramel Apple Sourdough Challah

Maggie Glazer’s sourdough challah recipe calls for a firm starter to produce another firm starter for the sourdough challah.  Fortunately, Maggie has directions on how to convert a batter like starter into a firm starter.  I needed to take a tablespoon of Herbie and mix it with some water (I only use bottled in sourdough starters; no real reason why.) and bread flour until I had a dough that could be kneaded.

I surveyed Herbie’s young, unused, not yet powerful baby bubbles, and hoped for the best.

The next morning, as you can see in the above ‘firm starter’ photo, I had a risen mass of thick, bubbly, ‘cracked window’ dough.  Success! Looks like the original Herbie’s super strength had been passed on to his younger replacement.  I proceeded on with the recipe, letting one more starter go to town – ending up with a lovely, silky dough.  It smelled wonderful too, like most wild yeast dough.

I finally had to stop sniffing it or else it would never rise, much less make it to the oven!

While the sourdough challah dough was doing its thing, I made the caramel, chopped up some apples, added some spice and sea salt, then stirred the salted, spiced apples into the hot caramel.  I think I will always keep a jar of this on hand because I’m in love.  I desperately wanted to start eating it right out of the jar I put it in for not only storage, but for the photo above.  Fortunately I refrained.

Salted Caramel Apple Sourdough Challah

If you don’t want to make a sourdough challah, traditional challah or any doughy vessel to place some of these glorious salted caramel apples in, I beg you to at least make the salted caramel apples.  I’ve already had it over ice cream and straight out of the jar, but no double dipping, honest!  It’s..it’s…just amazing – so amazing that I can’t even put it into words.

SO, like my Unique Twist on Challah back in ’09. in which I made a 6-strand braid challah, each strand filled with grated chocolate, raisins and cinnamon sugar, I set out to reproduce something similar with the salted, spiced caramel apple filling.  This time I was only doing a 4-strand braid because I wanted thick ribbons and pockets of the salted caramel apples throughout the sourdough challah.  This is where I made my first mistake. This filling is wet, so a small amount should be used for each strand to prevent any seepage and trouble braiding.

I used 1/4 cup for each strand.

Bad idea.

I couldn’t roll the sealed strands to the 16 to 18-inches in length I wanted it to be for braiding, and the braiding was difficult, heavy, replete with several tears in between.  I ended up with a very sloppy, lopsided, wide braid.  Normally, this wouldn’t bother me, but I was presenting it to guests, and all of you.

Salted Caramel Apple Sourdough Challah

Dark circles under the eyes? Concealer.  Lopsided, fat, lumpy sourdough challah braid? Sesame seeds.

Next time I’ll only use 2 tablespoons of filling per strand..IF it’s for guests.  If not, who cares about lopsided, lumpy braids? It was delicious, and thanks to the wonderful Herbie II, it rose like Mary Poppin’s umbrella with a turbo engine in each spoke, not to mention the beautiful oven-spring, and just look at that crumb! I love how the gooey part of the salted caramel melts into its bready pocket while the spiced, caramel apples kind of hang out, dropping into your hand occasionally when you bite into a slice.

You love challah french toast? Wait until you try salted caramel apple sourdough challah french toast (hopefully, a photo coming soon, if the few slices left are not eaten before this can happen).  The sourdough has kept this challah silky soft and moist for 2 days now, so it’s not looking good! In fact, I’m already eyeing the remaining slices lustily.

Update, 15 minutes later: There will be no salted caramel apple sourdough challah french toast on this blog anytime soon.  I caved.

Salted Caramel Apple Sourdough Challah

For the challenge sourdough starter recipe, and some great breads to make with it, click HERE.

I’m submitting my Salted Caramel Apple Sourdough Challah to Yeastspotting, a weekly bread baking showcase hosted by the incredibly talented Susan of Wild Yeast.

I’m also submitting it to Bread Baking Day #45, hosted by Cindy of Cindystar.

The GIVEAWAY winner of the six jars of Bonne Maman preserves and the $25.00 gift certificate to use at OhNuts.com is Katrina of Baking with Boys, who was #38!  Congrats Katrina!  Will send you an email to get your info ASAP!

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Homemade Herbie (Grape Sourdough Starter)
Prep time: 
Total time: 
Yield: 2 cups
 
Recipe 100% from Nancy Silverton
ingredients:
  • 2 cups bread flour
  • 2 1⁄2 cups non-chlorinated water
  • 1⁄2 lb red grapes, unwashed organic stemmed
directions:
  1. Wrap the grapes in clean, washed cheesecloth, tying the corners to form a bag, then lightly crush them with a rolling pin or wine bottle (this is to release the sugar so it mixes with the natural yeast on the skins; akin to making wine.) and place them in the flour water mix, completely covering them fully. Cover tightly with a lid or plastic wrap secured with a rubber band. Leave at room temperature for six days, stirring once or twice a day for those six days.
  2. The bag of grapes will eventually look inflated, and the liquid will begin to separate from the flour base. The mixture will begin to taste and smell slightly fruity, and the color will be strange. This is how it should be. By the sixth day the bag of grapes will be yellow and deflated, and the taste pleasingly sour; this means that the fermentation is complete. The starter is now alive, but it's weak and needs to be fed, or else you'll lose it.
  3. Remove the bag of grapes and squeeze the grape juices back into the starter. Stir it thoroughly until all the juices from the grapes are fully incorporated, then transfer it to a clean container. (You can now use it after just one feeding, but the starter will be stronger and healthier with the full process) You may refrigerate it until you're ready to proceed.
  4. Three days before you plan to use it, stir 1 cup flour and 1 cup water into the container, incorporating it well. Let sit uncovered at room temperature until it bubbles, about 3 to 4 hours, then cover and refrigerate it. Repeat this process on the second and third day.
  5. Store the starter tightly covered in the refrigerator where it will keep perfectly for 4 to 6 months, after which you should pour off all but 2 cups of the starter and give it another feeding. However, before using the starter for bread, give it a full 3-day feeding schedule again to restore it and tone down any excess sour flavor..
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Converting Batter Starter into a Firm Starter
Yield: ⅔ cup of firm starter: enough to leaven about 7 cups of flour
 
100% from Maggie Glezer
A firm starter is usually used for a single bread recipe, not kept and fed like a batter starter. However, you can keep and feed it, although it involves kneading and such.
ingredients:
  • 2 tablespoons (30 grams/1.0 ounce) very active batter starter
  • 2 tablespoons (30 grams/1.0 ounce) water
  • ⅔ cup (100 grams/3.2 ounces) bread flour
directions:
  1. In a bowl, mix the batter starter with the water, then stir in the bread flour. Mix this the dough until smooth and uniform, adjusting the consistency with small amounts of flour or water to make a stiff but easily kneaded starter. Let it ferment in a sealed container for 8 to 12 hours, or until it is fully risen and starting to deflate. If the starter has not quadrupled in volume in 8 hours or less, continue to refresh it flour and water until it's very active and fully rises.
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Salted Spiced Caramel Apple Sourdough Challah
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Yield: a little over 1 lb loaf of challah
 
Add to prep time the time it will take to bring your sourdough starter to life and the time to prepare Maggie Glezer's or your favorite challah recipe, including the first rise.
ingredients:
Salted Caramel Apple Filling
  • 1 cup sugar
  • ½ cup water
  • 4 tablespoons butter
  • ½ cup heavy cream
  • 1¼ teaspoons sea salt
  • 3 medium apples, peeled, cored and cubed
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • ⅛ teaspoon grated nutmeg
  • ⅛ teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1 tablespoon flour
  • Squeeze of lemon juice
directions:
  1. First make the sourdough challah recipe linked above, or your favorite challah recipe, While dough is rising, make the salted, caramel apples.
  2. In a bowl, Combine the chopped apples with the cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, lemon juice and flour. Set aside.
  3. Pour the water around and over the sugar in a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Cover and cook over medium heat until the sugar dissolves (I prefer this over the brushing the sugar off the sides with a wet pastry brush).
  4. When the sugar dissolves, turn to high heat, and boil uncovered until the sugar turns a medium brown, about 5 to 7 minutes. Watch it carefully at the end, as it will go from caramel to burnt very quickly. Stand back to avoid splattering, and gradually add the cream and the butter - it will bubble vigorously. Simmer and stir with a wooden spoon until the sauce is smooth and thick, about 2 minutes. Stir in the sea salt.
  5. Take pot off heat, let sit about 3 minutes, then stir in the chopped, spiced apples while caramel is still very hot. Let cool to room temperature. If not using immediately, refrigerate in an airtight jar or container.
  6. You will not use all of the salted caramel apples for the challah or challahs (if making two), so enjoy it over ice cream, pound cake, as a homemade doughnut filling,, cake filling etc. The ideas are endless! Then again, I just eat it right out of the jar or bowl. I'm a simple gal. I think.
Fill, Braid, and Bake Challah
  1. Divide dough into 4 equal pieces. I used a scale for this. Take one piece (covering the other three pieces with plastic wrap) and roll into a flat, oblong 12-inch disk. Spoon two tablespoons of the salted caramel apple filling down the length of the disk, as shown in photos above.
  2. Cover filling with both sides of dough, pimching to seal and making sure none of the filling gets into your seal..it won't seal if that happens. Gently roll and taper the ends, to about 16 to 18-inches in length. Cover and repeat with remaining three pieces of dough. Once you have all 4 filled strands, pinch them together at the top and braid using this 4-strand weaving method. In a bowl or cup, beat one egg until uniform - this will be your egg wash.
  3. Place loaf on a parchment lined pan and brush with egg wash (I don't use all of the white in the egg. I let some spill out into a cup so my egg wash is more yolk than white - this gives it that nice burnished look)). Brush loaf all over and let rise until doubled in size - about an hour. Preheat oven to 350 F.
  4. Once risen, brush again with remaining egg wash, getting into all the crevices that opened during the rise. Sprinkle with poppy seeds or sesame seeds, or nothing at all - your choice. Place in the preheated oven and bake for about 35-45 minutes. Let cool a few minutes, then carefully lift off of pan, and place on a wire rack to cool fully.
notes:
* You can use any challah or bread recipe you like. It doesn't have to be sourdough.
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How to create a sourdough starter by capturing wild yeast from the air via fruit, and how to turn part of that starter into a firm sourdough starter for bread recipes that call for it. This sourdough starter will be your new pet because it's alive! #sourdoughstarter #sourdough #bread #firmsourdoughstarter #battersourdough
Salted Caramel Apple Stuffed Challah. Big, gooey pockets of salted caramel apples dispersed throughout the challah, and it makes the best French Toast ever! #saltedcaramelapplechallah #applechallah #challah #sourdoughchallah #sourdough

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Posted in BBD, Breads, Candy, Daring Bakers, Fruit, Holiday, Yeastspotting | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 45 Comments

Raspberry Pistachio Cream Cheese Coffee Cake + A Giveaway

Posted on December 20, 2011 by Lisa

This raspberry pistachio cream cheese coffee cake would make a great Christmas morning treat. Well, not only Christmas morning, but an anytime coffee cake. But, with the red and green from raspberry preserves and pistachio nuts, I think this coffee cake suits Christmas morning very well; plus, it’s simple and quick to put together!

That being said, I under baked this coffee cake, which I mention two more times in this entry, so don’t let the look of it keep you from making it. The center is not supposed to ‘schlump’ like it does in my photos. I accidentally under baked it by setting my timer 20 minutes short. It was one of those slow brain mornings where you don’t double check because you think you’ve got it right in your head. I didn’t realize this until hours later, so unfortunately, it was too late to fix.

Like I’ve said many times on this blog; I don’t do do-overs. If I mess up, you’re going to see it messed up, and that will prevent the slight chance of you messing up!

Raspberry Cream Cheese Coffee Cake

Anyway, years ago, there was a baking show on PBS called Mrs. Field’s Great American Desserts.  Having been a huge fan of Mrs. Field’s cookies at the malls, I was ready for each show, spiral notebook and pen in hand (back then, you couldn’t get the recipes off PBS online).  Her Raspberry Cream Cheese Coffee Cake was the only recipe that really stood out to me, and the page with the scribble scrabble recipe was well-worn before its time.  When I first  started making this coffee cake, I didn’t even have a springform pan, so I would use a deep 10-inch copper saute pan to bake it in.  It made quite a pretty presentation, but one could break their back carrying it to the table.

Here’s the problem, I cannot find that spiral notebook anywhere, so I searched online for “Mrs. Field’s Raspberry Cream Cheese Coffee Cake”, using Google, Yahoo..any search engine to find anything. I found many recipes almost exactly like it (from my recollection) but they’re all attributed to other sources ; one, a Sutter Home Napa Valley Cookbook, two, a site called Mrs. Miller’s Noodles, who also happen to sell jams, as in a jam to top the cake. After briefly giving up, I decided to try to make something similar, one I could call my own.

I know it’s tough to nail down recipes and call them your own, but Mrs. Field’s is a copyright maven, right? She sold her amazing cookie company to some other company for millions, who in turn; turned them into cheap, flat artificial tasting, supermarket cookies that in no way taste like or resemble those huge, melted chocolate, nutty chunky cookies you used to get at the malls.

To digress for a moment, oh, how awesome it was to pick up a bag of those cookies, warm out of the oven (after clothes shopping no less), then eating them out of the bag on the drive home.

So, you’d think this might tick her off a little, right? Apparently not, so I guess she doesn’t care about everyone and their brother publishing her recipe as their own, and in the case of the cookies, turning them into generic supermarket brand type cookies. It makes me sad because I like her a lot.

Raspberry Pistachio Cream Cheese Coffee Cake

In any event, I didn’t have to try and emulate Debi’s coffee cake as I remembered it because I think I found the recipe, or at least something very close to it. However, I took the recipe and made it a little more festive by using bright green shelled pistachio’s from Oh Nuts.com, instead of the almonds. Oh Nuts and I go back about a year or so when they sent me some free goodies for holiday baking after seeing me complain in this post about tearing my fingernails and raw fingertips for days after shelling 2 lbs of pistachios.  They saved my fingers by sending me their beautiful, bright green, shelled pistachio nuts, and when I was offered two products again, naturally, a bag of shelled pistachios was one I chose.

By the way, you’ve got to see their site. They have everything..from soup to nuts. OK, no soup, but not just nuts; loads of candy, dried fruits, nut flours etc. Pop by, as there’s still time to order in time for your holiday baking!  Part of this giveaway is a $25.00 gift certificate to Oh Nuts, which Sam Feferkorn, of Oh Nuts, generously provided!

Raspberry Pistachio Cream Cheese Coffee Cake

So, when playing around with this coffee cake, I added a layer of cinnamon sugar on top of the coffee cake batter. I did this because, how can you not have any cinnamon in a coffee cake? This gave the cake a cinnamon goo strip running beneath the cheesecake layer. Let’s just say that there’s always a way to improve on something, no matter how fantastic it already is, without overkill. But, you can omit the cinnamon sugar layer since the coffee cake is still fabulous without it.

For the jam topping, I used Bonne Maman raspberry preserves.  Cecile from Bonne Maman was kind of enough to send me six 13-ounce jars of a variety of preserves and jellies.  Guess what?  This offer has been extended to one of my readers! You can win six 13-ounce jars of Bonne Maman preserves and jellies, in a variety of flavors, which include fig, wild blueberry, apricot, plum, raspberry, orange etc..  They’re all pure fruity heaven, and the jars are so pretty, just like you made and canned them yourself. You can see all their jellies and preserves HERE  Those jars are big enough to last you well past your holiday baking!

Raspberry Pistachio Cream Cheese Coffee Cake

So, now we have a red (the raspberry preserves) and green (the pistachios) creamy, crumbly, fruity, nutty, moist and delicious Christmas coffee cake!  Not to mention, the pistachios add another dimension, especially if they’re salted and toasted.

Now to the part where I effed up this coffee cake.

As I mentioned in the first paragraph, my coffee cake isn’t ‘gooey’ on purpose.; it was accidentally under-baked, mistakenly taken out 20 minutes early. It was still not quite set in the middle, as you can see in the photos, but we kind of liked it this way.  It schlumps when cut, so it’s been dubbed the ‘schlump’ cake from hereon in, and now we purposely under bake it slightly on occasion. Below is how it should look when baked fully and with almonds instead of pistachios;

Raspberry Almond Cream Cheese Coffee CakePhoto by Marg (CaymanDesigns)

Much prettier than my coffee cake, huh? I had to show you the coffee cake as it should look so my photos of the schlumpy, under-baked coffee cake wouldn’t deter you from making it, because it is supremely delicious!

One final little factoid, this coffee cake uses a method similar to a Cowboy Coffee Cake, where some of the flour, sugar, butter mixture from the cake is set aside to use as a streusel topping, which I always loved; less work, less bowls, but in this case, it’s in reverse. Some of the streusel mixture is set aside for the cake. Cool, huh?

Finally, I want to give a LOUD shout out to Christina Banner, one of the most talented Gingerbread House builders I’ve ever seen.  Last year she sent me a copy of her amazing book ‘How to Build a Gingerbread House’, for review.  I wanted to accompany that review with a gingerbread house built from her book.  I never got around to it, so I was going to build one this Christmas.  Unfortunately, a lot of things kept me from taking the time to do it, so I’m going to try and get one in for Valentine’s Day or Easter, as her book has Gingerbread Houses for every holiday and occasion!  Until I do, I recommend you pick up a copy of her book ‘How to Build a Gingerbread House’.  Her recipes and directions are easy to follow, and all ingredients are easily found..not to mention, the houses are beautiful!

To Enter the Giveaway to win a Bonne Maman 6-pack variety of fruit preserves and jellies and a $25.00 gift certificate to use at Oh Nuts.com, check out the Bonne Maman and Oh Nuts sites, and leave a comment telling me what your favorite flavor jam, jelly or preserve is and your favorite nut to use in baking.  For extra entries, you can do all or any of the following, leaving a separate comment for each thing you do;

1.  Subscribe to Parsley, Sage, Desserts and Line Drives by email or RSS feed

2. Follow @parsleynsage on Twitter (so you can be alerted to upcoming giveaways immediately)

3. Like Bonne Maman on Facebook.

4. Like OhNuts on Facebook.

5. Follow OhNuts on Twitter

6. Tweet this giveaway – I entered to win six 13 oz jars Fruit Preserves & a $25 gift coupon from @OhNuts via @parsleynsage. Leave comment to enter! http://bit.ly/tfqDOs

This giveaway will end December 27, 2011.  The winner will be chosen using random.org, on the 27th.  If the winner does not respond within two days, another winner will be chosen. Good luck!

Raspberry Pistachio Cream Cheese Coffee Cake

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Raspberry Pistachio Cream Cheese Coffee Cake
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Yield: 9 to 12 servings
 
Inspired by the Raspberry Cheese Coffee Cake in Debbi Fields' Great American Desserts and slightly adapted from HERE
I've also tried this with blueberry jam and strawberry jam, and both were delicious! Use any fruit jam you like!
ingredients:
Crumb mixture
  • 2-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • ¾ cup sugar
  • ¾ cup cold butter, cubed
Cake
  • Crumb mixture from above, minus 1 cup
  • ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ¾ cup sour cream
  • 1 egg, lightly beaten
  • 1½ teaspoons almond extract
  • 2 tablespoons of cinnamon sugar* (optional)
Filling
  • 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
  • ⅓ cup sugar
  • 1 egg
  • ½ cup plus 2 tablespoons raspberry jam or preserves
Topping
  • 1 cup reserved crumb mixture
  • ½ cup slivered almonds or chopped salted pistachios
directions:
  1. Make the crumb mixture. In a large bowl, combine flour and sugar. Cut in butter until mixture is crumbly. Remove 1 cup and set aside for the topping. Lightly grease a 9-inch springform pan.
  2. To the remaining crumbs add the baking powder, baking soda, salt, sour cream, egg and almond extract and mix well. Spread in the bottom and 2 inches up the sides of the greased springform pan. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons of cinnamon sugar over batter, if using.
  3. For the filling, beat the cream cheese, sugar and egg in a small bowl until smooth. Spoon over batter. Top with raspberry jam and spread gently and evenly over cream cheese.
  4. Mix the reserved 1 cup of crumb mixture with the sliced almonds OR chopped salted pistachios. Sprinkle evenly on top of raspberry layer. Preheat oven to 350 F.
  5. Place in oven and Bake at 350 F for 55-60 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Carefully run a knife around edge of pan to loosen and cool completely on a wire rack.. Store in the refrigerator.
notes:
* To make cinnamon sugar, combine ½ cup sugar and 1½ tablespoons cinnamon. Store in a clean, airtight jar. Great for cinnamon toast!
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I was sent 6 jars of Bonne Maman preserves and jellies, and a bag of shelled pistachios and almond meal from OhNuts, but was not compensated in any other way for either review. All opinions are my own.

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Posted in Breakfast, Cakes, Dessert, Fruit, Giveaway, Holiday, Jams/Jellies | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 290 Comments