Posted on

Strawberry Mascarpone Tarts with Port Glaze

Strawberry Mascarpone Tart with Port Glaze

Strawberry Season

“Abra came in with shining eyes and a red nose from the frosty wind, and she brought such pleasure that Lee giggled softly when he saw her. Where are the tarts? She demanded.”

East of Eden, John Steinbeck

Inspiration

Late spring and early summer is my favorite time of the year. When the harvest of local berries begins I can’t seem to get enough. Strawberries are the first. I eat them freshly picked and tucked into salads, but desserts with fresh berries are the best. I am not referring to the lackluster strawberries from the grocery or big box stores. These strawberries can be found almost year round. The grocery store berries are a variety grown to have a long shelf life and stay fresh after they are shipped cross country. (They also get a blast of MAP gas to lengthen shelf life.) I patiently wait for sweet strawberries that are picked when ripe and juicy. They are uniformly red! These berries must be eaten right away, the day they are picked is best. These sweet strawberries can be found at a local farm stand, farmers market or as part of a CSA. I’m fortunate that The Farm just outside Salinas grows some of the best organic berries. At least once a week during strawberry season you’ll find me there buying strawberries. READ MORE . . .

Posted on

Caramelized White Chocolate Pound Cake

Caramelized White Chocolate Pound Cake

Going Blond

“I thank you Adam, he said. The sweetness of your offer is a good smell on the west wind.”

East of Eden, John Steinbeck

Inspiration

Are you fond of white chocolate? If not, I am here to change your mind. If you know about Valrhona Dulcey fèves or discs then you’ll understand my obession. The Dulcey is caramelized white chocolate, which is more than fantastic. The happy accident of Chef Frederic Bau, from L’Ecole du Grand Chocolat has transformed the often maligned flavor profile of white chocolate into something extraordinary. I took a perfectly wonderful dark chocolate recipe from The New York Times and gave it a big do over. Melissa Clark’s not so humble pound cake is already a winner! Double streusel is quite amazing. As soon as I saw the recipe I knew I had try it. Except, this is the brunette that went blond for spring. READ MORE . . .

Posted on

The Ginger Snap Obsession

Ginger Snaps

All the cookies

“He cooked for Cathy, going through recipes used by his mother and his stepmother.”

East of Eden, John Steinbeck

Inspiration

When I met up with my friend and mentor, Andrea, she brought cookies! We had lost track of each other, it had been 20 years since we last connected. She lives in Sacramento, I live in Salinas. We decided to meet at the half way point, in Fremont. We had a lunch of Thai crepes stuffed with curry and a long wonderful chat. So much has happened! When I started driving home I couldn’t stop thinking about the pink pastry box filled with homemade cookies. Andy had said she labeled each kind of cookie. What kind of cookies were in the box? When I couldn’t stand the cookie suspense any longer I convinced myself that I needed to take a break from driving and stopped at Starbucks and took a peek inside the pink box. I was just going to look in the box to see what was inside but as I picked up each sweet package the temptation was too great. I sat in my car and greedily sampled one of each. I began with the rugelach, then I found the ginger snaps. There were coconut macaroons, amaretti, mandelbrot and schnecken. I had to try all the cookies. I drove home in a blissful cookie coma. READ MORE . . .

Posted on

Cheesy Dinner Rolls

Cheesy Dinner Rolls

#MakeItWithMilk #FWCON

“Are you hungry? Sure, I guess I am.”

East of Eden, John Steinbeck

Inspiration

These are mighty fine dinner rolls. Nothing is more enticing than the aroma of freshly baked bread. With cheddar cheese that seems to melt into the dough as it bakes these irresistible Cheesy Dinner Rolls disappear as soon as they come out of the oven. The subtle flavor of green onions compliments the cheddar cheese, adding interest to the soft fluffy dough that is enriched with milk, butter and egg. READ MORE . . .

Posted on

Individual Rhubarb Crumbles

Rhubarb Crumble

Signs of Spring

“At three o’clock in the afternoon Lee was sitting at his desk, turning over the pages of a seed catalog.The pictures of sweet peas were in color. Now these would look nice on the back fence. They’d screen off the slough. I wonder if there is enough sun.”

East of Eden, John Steinbeck

Inspiration

I am a hap-hazard gardener. Happy to try new plants and ideas every spring and falling into the trap of over-planting and failing to give the plants everything they need. It’s a hazard. Last spring we bought a rhubarb plant. I was optimistic, but wondered if the plant would survive the winter. We planted it next to garage near the lemon verbena and sage. To my amazement, it flourished, and last fall I was ready to harvest. Thankfully I investigated how to harvest rhubarb before I tore into the plant. Rhubarb needs a year to get established before the first harvest. It’s healthier for the plant if the stalks are gently tugged from the outside edges of the plant, rather than cutting them. The rhubarb was beginning to outgrow its spot (the leaves are huge) and when the outer stalks began to lay on the ground and pull away from the center of the plant I began dreaming about fresh rhubarb. It was a sure sign of spring on the central coast. READ MORE . . .