it snowed like crazy last week here in seattle. and ok, i know that many of you (i’m talking to you, sister), live in much colder climates and deal with way more snow than we do in seattle. but it was still quite an experience for this california native!

and when it was snowing outside, all i wanted to do was bake yummy food and watch the snow fall instead of, you know, doing that whole studying-reading-writing papers thing. so i figured it was the perfect time to make this dessert that smitten kitchen posted a few weeks ago.

friends, despite having a funny name, this apple sharlotka is sooooo yummy! it reminded me of a cross between an apple coffee cake and german pancakes. and because it has so many apples in it, and not too much sugar, we ate it for both dessert and breakfast the next morning. and the two of us polished the whole thing off within 24 hours. yeah, it’s that good. go make it!

one year ago: tofu saag
two years ago: spaghetti sauce
three years ago: butternut squash and sage risotto

apple sharlotka

borrowed from smitten kitchen

• butter (or oil) for greasing
• 6 large apples (we used a mix of fujis and honey crisps, but smitten kitchen recommends Granny Smiths)
• 3 eggs
• 1c sugar
• 1t vanilla
• 1c flour
• ground cinnamon, optional
• powdered sugar, optional
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1. preheat oven to 350º
2. place a circle of wax or parchment paper into a 9″ springform pan, buttering the paper and the sides of the pan
3. peel, slice in half, and core your apples
4. chop the apples into medium chunks, placing them into the buttered pan
5. in a large bowl beat the eggs with the sugar, using electric beaters, until the mixture is very thick
6. add the vanilla and beat a little more
7. stir in the flour until combined (it will be really thick)
8. pour the batter over the apples, using a spatula to press it down and spread it so it covers all apples
9. bake for 60 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean
10. cool for 10 minutes in the pan, then flip out onto a rack or a plate and peel off the wax or parchment paper
11. put a serving platter on top of it and flip it off the rack or plate so that it’s right-side up
12. sprinkle with ground cinnamon and powdered sugar, if desired, and enjoy!

first, chocolate raspberry tarts! although there are a lot of little steps, these delicious little desserts are super easy to make. and super easy to eat a ton of…mmmm!

chocolate raspberry tarts

yields 48 tarts

• crust
• 2c all purpose flour
• 2T unsweetened cocoa powder
• 6T powdered sugar
• 2/3c firm butter
• 2 egg yolks
• 4t hot water
• 1t vanilla
• chocolate filling
• 8oz semisweet chocolate chips
• 4T sugar
• 4T butter
• 1/2c heavy whipping cream
• 1/2t vanilla
• the rest of the filling
• 1/2c seedless raspberry jam
• 1/2c heavy whipping cream, whipped into cream (plus some extra powdered sugar and vanilla to flavor it)
• 48 raspberries
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1. preheat the oven to 350º
2. crust: combine the flour, cocoa powder, and powdered sugar
3. cut in the butter
4. combine the egg yolks, hot water, and vanilla, whisking to combine
5. add the liquid to the pie crust and stir to combine
6. roll out the dough and use a cookie cutter to cut out 48 x 2″ circles and place into mini muffin tins OR press dough into mini muffin pans
7. bake for 10-15 minutes, or until lightly browned and firm to the touch
8. allow to cool in pans, then remove
9. chocolate filling: over low heat, combine the chocolate chips, sugar, and butter in a pan
10. add the heavy whipping cream, whisking to combine until hot
11. remove from the heat, add the vanilla, and allow to cool to room temp
12. final prep: place 1/8t jam in the bottom of each tart
13. cover with 1/4t chocolate filling
14. place a little whipped cream on top of the chocolate
15. top with one raspberry and serve
    

one year ago: buckeye cookies
two years ago: persimmon spice bread
three years ago: latkes and applesauce

second, nutella cookies! i found this recipe in vegetarian times and knew i wanted to make it for a cookie exchange last week. instead of shaping the dough into a log and then cutting circle cookies, baking and placing a dab of nutella on top along with a whole hazelnut (as the original recipe recommended), we used some new star wars cookie cutters, smeared nutella over the whole cookie, and crumbled hazelnuts on top. they were absolutely scrumptious!

nutella cookies

yields 36 cookies
borrowed from vegetarian times, december 2011

• 1¾c all purpose flour
• 1/4c unsweetened cocoa
• 1/2t baking soda
• 1/4t salt
• 1c nutella, plus some extra for frosting cookies
• 1 stick of butter (1/2c), softened
• 3/4c brown sugar
• 1 egg
• wax paper or saran wrap
• 36 whole hazelnuts, optional
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1. sift the flour, cocoa, baking powder, soda, and salt into a bowl
2. in a separate bowl, beat the butter and nutella with an electric mixer until smooth
3. add the brown sugar and egg, beating to combine
4. next, add the flour mixture and beat until the dough comes together
5. place the dough on wax paper or plastic wrap and form a log that’s 2″ in diameter
6. wrap the log completely and chill 2 hours or overnight
7. preheat the oven to 350º
8. either slice the dough log into 1/4″ thick slices, or roll out with a rolling pin to 1/4″ and use cookie cutters to cut out cookies
9. bake on an ungreased baking sheet and bake for 9-11 minutes, until fairly firm
10. let the cookies sit on the sheet for a minute or two, then place on a wire rack to cool
11. frost with a dab of nutella and 1 hazelnut if desired

and finally, soft ginger cookies. my sister’s been making these for years, and i’m really excited that i finally have the recipe! don’t let the shoddy iPhone pics fool you – these cookies are perfect, with a crunchy edge and a nice soft inside. YUM!

soft ginger cookies

yields 24 cookies
borrowed from the mccormicks, via my sister

• 1¼c all purpose flour
• 1t ground ginger
• 1t baking soda
• 3/4t ground cinnamon
• 1/2t cloves
• 1/4t salt
• 3/4c butter, softened
• 1c sugar, plus more to roll the cookies in
• 1 egg
• 1/4c molasses
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1. preheat the oven to 350º
2. combine the flour, ginger, soda, cinnamon, cloves, and salt in a bowl
3. in a separate bowl, cream the butter, adding the sugar gradually
4. add the egg and molasses, beating well
5. stir in the flour mixture
6. shape the dough into 1½” balls, then roll them in the extra sugar to cover completely
7. place the balls onto an ungreased sheet and bake for 10 minutes, until slightly flat and cracked
8. transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool

as promised (in my pumpkin pie post), here’s the brand new recipe we used for pecan pie this thanksgiving!

while i love pecan pie almost as much as pumpkin pie, i always dislike using the requisite corn syrup. and although i can somehow always look past the corn syrup and polish off a fair amount of the pie on my own, i’ve often thought about trying a maple syrup version.

so this year we took the plunge and tried a brand new recipe. i liked the flavor even better than the corn syrup version – there’s something about maple syrup that brings out even more deliciousness from the pecans, and it didn’t feel quite so heavy or cloyingly sweet. so enjoy!

one year ago: persimmon pancakes
two years ago: sugar cookie cut-outs
three years ago: butternut squash lasagna

pecan pie

yields one 9″ pie
borrowed from southernfood.com

• 1 x 9″ pie crust
• 3 eggs, beaten
• 1c maple syrup
• 1/2c brown sugar
• 2T melted butter
• 1t vanilla
• 1¼c pecan pieces
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1. preheat oven to 350°
2. either make or buy your pie crust
3. beat the eggs, maple syrup, brown sugar, melted butter, and vanilla with an electric mixer until well combined
4. stir in the pecans and pour into a crust
5. use aluminum foil to protect the crust (optional – our crust always comes out a little dark if we don’t cover it in foil)
6. bake for 35-40 minutes, or until a knife inserted off-center comes out clean

whew, i made it through fall quarter! after writing and writing and writing some more, i’ve finally turned in all of my papers. yay!

so i know that thanksgiving came and went in the middle of my writing haze, and i didn’t get any new t-day recipes up…but i also know that a lot of us make pumpkin pie for christmas, too, so i thought i’d post this recipe anyways.

this is a super simple recipe to make – you just put all the ingredients in a blender and whirl until they’re combined. easy as pie (haha)! i have a great new pecan pie recipe i’ll post soon, plus some yummy wheat rolls we made on thanksgiving. so stay tuned!

one year ago: seven-layer cookies and cheese nut loaf
two years ago: polenta rancheros and potato tempeh curry
three years ago: brazil nut encrusted seitan and cheater beans

pumpkin pie

yields one 9″ pie

• 1 x 9″ pie crust, unbaked
• 3 eggs
• 1¾c pumpkin puree (or one 15 oz can)
• 3/8c white sugar
• 3/8c brown sugar
• 1/2t salt
• 1t ground cinnamon
• 1/4t ground ginger
• 1/4t allspice
• 1/8t ground cloves
• 1½c (soy) milk
• 1T molasses
• 1t vanilla
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1. preheat oven to 350°
2. prepare (or buy) a 9″ pie crust
3. place the eggs, pumpkin, sugars, salt, cinnamon, ginger, allspice, cloves, milk, molasses, and vanilla into a blender
4. blend until combined
5. pour into the pie crust
6. bake for one hour, or until a knife inserted off-center comes out clean

ok, so i didn’t take any pictures of this delicious recipe while making it. but it’s my favorite carrot cake recipe EVER. after making it for mike’s bday last weekend, i decided i had to share the recipe, pictures or no. it’s that good. enjoy!

one year ago: glazed pecans
two years ago: cranberry relish
three years ago: sweet and sour cabbage with tempeh

carrot cake

yields 2 dozen cupcakes, or two 9″ cakes
borrowed from smitten kitchen

• 2c all purpose flour
• 2t baking soda
• 1t salt
• 2t cinnamon
• 1/2t nutmeg
• 1t ground ginger
• 2c white sugar
• 1¼c canola or safflower oil
• 4 eggs
• 3c carrots, peeled and grated (with a food processor, if you have one!)
• 1c walnuts, chopped
• 1/2c raisins, optional
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1. preheat oven to 350°, and line 24 cupcake molds with paper or butter them
2. place the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger in a bowl and whisk
3. in a separate bowl, whisk together the sugar, oil, and eggs
4. add the flour to the liquid mixture and stir until combined
5. stir in the carrots, walnuts, and raisins
6. fill the muffin tins with batter and bake for 14-18 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean
7. let cool in pans for a few minutes, then remove to a rack and allow to cool completely before frosting them
8. if making cake, bake for 40 minutes

cream cheese frosting

• 12oz cream cheese, at room temperature
• 1/2c butter, at room temperature
• 3t vanilla extract
• 2c powdered sugar
• 1t lemon juice
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1. mix the cream cheese and butter with an electric blender until light
2. add the vanilla, powdered sugar, and lemon juice and beat until fluffy, about 5 minutes
3. frost the cupcakes or cake and enjoy!

although mike and i didn’t dress up in costumes today, we’re celebrating by eating these delicious cookies and watching some scary movies later on this evening. but we keep getting distracted from our work/studying by the herds of cute, costumed kids walking around the maple leaf business district to trick-or-treat at the neighboring businesses.

and, honestly, i keep getting distracted by these cookies, too. they’re soooo good. i made a batch on friday night (the recipe’s borrowed from our friend’s sister’s blog – you should go check it out!), brought some to school to help get through an ugly take-home midterm, took some to a party, and still have enough left over today to justify multiple study breaks. yeah, these cookies are that good. they have the perfect oat, chocolate chip, cinnamon, and raisin ratio, and they’re perfectly crispy on the outside and chewy in the middle. speaking of…i better go grab another to help me finish typing the recipe for you!

one year ago: crazy cake
two years ago: black bean soup and cornbread
three years ago: black cat cookies

oatmeal raisin chocolate chip cookies

yields 4 dozen cookies
borrowed from thursday night baking

• 1¼c butter, softened
• 3/4c brown sugar
• 1/2c white sugar
• 1 egg
• 1t vanilla
• 1/8c soy milk
• 1½c all purpose flour
• 1t baking soda
• 1/2t salt – if using unsalted butter, add another 1/2t of salt
• 1t ground cinnamon
• 3c oats
• 1c raisins
• 1c chocolate chips
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1. turn on your oven to 375º
2. put the butter, brown sugar, and white sugar into a large bowl and beat with a stand mixer or electric mixer and beat until light and fluffy
3. add the egg, vanilla, and soy milk, and beat for another minute
4. in a different bowl, stir together the flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon
5. add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and beat until just incorporated
6. next, add the oats, raisins, and chocolate chips, and either stir with a spoon or give it a few more beats with your stand mixer
7. use spoons or a mini cookie scoop to drop 1 Tablespoon cookies onto an un-greased baking sheet
8. bake for approx 11-13 minutes, or until they are mostly done in the middle and golden
9. let cool completely on the baking sheet (this will finish baking them), then remove and enjoy!

this is a far departure from the yummy egg- and butter-laden chocolate cake my mom posted for y’all last week.

it’s also quite different than the sugary, buttery, fudgey (favorite) brownies i posted awhile back.

and, come to think of it, they’re also quite different than the low sugar brownies that rely on walnuts, black beans, and agave to make a creamy, tasty dessert.

these brownies are vegan. and pretty darn healthy, with flax seeds, whole wheat flour, oats, and sweet potatoes. i don’t think you can pass them off as normal brownies. but when you want brownies and you feel like you’ve been indulging just a little too much, these are perfect. and with this AMAZING peanut butter frosting on top, they’re quite the treat! enjoy!

one year ago: stir fry
two years ago: lentil dal
three years ago: rice and bean soup

vegan brownies

yields approx 16
borrowed from (never)homemaker

• 3T water
• 1T ground flax seeds
• 2/3c cocoa powder (unsweetened)
• 1/2c whole wheat flour
• 1/3c oats
• 1/4t baking powder
• 1/4t salt
• 2T canola oil
• 3/4c maple syrup
• 2/3c sweet potato puree (i was lazy and bought this instead of cooking and mashing one)
• 1½t vanilla
• 6oz chocolate chips
• 6oz broken walnuts
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1. grease an 8×8″ baking pan
2. preheat your oven to 350º
3. heat the water and flax seeds in a microwave for about 30 seconds, then whisk  and set aside
4. in a large bowl, whisk together the cocoa powder, whole wheat flour, oats, baking powder, and salt
5. in another bowl, whisk together the flax seed mixture, oil, maple syrup, sweet potato puree, and vanilla
6. add the wet ingredients into the dry, then add the chocolate chips and walnuts, stirring until combined
7. pour the batter into the baking pan and bake for 25 minutes
8. stick a toothpick off-center to ensure they’re done, then pull them out and let them cool
9. frost with the peanut butter frosting below, if desired, and enjoy!

to-die-for peanut butter frosting (not vegan)

borrowed from all recipes.com

• 1/4c butter, softened
• 1/2c creamy peanut butter
• 1c powdered sugar
• 1T+ (soy)milk
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1. beat the butter with the peanut butter
2. add the powdered sugar slowly and continue beating
3. next, add the milk until the mixture is thick but the sugar is incorporated (you may need to add a little more than 1 Tablespoon)
4. beat for 3 minutes after this point, and frost!

This is Emilie’s favorite birthday dessert. Year after year in our small house on the westside of Santa Cruz, I baked and frosted this cake for family birthday dinners and large birthday parties for Emilie’s and Linnea’s friends. Sometimes I baked it for Valentine’s Day in a heart mold.

The aroma that fills the house when this cake is baking in the oven is incredibly delicious. The smell brings back such sweet memories for me. My Mom baked this cake for birthday parties in our home in San Francisco. It was a family favorite. When my parents got older, I would bake the cake for them for their birthdays.

I think that my Mom found the recipe on a box of SoftAsSilk cake flour in the early 1950s. The original name was “Devil’s Food Cake” – contrasting with “Angel Food Cake,” which was very popular at the time. To create a devilish color of reddish brown, the original recipe called for red food coloring. The recipe had two versions, one with buttermilk and one with regular milk. The buttermilk version called for more baking soda and less salt than the regular milk version and was very tender.

When Emilie and Linnea were toddlers, I modified the original recipe somewhat. I eliminated the red food coloring, substituted butter for shortening, and replaced the dairy milk with soy milk. The results were amazing. The soy milk seems to enhance the flavor of the chocolate, and the butter gives a light and creamy texture! Yum.

It took me years to develop a frosting that worked with this cake. I tried many recipes that were too sweet or too thin or didn’t have a strong enough chocolate flavor. Then, about five years ago I tried using baking chocolate for the frosting, and I was finally happy with the results!

This year I took a vacation to Seattle in August, and Emilie and I baked the cake for a belated 30^th birthday dessert for her.  We went to Theo chocolate factory first to buy fresh, organic, fair-trade chocolate for the cake and frosting. The cake recipe makes enough batter for two round 9” diameter pans or three round 8” pans. We wanted a small cake, so we used two 6” pans and used the extra batter for a cake that Emilie and Mike froze for a future dessert.

one year ago: biscuits
two years ago: chickpea patties
three years ago: potato salad

Chocolate Cake

• 1¼c sifted cake flour
• 1½c sugar
• 1t baking powder (Rumford!)
• 1/2t baking soda
• 1t salt
• 1/2c soft butter
• 2/3c soy milk
• 1/3c soy milk
• 2 eggs
• 2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, melted
• 1t vanilla
• 1 jar seedless raspberry jam
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1. Set out eggs and butter so that they warm to room temperature
2. Measure 1c soy milk and allow to warm to room temperature
3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
4. Butter three 8” or two 9” round pans
5. Dust buttered pans with unsweetened cocoa and then sugar
6. Line bottom of pans with waxed paper cut to fit
7. Melt 2 ounces baking chocolate in top of double butter
8. Sift together into large mixing bowl: cake flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt
9. Add: butter and 2/3c soy milk
10. Using electric mixer, beat for 2 minutes, scraping sides of bowl often
11. Add: 1/3c soy milk, eggs, melted chocolate, and vanilla
12. Beat for 2 minutes, scraping sides of bowl often
13. Pour into pans
14. Bake 25-30 minutes, until cake pulls away from sides of pan and springs back when touched lightly at center.
15. Cool cakes in pans on racks for at least 10 minutes
16. Then, remove cakes from pans and allow to cool thoroughly before frosting
17. To frost, place one layer on a plate, cover with frosting (recipe is below), then spread enough jam to cover the layer on top
18. Place the second layer of cake on the base layer and repeat, adding frosting first and then jam
19. Finally, place the third layer on top and use the frosting to cover the top and sides, and enjoy!
20. PS – For a large gathering, double the cake and frosting amounts and bake in two 9×13″ pans!

Chocolate Frosting

• 4 ounces unsweetened baking chocolate
• 6T soft butter
• 3T+ soy milk
• 3c powdered sugar
• 2t vanilla
  ______________________________

1. Melt the chocolate in a double boiler
2. Add to a bowl and beat well with electric mixer: melted chocolate, butter, soy milk, powdered sugar, vanilla
3. Add more soy milk as needed to create desired texture, then frost the cake per directions above

i know the calendar says it’s september, but we’re in full-swing summer weather up here in seattle, and loving it!

since school doesn’t begin until the end of september, i’m taking advantage of every minute of sunshine and warm weather, including impromptu blackberry picking along the side of the road, a BBQ on Lake Washington, and a dip into the lake over the weekend!

it’s amazing how many wild blackberries grow up here, and how easily accessible they are for picking. as you can see from the picture below, we saved our iced tea cups from a trip to starbucks (yes, we actually went to starbucks – the local coffee shop we tried to go to didn’t have wireless internet!) and filled them to the brim with the delicious berries.

i’ve also been cooking and baking up a storm in my free time, beginning with this recipe for vegan vegetable lasagna. although i have some favorite lasagnas already posted here on my website, i wanted to try out a vegan version to see if it held up to the other, dairy-laden options. this lasagna surpassed all my expectations – sautéing the vegetables makes them absolutely delicious and super flavorful, and eliminates any possibility of soggy lasagna! since this meal doesn’t have any dairy, it’s pretty light – so i decided to throw together a quick blackberry crisp to round out the meal. yum!

i’ve been rambling a bit about these recipes because i’m avoiding talking about the passing of a beloved member of the book club i was in when i lived in santa cruz. celestial was funny and smart, and i loved getting to know her over wine, good food, and fun book- and not-book-related conversations. i was just thinking about her a few weeks ago as i watched the movie the help, because celestial hosted our book club meeting the month we read this book. after working a full day at work, she somehow threw together an amazing southern-themed spread of deviled eggs, cornbread, and black bean hummus with veggies, and kept the conversation flowing throughout the night. i’m still in shock that she’s gone.

i know this is an abrupt way to end, but i don’t have many more words…so go make this great meal and share it with friends and family, ok?

one year ago: tortilla stack casserole
two years ago: corn chowder
three years ago: blueberry tartlets

vegan vegetable lasagna

yields 9-12 servings
borrowed from daily garnish

• 1T olive oil
• 2 zucchini squash, chopped
• 2 yellow squash, chopped
• 16oz crimini mushrooms, sliced
• 16oz firm tofu
• 2T olive oil
• 1½T nutritional yeast
• 1t thyme
• 1t salt
• 16oz package of frozen spinach, thawed and drained
• 12 no-boil lasagna noodles
• 1 jar tomato sauce
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1. preheat the oven to 375º
2. pour 1T olive oil into a large pan and turn on the heat to medium
3. once the oil is hot, add the zucchini, yellow squash, and mushrooms, allowing to sauté until browning and a lot of the juice has some out of the vegetables – the goal is to make them less watery in the lasagna
4. while the veggies are sautéing, place the tofu, 2T olive oil, nutritional yeast, thyme, salt, and thawed and drained frozen spinach into a food processor and pulse to combine until creamy and smooth – it took my food processor a few minutes to get to this consistency
5. once the vegetables are browned, add the jar of tomato sauce to the pan and heat until hot throughout
6. spoon some of the tomato sauce/veg mixture into a 9×13″ pan to alleviate sticking
7. place 3 lasagna noodles over the sauce, and cover with half of the spinach mixture
8. place three more lasagna noodles on top of the spinach mixture and cover with half of the tomato sauce/veg mixture
9. repeat steps 6 and 7, ending with the tomato/veg mixture on top
10. cover tightly with foil and bake for 45 minutes
11. serve with salad and bread, if so desired, and enjoy!

blackberry crisps

yields 4 servings
adapted from my apple crisp recipe

• 2c blackberries
• 2t tapioca
• 6T flour
• 6T oats
• 1/3c brown sugar
• 1/2t cinnamon
• dash nutmeg
• 1/4c butter, softened
• handful walnuts, broken
  ______________________________

1. preheat the oven to 350º
2. grab four ramekins and place 1/2c of blackberries into each one
3. add 1/2t of tapioca to each ramekin and toss with the berries
4. in a medium bowl, mix the flour, outs, brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg together
5. mix in the butter with a fork or your fingers until the mixture clumps into pea-size pieces
6. add the walnuts and sprinkle 1/4 of the mixture over each ramekin
7. bake for 25 minutes, or until berries are bubbling and the crisp is hot
8. top with your favorite frozen treat or some yogurt (we mixed plain yogurt with brown sugar and a little vanilla) and enjoy!

About six months ago Emilie asked me if I would like to do a guest post on her cooking blog. I was excited about her offer and about choosing a recipe to post. I have thought about many of the items that I like to cook and that my family has enjoyed eating, and finally settled on one of my favorite summer recipes. It is special to me because I do not cook it very often – it is a delightful seasonal dish. In years past I made it after a day’s adventure with Emilie and Linnea at one of the berry farms up the coast along Highway One. We would sample as we picked, and we came home with purple fingers and big smiles with purple teeth!

Swanton Berry Farms, a leader in unionized organic farming, started growing olallieberries at the old Coastways Ranch a few years ago. Picking berries and making cobbler was on my list of top-ten must-do summer activities this year. I called my friends Celia and Peter Scott, and we planned to go up the coast highway to pick olallieberries at Swanton Berry Farm on Sunday, July 31^st. When we got to the berry farm, we found that the olallieberry and blackberry fields were closed because there were not enough ripe berries available for picking.

So we took a walk around their strawberry fields on the bluffs just south of Ano Nuevo State Beach, and enjoyed the ocean views, the beautiful berry plants with plentiful white flowers and many ripe red fruits, and the local wildflowers. We decided not to pick strawberries but to check out the Pie Ranch produce barn a few miles north to see if they had any olallieberries for sale. They didn’t have any olallieberries, but we did buy vegetables and some of the flour that they make from wheat that they grow on their farm. Then, we headed south to the Swanton Berry Farm store where we found strawberries and blackberries, plus their delicious baked goodies and jams. I decided to substitute blackberries for olallieberries and proceed with making the cobbler with fruit from the farm store.

I had a great time making the cobbler and taking photos of the experience. I had been invited to have dinner with my friends Lisa, Yasmine, and Gracie at Lisa’s house, and I took the cobbler to share for dessert. Yasmine brought some frozen vanilla soy cream, and it melted perfectly on the warm cobbler. I only took photos of the cooking, so you will have to imagine the coastal berry farms, the farm stands with their organic delicacies, and the summer dinner with friends at a sunny house on the eastside of Santa Cruz. It was a beautiful day!

one year ago: ragout over polenta
two years ago: gazpacho
three years ago: best chocolate chip cookies

Olallieberry/Blackberry Cobbler

Yields 8-12 servings

• 1T butter for greasing the pie dish
• 5-6c fresh olallie or black berries
• 3/4 c sugar
• 1/4 t cinnamon
• 1T quick-cooking tapioca
• ½t orange zest, optional
• 2c flour, sifted
• 2½t baking powder (Rumford!!)
• 1/2 t salt
• 2T sugar
• 4T butter
• 3/4c (soy) milk
• 2T butter
  ______________________________

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees
2. Butter a deep pie dish, then set aside
3. Place the berries, 3/4c sugar, cinnamon, tapioca, and zest (if using) in a large bowl and mix together, tossing gently
4. Mix the sifted flour, baking powder, salt, and 2T sugar in a separate bowl
5. Cut the butter into the dry ingredients
6. Stir in the (soy) milk
7. Turn dough onto lightly floured board
8. Roll to a thin, large circle
9. Place in and over deep pie dish, letting at least 2″ hang over on all sides
10. Cut 2T butter in small pieces and distribute over berries
11. Pull up crust over berries
12. Optional – brush dough with milk and sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar
13. Bake for 35 minutes, and enjoy!!