Oh darn, I did it again (Brandied Apricot Bars)

Surely I'm not alone in having an occasional baking failure, or my idiosyncrasies. I rarely have an actual cooking "failure." But, this was a close call! One of my greatest cooking failings is that I don't read the directions completely before plunging into the preparation. This time was no exception. But, hey, it's a cookie, and what's a little extra sugar, right?

Last time I made these, probably two years ago, after they were finished I even went into my recipe software and re-arranged the recipe, separating the ingredients for the bar part, the syrup part and the glaze part. So that I wouldn't do exactly when I repeated - again - today. But did I print out the recipe and toss the old one? You can guess, can't you? No. I didn't. Dummy. Idiot that I am. So this morning, as usual, always with 101 things on my mind (gotta finish this quickly, need to pay some bills, make the bed, finish my makeup) before I leave for a luncheon. I did READ the ingredients. But I glossed over the directions about separating the sugar portion (some of the sugar goes in the syrup).

This recipe is a favorite (when I make it) of my friend, Cherrie. She's an excellent cook, but she isn't a baker, so she relies on her friends who are bakers (uh, yea, that's me and others, I assume) to give her some goodies. And sometimes I give her a little bag of cookies which she parcels out in her DH Bud's lunch bag. I gave her one of my Bishop's Breads I made before Christmas. (I don't mean to be going on and on about my Bishop's Bread - it's just that Cherrie has learned to love this like I do.) Just a slice with her afternoon tea. So when one of her friends called to tell me she was having a birthday luncheon for Cherrie today, I thought - oh, I'll make a batch of those Brandied Apricot Bars for her. That will make Cherrie very, very happy. She adores these things. More than I do, actually. I mean, they're really good, but she would happily cross a glacier to get ahold of these, and she doesn't "do" cold. Of all the things I bake, these cookies may be her very favorite.

It could be the little rolling warmth that emanates from your gullet after chewing one - after all, it does have brandy in it. Not cooked much, either. Supposedly the alcohol is cooked off when you heat alcohol to a boil, but since this is apricot brandy you use, it's potent stuff and I'm sure there is still alcohol remaining, because I sure do get warmth in my mouth, throat and tummy when I eat these. Back when I made these the first time, Cherrie was actually staying with us for awhile. She and I were both having sleeping issues, often waking up in the middle of the night, not able to sleep (my reason was that I was taking Claritin-D; once I stopped taking that, I began sleeping better). But back then, if she heard me up, we'd meet in the kitchen, whispering so we wouldn't wake up my DH, and tiptoe with a tea tray into our living room, light the fire and have some Earl Gray and one of these bars. Or maybe two. At 6:30 am, or so, my DH would wander out, sleep in his eyes and say what in the world are you two doing? He learned eventually - if I wasn't in the bed with him when he awoke, I'd be in the living room with tea and a fire, or in my office playing some mindless solitaire.

So, back to today and too much sugar. What to do, what to do? I was already fully into the batter when I re-read the directions. That's when I discovered my mistake. Oops. I had put a scant cup of white sugar into the batter. So, I cut down some on the brown sugar (about half) and used less sugar in the brandy mixture. The lemon juice topping requires a certain amount of sugar - otherwise it would turn out too sour, so I really couldn't reduce the powdered sugar there. I also made these in a 9x13 Pyrex pan, so baked them slightly longer, and it made 32 bars, not 36. But even with all my bad reading and chemistry juggling, they turned out just fine. Amazing. And Cherrie was really tickled (see big smile below) with my plate of cookies. All for her, with a little bite for everybody else at the luncheon.

So, the recipe below, for these tummy-warming bars, is the corrected one. Note to self: print out the gosh-darned corrected recipe and put it in your file! (done!)

Brandied Apricot Bars
Recipe: Adapted by me from a Sunset Magazine article, 1996
Serving Size : 36
COOKIE BATTER:
7 tbsp butter
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
4 large eggs
1 tbsp grated orange peel
1 tbsp vanilla
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 cups dried apricots -- minced
2/3 cup golden raisins
APRICOT SYRUP:
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup apricot brandy -- or Cointreau
3 tsp lemon juice
LEMON JUICE GLAZE:
4 tsp lemon juice
2/3 cup powdered sugar
1. Batter: preheat oven to 350°. In a large bowl, beat butter, 1/3 cup sugar, and brown sugar with mixer until fluffy. Beat in eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition, then add orange peel and vanilla.
2. In separate bowl, mix flour, baking powder, soda and cinnamon. Stir into butter mixture along with apricots and raisins.
3. Pour batter into lightly buttered 10x15 inch pan. Bake for 20 minutes or until cookie is lightly browned and springs back in center. If using a 9x13 pan, bake for about 25 minutes. Set on rack to cool.
4. Apricot Syrup - Just before bars are done, combine 1/3 cup sugar, brandy, and 3 tsp lemon juice in sauce pan. Bring to boil over high heat, remove and when bars comes from oven, spoon warm apricot syrup evenly over it. Let cool completely, then cut into 3 dozen equal pieces and leave in pan.
5. Lemon Icing - mix 4 teaspoons lemon juice and powdered sugar until smooth. Drizzle over the cookies. Once drizzle is sort-of dried, remove bars from pan. Serving Ideas : Originally a cookie, I think these make an equally interesting dessert. But, whichever, they're great with a cup of coffee or tea.
NOTES : When making the final glaze, add enough powdered sugar to make the glaze fairly firm - otherwise the bars are too soft and difficult to hold in your hand(it will ooze the glaze) and they're hard to store. Serve immediately or store airtight up to 2 days; freeze to store longer. If storing or freezing, separate layers with waxed paper or plastic wrap. Originally the bar called for more butter and sugar, but I reduced the amounts, as well as the amount of apricots and raisins.
Per Serving: 132 Calories; 6g Fat (38.9% calories from fat); 2g Protein; 19g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber; 37mg Cholesterol; 93mg Sodium. Exchanges: 0 Grain(Starch); 0 Lean Meat; 1/2 Fruit; 1 Fat; 1/2 Other Carbohydrates. Printer-friendly recipe, click title at top.

Normandy Apricot Custard

(photo wholefoodsmarket.com)

Maybe I'll have a photo of this special dessert this summer. But only if I can still find apricots in the market by the time I'm able to walk again.

Several years ago I attended a cooking class taught by Susan Hermann Loomis. She's an American woman who took a left turn in her life and went to Paris. Attended culinary school, found jobs here and there cooking for wealthy families, met a Frenchman, married, bought a home in Normandy, settled down, had two children, then wrote a cookbook. And opened her home for cooking classes. And no, I didn't attend a class at her home in Normandy. Maybe one day.

Susan's a fun personality, and her cooking is quite straightforward. She cooks rustic. Country French. Seasonal. But oh, so delicious. This was the one recipe from her class that I made as soon as it was apricot season. I bought her cookbook and memoir On Rue Tatin and read it cover to cover as soon as I brought it home from the class. It's not currently in print, but you can find used copies. But, I very much enjoyed her breezy style, and learning more details about her life. I can't say that I've made very many of the dishes (you know, so many cookbooks, so little time, especially with a broken FOOT!), but I loved reading about them. I tagged the book in many places to remind me of the things I want to make.

I don't cook with apricots very often. They have such a short season, after all. But they're very much a celebrated fruit in Normandy, the region where Susan lives. She obviously subscribes to the Slow Food movement, using only local and seasonal ingredients. Some apricot varieties cook better than others - if you're not careful they become mush. But if you have a good source, and they are full of flavor, by all means, this would make a super end to a meal. Be sure to make this in a baking dish that's got at least 1/2 inch of space once you add all the ingredients, or it may bubble over in your oven. My notes remind me that it's the topping that makes the dish. Otherwise it would be a fruit with a custard on top, I suppose. But this has a simple eggy topping that adds a piquant taste to it. Goes very well with those perfectly baked apricots.

Normandy Apricot Custard
Recipe: Susan Herrmann Loomis, chef and author
Servings: 8
FRUIT LAYER:
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 pounds apricots -- slightly under-ripe
1/4 cup light brown sugar

CUSTARD LAYER:
6 tablespoons sugar -- infused with vanilla
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 large eggs
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 cup milk

TOPPING LAYER:
1/3 cup sugar -- infused with vanilla
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 large egg
1. Preheat oven to 400°. Thoroughly butter and flour a 2-quart round baking dish about 4 inches deep. You may also use 1-cup ramekins.
2. Fruit Layer: Melt butter in medium wide skillet over medium heat. Add apricots and brown sugar, stir and saute until they are hot through and sugar has melted and begun to caramelize, about 8 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
3. Custard Layer: In a large bowl mix together the sugar and 2 T. of butter until the mixture is pale yellow and light, about 3-5 minutes. Mix in eggs one at a time until thoroughly combined. Use a whisk on the mixture until it is light and pale yellow. Sift the flour and baking powder over the bowl, whisking as you do, so it incorporates smoothly into the mixture. Then whisk in the milk. Fold in the warm apricots and the cooking juices, then pour the entire mixture into the prepared mold. Bake in center of oven until it begins to puff and look golden, about 30 minutes.
4. Topping Layer: While the custard is baking, whisk together vanilla sugar and remaining 4 T. butter until light and fluffy. Whisk in the egg until combined. Remove the baked apricot custard from the oven and spread this topping over it. Return it to the oven and bake until golden and bubbling, an additional 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool to room temperature before serving.
5. Serve with a rosemary sprig as garnish.
NOTES : The topping mixture is what makes this dish. Can be made several hours ahead of serving. Whatever bowl you bake this in, be sure to leave at least 1/2 inch of space below the edge, as it may overflow. Use a tall bowl, not a wide flat one. Vanilla sugar is simply regular sugar to which you have added a vanilla bean, cut in half. It will exude some scent to the sugar. Remove after a couple of months. When you add new sugar to your canister, add another vanilla bean. Since apricot season is so short, maybe this could be made with pluots instead.

Per Serving: 335 Calories; 16g Fat (41.9% calories from fat); 6g Protein; 44g Carbohydrate; 2g Dietary Fiber; 118mg Cholesterol; 103mg Sodium. Exchanges: 1/2 Grain(Starch); 1/2 Lean Meat; 1 Fruit; 0 Non-Fat Milk; 3 Fat; 1 1/2 Other Carbohydrates.

To print the recipe, click title at top.

Goat Cheese with Warm Apricot, Cherry and Green Chile Chutney

(photo from hormel.com)

Sometimes when I entertain I don't have a whole day to devote to preparing dinner. But then, when I entertain I always serve an appetizer, a salad, a vegetable, usually a carb of some kind, and a protein, maybe even with a sauce or salsa or something alongside. And dessert. That's a whole lot of food prep.

I'd like to say that as I've gotten older I've gotten wiser about the work and stress of entertaining, but my DH would heartily disagree. I still do a too-ambitious menu. I choose things that require too much work. Once in awhile I either buy an appetizer, or sometimes buy a ready-made dessert. Or, I cut out the carb. But most often I think I can do it all and still be full of energy at 6 pm. But more often than not I'm still working furiously 5 minutes before the guests arrive. My DH loves to entertain (and he does deal with the wine, the wine glasses, and he even sets the table AND does all the dishes). I can't complain at ALL that he doesn't help. He just doesn't help with any of the FOOD unless it's a grilled meal we're having. So when I start working up a menu I forget to think about the hours of work. I often underestimate how much time it will take. And I must not work at the frenetic level I used to. So I'm normally at work in the kitchen all day. One of these days I'll learn. Maybe.

On occasion I start working on my entertaining menu several days ahead and do some of the work a day or so before. This is one of those recipes to do ahead - it's not all that difficult, but you do have to make the chutney. It's easy enough - just takes about 45 minutes total time, with a bit of chopping and mincing before you start. Then when the guests arrive, you can just whip this out and heat it up.

Poblano chiles are a favorite of mine. They have some kind of deep, complex flavor. They have character. That's it. I don't think I've ever had them and not liked them. This recipe came from a cooking class with Tarla Fallgatter. And the chutney is just wonderful. On my notes from the class I wrote "fabulous." That means it's a "must fix this" dish. And I have. You'll have some leftover chutney, but it's also delicious served with a pork chop or chicken breast popped on the grill.

The picture at the top - of the cheese - isn't actually the right kind of cheese - you want the plain chevre or montrachet. A fresh and plain goat cheese log. Then you make the chutney, have it warm. Heat the log of cheese for 5 minutes, then plate it and mound the chutney over and around it. Some crackers, and you're done. I think you'll get raves.

Goat Cheese with Warm Apricot, Cherry & Green Chile Chutney
Recipe: Tarla Fallgatter
Servings: 8
8 ounces goat cheese -- log
2 1/2 cups dried apricots -- coarsely chopped
1 1/2 cups cider vinegar
1 1/2 cups sugar -- or sugar substitute
1 cup poblano peppers -- roasted, peeled, chopped
1/2 cup dried cherries -- chopped
1/2 cup red onion -- chopped
1 whole cinnamon stick -- 3 inches
1 1/2 teaspoons mustard seed
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons Italian parsley -- chopped
8 ounces crackers

Italian parsley sprigs for garnish
1. In a 3-4 quart pan over high heat, combine apricots, vinegar, sugar, chiles, cherries, onion, cinnamon stick, mustard seed and salt.
2. Bring to a boil, turn heat to low, partially cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the apricots are soft when pierced, about 20-25 minutes. Uncover and simmer until most of the liquid evaporates, about 5 more minutes.
3. Let cool, discard cinnamon stick and stir in the chopped parsley. Preheat oven to 350. Place goat cheese in an ovenproof dish and heat about 5 minutes or until JUST warm. Transfer to a serving plate and spoon some of the chutney over the top. Garnish with the Italian parsley sprigs, surround with crackers and serve.
Per Serving: 549 Calories; 14g Fat (22.0% calories from fat); 14g Protein; 98g Carbohydrate; 6g Dietary Fiber; 30mg Cholesterol; 609mg Sodium. Exchanges: 1 1/2 Grain(Starch); 1 Lean Meat; 1/2 Vegetable; 2 Fruit; 2 Fat; 2 1/2 Other Carbohydrates.

To view a printable recipe, click on title at top.

Apricot Ice Cream

The extra, beautifully ripe apricots were languishing in the refrigerator, so I needed to use them up. I made a small batch of ice cream using David Lebovitz's recipe from his book, The Perfect Scoop. I've mentioned his cookbook before - click here for my previous post about his Roasted Banana Ice Cream. I'm fortunate to have a wonderful ice cream machine that doesn't require you to freeze the bowl first - it's a commercial style machine made by Cuisinart - but manufactured for the home kitchen. I've been in love with this machine since Dave bought it for me about 3 years ago.

I read several other recipes before I decided which to use. But, everything I've had and heard about Levobitz's recipes led me to believe that his would be especially good. First you poach the apricots in a little water, add sugar, puree them in a blender, and add heavy cream, a hint of almond extract and another hint of lemon juice. I don't think I've ever made a recipe that called for 3 drops of any kind of extract - food coloring yes, extract, no. Hence the almond flavor mostly disappears in the mixture. The same with the lemon juice. It calls for a few drops of lemon juice, but my recipe program doesn't allow for "a few" as a measurement, so I changed it to 1/2 teaspoon, although I added more than that since I just squeezed a bit - probably more like 2 teaspoons at least. Then I poured it into the machine and 50 minutes later it was done. I didn't even chill the mixture first as it says in the recipe. So, how is it? Sinfully delicious. The intense apricot flavor slides right on through in your mouth. We haven't technically eaten it yet, although I licked the beater just to make sure it was okay (grin).

Apricot Ice Cream
Recipe By :The Perfect Scoop by David Lebovitz
Servings: 5

1 pound apricots -- fresh, very ripe
1/3 cup water
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup heavy cream
3 drops almond extract
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
1. Slice open the apricots, remove pits and any brown spots or stems, then cut each apricot into sixths. Cook the apricot pieces in water in a covered, medium, nonreactive saucepan over medium heat until tender, about 8 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and stir in sugar until dissolved. Let cool to room temperature.
2. Once cool, puree the apricots and liquid in a blender of food processor until smooth. Taste a big spoonful; if there are any small fibers, press the mixture through a mesh strainer to remove them. Stir in the cream, almond extract and lemon juice.
3. Chill mixture thoroughly in refrigerator, then freeze per manufacturer's directions.
Per Serving: 282 Calories; 18g Fat (55.1% calories from fat); 2g Protein; 31g Carbohydrate; 2g Dietary Fiber; 65mg Cholesterol; 19mg Sodium. Exchanges: 1/2 Fruit; 0 Non-Fat Milk; 3 1/2 Fat; 1 1/2 Other Carbohydrates.

To view a printable recipe, click on the title at the top.

Roasted Apricot Almond Cake

This is the height of apricot season, folks. I bought a small flat of them at Costco last week, and I mean to tell you, they are perfect. I let them sit out on the kitchen counter for 3 days and they reached the peak of ripeness. Half I used in the above cake, and the other half are in the refrigerator and I may try apricot ice cream. In any case, I'll cook those remaining apricots today or tomorrow before they're over the hill. As you probably know, apricots have a short time of perfection. Too green and they have no taste. Too ripe and they're mushy and they go downhill in rapid order from there. So, remember this recipe, either right NOW, or wait until next year.

Another cooking instructor who has provided me with any number of favorite recipes is Tarla Fallgatter. Here's a blurb I found about her on the internet:

Tarla Fallgatter is a well-known Orange County caterer, chef, teacher, restaurant consultant and kitchen tool manufacturer. She trained at Paris' Cordon Bleu, La Varenne, and Ecole Lenotre cooking schools, and was the first foreign woman to cook in the kitchens of Maxim's. She has traveled to over 60 countries throughout the world, "sampling" the local cuisine. She markets her "Tarla" all-copper rolling pin in fine cookware shops.

Tarla currently teaches at the Irvine Fine Arts Center (fairly elementary classes), at A Store for Cooks, and she also teaches a private group of wives who live in Coto de Caza (a very upscale, gated neighborhood in south Orange County). My friend Cherrie was invited to attend one of those classes about 5 years ago through a friend of hers, and as a substitute, I'm invited too. I can choose to attend or not. This recipe came from one of the Tarla classes I attended.

So, I have a funny story to tell about almond paste. When I went to make this the other day, I knew I had some almond paste. I found 3 boxes. How about that. All imported from Denmark. All hard as rocks. (Now you also need to know that at the class about this cake, Tarla told all of us that we couldn't substitute marzipan for almond paste - okay - got that - and she told us that almond paste doesn't store well. It's not that it spoils. It gets hard, and there's no recovering it once it gets that way.)

Okay, so I have these 3 boxes in my pantry. No dates on any of them. Guess what? All hard. Uhm. What do I do. I really didn't want to make another trip to the store, so I thought - maybe I can recover the almond paste. I'll put it in the microwave with a bowl of hot water and let it steam a bit. Surely that would help, right? Wrong. Five minutes later all I got was hot, hard almond paste. My dear hubby saved the day - he said he'd go to the market for me. Here's what almond paste looks like.

Ideally you bake the cake and the apricots at the same time (saves energy, obviously). So I got the apricots all ready to roast, then I went to work on the cake. Cautions about the cake:

1. make sure you use an 8-inch cake pan, not 9-inch (cake will be too shallow).

2. make certain you finely chop or tear off almond paste pieces - you don't want little nuggets of almond paste in the cake.

3. don't forget the parchment paper step in the cake pan - it needs it - even in a nonstick pan.

The apricots are easy to make and the sauce is delish. The cake is extremely moist and the almond flavor is not subtle - it's right there - but that is what makes the cake so good. Try it.

Almond Cake with Roasted Apricots
Recipe By: Tarla Fallgatter
Servings: 8

ALMOND CAKE:
4 ounces unsalted butter -- room temperature

Additional butter to grease pan
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup almond paste -- broken in small pieces
1 tablespoon orange zest
3 large eggs
1/2 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup creme fraiche -- plus sugar to taste
3 teaspoons powdered sugar
8 sprigs mint leaves
1 cup almonds -- use sliced almonds, toast half of them

ROASTED APRICOTS:
10 whole apricots -- firm, ripe, halved, pitted
1 whole vanilla bean -- split lengthwise, seeds scraped
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup Amaretto -- or apricot brandy

APRICOTS: Place apricot halves in a large baking dish and gently toss with vanilla bean and the seeds, with the honey. Pour 1/4 cup water over and the Amaretto and toss again. Bake along with the cake, until the apricots are tender when pierced with the tip of a knife, 15-20 minutes. The timing will depend on the ripeness of the fruit.
ALMOND CAKE: Preheat oven to 325°. Butter an 8-inch round cake pan (do not use a 9-inch pan as it will be too flat). Line with parchment paper and additional butter on the parchment paper.
Cream butter and sugar in food processor until fluffly. Add almond paste and beat until smooth and fluffy. Add the orange zest and eggs, one at a time. Beat until well blended. Mix flour, baking powder and salt together and pulse in. Scrape mixture into the prepared pan, smooth top and sprinkle 1/2 cup untoasted sliced almonds on top. Bake in the middle of the oven for about 30 minutes, until the edges are golden brown and pulling away from the pan. Remove and set on a rack to cool.
In a small bowl combine the creme fraiche and a little bit of sugar. Invert the cake onto a cake plate and peel off parchment paper. Turn the cake back over again so the almonds are on the top. Lightly dust with sifted powdered sugar. Cut the cake into 8 pieces and put on plates. Top each slice with the roasted apricots, a dollop of creme fraiche, then sprinkle the top with the additional sliced almonds, and decorate with mint sprigs.
Serving Ideas : Instead of creme fraiche, you could also use lightly sweetened whipped cream.
NOTES : You need to use fresh apricots for this. Choose firm ones, but still ripe. And don't overbake them.
Per Serving: 561 Calories; 35g Fat (55.8% calories from fat); 10g Protein; 53g Carbohydrate; 4g Dietary Fiber; 137mg Cholesterol; 128mg Sodium. Exchanges: 1 Grain(Starch); 1/2 Lean Meat; 0 Vegetable; 1/2 Fruit; 0 Non-Fat Milk; 6 1/2 Fat; 2 Other Carbohydrates.

To view a printable recipe, click the title at the top.