Ginger Apricot Mini Cakes

One of my conundrums is that I often want to bake but I don't always know what to make. These refreshing little cakes were inspired by the need to bake using only the available ingredients in the house and were a rewarding experiment. 

Preheat oven to 400 F, line or butter a 12 cup pan.

1 stick butter, soft
1 c chopped dried apricots, soaked & drained
1/4 chopped fresh ginger + 2 tbsp chopped candied ginger
3/4 c vanilla sugar
3/4 c milk (I like coconut for it's thickness)
2 eggs
2 c flour
3 tsp baking powder

Sift flour and baking powder, coat ginger and apricots, then set aside.

Combine butter, sugar, eggs and milk.

Now, when you combine the wet and dry mixes, you want to make sure not to over mix. It should be a bit lumpy. Pour into lined, prepared cupcake tins. Sprinkle the tops with sugar so they will be crunchy! Bake for about 20 minutes.

Raspberry Cupcakes

Baking is one of those things I feel I need to do when I feel really mislaigned. The process of creating something from scratch always feels so magical and important to me that I love the whole process. Before you think of how scary it is to bake with the weights and measures, it's really a thing you should relax about. The oven can always tell when you panic! We can still get raspberries here in California but I did originally make these June as I do try to utilize what is fresh and in season. But with Fall not yet raising her pretty head it is really hard to know what season it is right now!

Raspberry Cupcakes

1/2 cup soft unsalted butter
2/3 cup brown sugar
1 cup flour + 1/2 cup oat flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 c half and half
2 eggs
1/4 cup fresh raspberries
12 dark chocolate discs

 preheat oven to 350 F. Line muffin tin.


 Whisk together the dry ingredients and set aside. Beat the butter, sugar, milk and eggs on low until pale and fluffy. Add your dry ingrediants and combine until just mixed. Divide evenly among the muffin cups, place a chocolate disk in sideways and bake for about 15 minutes, or until a skewer comes out clean.

I like to do a basic vanilla frosting with this, butter, powdered sugar plus a splash of milk and vanilla. Enjoy!

Bacon, Leek and Potato Tart

I don't know about your house, but I live with a meat and potatoes kind of man, so sometimes I have to get inventive if I want him to eat outside of the proverbial box. This idea came when I realized that putting something tasty with bacon in pastry was a sure fire way to get him to enjoy something I really wanted. He still has no idea what all the ingredients are. It's best if we just don't tell him.

For the Tart you will need:

1 uncooked pie crust:

1 1/4 cup flour

3/4 stick cold butter, cubed

1/4 tsp salt

5 tbsp cold water

Combine salt and flour. You can use a food processor or mixer for this. Add butter and mix until it looks like a mealy dough. Add water 1 tbsp at a time until it makes a cohesive dough. Have extra cold water ready just in case your dough is a bit dry.

Pat into a round, wrap and chill for at least one hour.

preheat your oven to 350 F. and prep the rest of your ingredients.

For the filling you will need:

6 slices bacon, cooked crisp

4 potatoes, sliced thin and par cooked

1 large leek, cleaned sliced thin and lightly sauteed

The easiest thing to do is utilize your bacon fat here and cook the potatoes and leeks in it as well!

Use paper towels or tempura paper to drain the fat and set aside.

Once you have everything together, roll out your dough and place it in a tart tin. You don't want it too thick, or it won't be very crispy. Prick the bottom of the dough, pop into the oven for 7 to 10 minutes or until turning a light golden brown. Add your potatoes, leeks and bacon to the tart crust and then pour over 3 tsp cream + 1 egg (2 if you really like eggs), lightly beaten with a fork.

Bake about 20, then turn off your oven and allow to cool.

This is perfect for a light supper with some arugula and mushrooms, or even with a lovely little french onion soup!

Molasses Cookies

Imagine a day where you need something warm and delicious to go with brown sugar ice cream. So you whip up a simple, delicious batch of cookies, the kind that once rolled in a little brown sugar have a marvelous crispy texture and are perfect for a sandwich cookie.Yeah, I thought that might get your attention.

Molasses Cookies

1/2 c shortening
1 c brown sugar + 1/2 c set aside
1/2 c molasses
1 egg
2 c whole wheat pastry flour
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cardamom
1/2 tsp cloves (optional)
1/2 tsp salt

preheat oven to 350 F.

Whisk together dry ingredients and set aside.

Beat sugar, egg, molasses and shortening until light and fluffy.

Beat in dry ingredients until well combined.

Use a tea spoon or a small cookie scoop and drop into the brown sugar that was set aside. Roll, press down and bake for about 10 min.

These are also easy to freeze! Don't roll in sugar until you are ready to bake. Freeze on a piece of parchment in a flat area of your freezer, then wrap in plastic wrap or freezer safe bags.

Apricot Lavender Shortbread

I know that there are a great many people who don't care for lavender in their food and insist that it takes like soap. I have two things to say to that: 'Okay, then you don't have to eat it' and 'If it tastes like soap, you've done something terribly wrong.'

When I worked at the winery years ago I got used to wandering out in the garden and taking roses, borage, lavender, lemon verbena and rosemary back into my kitchen. The amount of dreamy things you can create from fresh herbs is beyond measure and I for one am looking forward to the day when we are back in a spot where Sascha can have a garden.

This recipe is from my pastry chef days, and I promise you, it is really good. The trick is, as always, to use high quality ingredients and have patience. Baked goods cannot be rushed and they will know if you get desperate.  For me, the golden rule is to relax into what you are doing, whether that be baking or cooking. Believe me, it makes all the difference in the world.

Apricot Lavender Shortbread

1 c walnut oil

2 c pastry flour

½ c lavender sugar (use 1 tsp of lavender for your 1/2 c of sugar)

½ tsp salt

1½ c dried apricots, chopped and re-hydrated

preheat oven to 325 F.

Combine all ingredients until well mixed, pat into in lightly oiled pan and bake for 20 minutes. Allow to cool, cut and enjoy!

Coffee Shortbread

Coffee Shortbread

8 oz butter, cold & cut in pieces

4 oz brown sugar

½ tsp sea salt

8 oz Whole Wheat pastry flour

2 tsp coffee (I used a dark roast from Peets, finely ground)

1 tsp vanilla

4 oz potato starch

Preheat oven to 350 F. Place all your ingredients in a bowl, then rub the butter in, as for pie crust. Once it starts to make a dough, shape into a large round for triangles or a rectangle if you want to cut squares. My oven tends to run hot, so I bake them for 20-30 minutes, so just know how your oven is.

Cut into wedges or squares while warm. Enjoy!

Breakfast Cuppies

 I've been re-reading the Corrina Chapman mysteries and she always makes me want to bake. I can feel myself drawn into the kitchen ready to experiment and play with all the ingredients that make baking so magical. Flour, butter, sugar and eggs are the base for so many amazing treats that it boggles the mind.

Today I woke up with the urge to make something, anything, that would warm up my kitchen and let me just be in the space of quiet joy that I find when I am really present in the kitchen, in the moment. Here is the recipe for Dried Cranberry Breakfast cupcakes or if you prefer, cupfins. Don't be afraid, be patient. Baking requires you to be calm and not rushed!

1/2 cup butter, soft
1/2 cup + 1 tbsp turbinado sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup whole milk
1 cup dried cranberries

First, put the cranberries into the milk to allow them to plump a little. Sift the flour and baking powder together, set aside. Preheat the over to 350 F and line muffin tins.

This recipe makes 18 cuppies. Beat the butter and sugar until light in color. Add eggs one at a time and allow to incorporate fully. Add half the flour and then half the milk, mix well and repeat. Scrape the bowl, add the cranberries and fold in with the spatula.

Bake for 15 minutes or until a knife comes out clean from the center, remove from oven and let sit a few minutes before eating. I know that's hard!