Free-Form Mini Apple Tarts!

One of my favorite desserts to make (and to eat) are these mini apple tarts. Instead of using a small tart pan to impart shape and structure, I use a butter-heavy dough fold the edges on themselves and the apples. The dough incorporates cream cheese for a moist, tender pastry.

Make sure not to overbake these because both the apples and the dough will dry out pretty quickly towards the end of the baking cycle.

Tart Dough
1 1/4	cups unbleached all-purpose flour
2	tablespoons granulated sugar
1/4	teaspoon table salt
8	tablespoons unsalted butter (1 stick), cold, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
4	ounces cream cheese (cold), cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2	teaspoons lemon juice from 1 lemon
1 - 2	tablespoons ice water
Apple Filling
1 1/4	pounds Granny Smith apples (about 3 medium)
1 1/4	pounds McIntosh apples (about 3 medium)
2	tablespoons lemon juice from 1 lemon
1/4	cup granulated sugar
2	tablespoons granulated sugar
1/4	teaspoon ground cinnamon
2	egg whites , beaten lightly

INSTRUCTIONS

1.       1. In bowl of food processor fitted with steel blade, pulse flour, sugar, and salt to combine. Add butter and cream cheese; pulse until mixture is sandy, with small, pebblelike curds, 10 to 12 one-second pulses (mixture should not form cohesive ball). Turn mixture into medium bowl.

      2. Sprinkle lemon juice and 1 tablespoon ice water over mixture. With rubber spatula, use folding motion to evenly distribute water and lemon juice into flour mixture until small portion of dough holds together when squeezed in palm of hand (see illustration 1), adding up to 1 tablespoon more ice water if necessary. (Mixture will look dry even after liquid is incorporated.) Turn dough onto clean, dry work surface; gather and gently press together into cohesive ball, then flatten into rough disk. With chef’s knife or dough scraper, cut dough into 6 equal pieces, shaping each piece into disk about 3 inches wide. Place disks in single layer on flat dinner plate, wrap plate in plastic, and refrigerate until firm, about 30 minutes (can be refrigerated up to 2 days).

3.       3. Remove dough from refrigerator (if refrigerated longer than 30 minutes, let stand at room temperature until soft and malleable). Working one at a time, roll out disks between 2 sheets of lightly floured parchment paper into circles approximately 6 inches wide. Remove top layer of parchment; trim bottom layer of parchment into rectangles about 2 inches larger than dough. Stack rectangles with parchment on plate; cover plate with plastic wrap and refrigerate while preparing fruit.

4.       4. Adjust one oven rack to highest position and other rack to lowest position; heat oven to 400 degrees. Peel, core, and cut apples into 1/4-inch-thick slices and toss with lemon juice, 1/4 cup sugar, and cinnamon. Arrange parchment-lined dough rounds in single layer on work surface. Following illustrations 5 and 6, arrange about 1 cup apple slices, thick edges out, in circular mound, leaving 1-inch border of dough. Fold dough border up over filling, pleating dough to fit snugly around apples. With cupped hands, gently press dough to filling, reinforcing shape and compacting apples (see illustration 7). Using parchment lining, slide 3 tartlets onto each of 2 cookie sheets.

5.       5. Bake tartlets until pale golden brown, about 15 minutes. Brush crust with beaten egg whites and sprinkle apples with remaining 2 tablespoons sugar. Return tartlets to oven, switching positions of cookie sheets; bake until crust is deep golden brown and apples are tender, about 15 minutes longer. Cool tartlets on cookie sheets 5 minutes; using wide metal spatula, remove from parchment and transfer to cooling rack. Cool additional 5 minutes; serve.

I serve mine with a little cinnamon. The tart piictured at the top of the page has whipped cream and some lemon zest for a little extra zing. Enjoy!

Start your engines...

So I'm in. I start December 2nd. I've been bordering on giddy all day (as giddy as I can get) and am currently drinking a celebratory glass of shiraz (or three). More to come as I dawn the jacket and pants and head into the classroom...

Obama gets baked...

This just seemed too good to pass up. It's a perfect of blend of what this blog aims to be about.

The Feel Good Bakery in San Francisco is producing loaves of bread graced by the face of our next president. Oh, and there are McCain loaves, as well.

I did a little research and found that they're hitting each loaf with black onyx cocoa powder through a stencil. I'll try to find some today. Look for dove loaves and peace bread in the coming days.

Hope everyone had a great Halloween. Keep your eyes open for Thanksgiving recipes that I can put on here. Every little bit helps!

Pumpkin Soup

With Halloween just around the corner, a trip to the pumpkin patch is, for some, inevitable, and for others, a reminder of how fall was done when we got to dress up AND get candy. At the farm, you're guaranteed to find pumpkins of all shapes, sizes, and creeds. And now, a word on pumpkins:

Pumpkins are a member of the Cucurbita genus, which also includes squash and several different species commonly referred to as pumpkin. Much of the pumpkin life-cycle depends on pollination by honeybees, which are disappearing at an alarming rate. If there is an inadequate honeybee population near the patch, the pumpkin will begin to grow, but abort before full development...which reminds me...the election is coming up...please vote for a pumpkin's right to choose.

Where was I? Ah, yes. Most of the pumpkins found at the celebrated patches in the fall have been grown specifically for your carving enjoyment. You might be able to salvage the seeds for a delicious snack (in fact, you should), but the flesh of the great gourd would be better served as insulation around your kitchen than as delicious fodder inside of it. For the culinary gems, pick up a sugar pumpkin, also known as a pie pumpkin (names like that have to be good). They're available at the patch (usually near the lady taking your 

money) or at the grocery store. They're smaller (5-8 lbs.) and, well, less developed, than their open-field counterparts. They pack just as many seeds as your Jack-O's will and the flesh is much more suited for our needs.

And now we arrive at those needs: a warm pumpkin soup to enjoy either alone on a quiet stormy fall evening, or with friends waiting for that first batch of goblins to reach your door on Halloween. The trickiest part of this endeavour will be the harvesting of the internal meat from your pumpkin. My gourd was about 6 lbs and seemed to supply me with plenty of the good stuff. 

First, preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line a jelly roll pan with aluminum foil. Simply wash the outside of the pumpkin, cut out the stem and cut the whole thing in half (top to bottom). Using a 

metal spoon, scoop out the seeds and stringiness (please save the seeds, they're a great healthy snack) until your left with the tough meat. Place the pumpkins, flesh side down on the pan and roast until the meat can be easily scraped off with a fork: about an 1 - 1 1/2 hours. Let them cool 

on a wire rack and then scrape out the inside into a large bowl. Make sure to get everything that's orange. I tore it in to chunks and scraped it out with the same spoon that i used to get out the seeds and string. Set aside your yield until ready.

Then it's easy!

4 Tbsp unsalted butter

1 1/2 medium yellow onions, chopped

2 teaspoons minced garlic

1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper

2 teaspoons curry powder

1/2 teaspoon ground coriander

Pinch ground cayenne pepper (optional, but I recommend it)

6 cups of chopped roasted pumpkin

4 cups of chicken broth (or vegetable broth for vegetarian option)
2 cups of milk
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup heavy cream

1. Melt your butter in a large saucepan (4-qt. should be ample room) and sweat the onions and garlic over medium-high heat until soft. Add your spices and stir for another minute.

2. Add chicken broth and pumpkin. Bring to a boil and then simmer for 15 minutes.

3.  Blend. This can get tricky. I set up a assembley line where I filled a Pyrex measuring glass with the soup, put it in the blender, then moved it into a large bowl. It should take a few batches, but you have to make sure it's smooth.

4. Return soup to saucepan and put on low heat. Add brown sugar and stir in until fully incorporated. Slowly pour in milk as you stir. Add cream.

5. Serve! If the soup is too spicy, add more cream. If not spicy enough-you know what to do!

Warning: this is A LOT of soup. I was surprised to see how much it made. Consider halving the recipe or having some friends. I froze half and am currently enjoy some of the unfrozen batch. Makes great leftovers! Oh, in the above picture, I added some cream to the finished product just to give it some flavor profile: you don't want every bite the same! Consider some heavy cream or creme fraiche as a final touch.

First, preheat the oven...

In the beginning, there was Maggie Gyllenhaal and pure boredom. With a little creativity and some inspiration, it has grown in to a passion. I enjoy cooking. If you didn't know that before, you'll figure it out pretty quickly. This blog will follow my assault on culinary uniformity, as well as my journey through culinary school (coming soon...) and maybe a few political/social rants.

To get you up to speed, I'm living in Portland, working at the World's Largest Gourmet Coffee Retailer, and biding my time in the kitchen (to critical review) until culinary school begins. I enjoy entertaining...whether in the kitchen with friends or on the street with complete strangers. You've missed the squid phase, failed pasta dishes, and countless loaves of bread (my true passion). From here on out, I will keep all interested informed of recipes and adventures and a just a few current events.

Feel free to email me at danpaulmoe@gmail.com, or just leave a comment. Oh, and if I go a bit without a post, give me a nudge, it'll help.

Welcome...