Gingered Carrot Cookies (TWD)

I need to up my blogging game. I've been baking and photographing, but am totally behind on getting all of my posts up. Sure, I have lame excuses for my procrastination, but I won't bore you with the details...at least for today.

This week's Tuesdays With Dorie recipe for Gingered Carrot Cookies is essentially a carrot cake in a portable cookie form. You know that this will be a hearty cookie with its list of ingredients (you can find the complete recipe at Natalia's blog Gatti Fili e Farina):

I followed the recipe essentially as written, and my only variation was to substitute half of the raisins with chopped candied ginger.

I used a large cookie scoop and ended up with 18 hefty sized cookies. These cookies don't spread at all when baking, so would recommend that you flatten the scooped dough before popping the cookies in the oven.
I love cakey cookies, and this cookie was right up my alley. I am so glad that I added the candied ginger, as it gave a nice spicy flavor and a nice chew. This recipe begs to be played with, and next time I'm going to nix the raisins and try a combination of dried pineapple and candied ginger, as well as substituting some of the butter with applesauce to reduce the fat content.

Thanks to Natalia for a delicious TWD pick this week!

...and just because, I wanted to share a photo of Siena closely supervising my photography session.

All In One Holiday Bundt (TWD)

So, we had to cope with our derailed Thanksgiving travel plans. The hubs and I went through a momentary (okay, it was a bit more like a few hours) whiny, pity party phase, and now we've moved on. We decided to make the proverbial lemons into lemonade, and are making good use of our new found time.

The hubs has been a whirling dervish as he's already cleaned the garage, dug out the Christmas boxes, and hung the holiday lights. WooHoo hubs!!! I've been organizing paperwork for next year's tax returns, decking the house with holiday stuff, scouring cookbooks for this year's holiday treat boxes, and taking inventory of the gifts that we've been stockpiling throughout the year. I hope I'm not jinxing ourselves by saying this, but I think we're actually ready for the holidays!

BTW, Siena is doing much better. The first 24 hours was tough on the little girl, but she pulled through just fine (and the vet confirmed that she didn't ingest anything poisonous). She's back to her old exuberant self!
With this gift of time, I took the opportunity to catch up on some baking that I've been postponing. This is a late TWD post for All-In-One Holiday Bundt. I almost skipped this recipe due to lack of time, and I am so glad that I didn't pass this recipe.

The list of ingredients is definitely representative of the holidays: pumpkin, apple, cranberry, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg.

I halved the recipe, which yielded the perfect amount for a six cup bundt pan. The original recipe calls for a cup of chopped pecans, which I decided to omit. Instead, I substituted the nuts with an additional 1/4 cup each of cranberries and apple (I used granny smith). I was too lazy to dice, so I shredded the apple instead (just watch your fingers!).

The baking time for this smaller bundt was approximately 40-45 minutes. The smell of this cake baking in the oven was heavenly!

Once out of the oven and cooled, I opted to drizzle maple icing to finish the cake.

When I first read through the recipe, I thought this could be a case of "too much of a good thing" with all of these ingredients competing with each other. Instead, I was really pleased by the flavors: the tartness of the cranberry and apple was nicely balanced by the sweetness of the pumpkin and maple icing. The spices are definitely present, but doesn't overwhelm the fruit flavors in the cake.

Aside from the delicious flavor, this cake is super moist and will keep for a few days (if it isn't gobbled up before then).
Thank you Britin of The Nitty Britty for this delicious Tuesdays With Dorie selection. For the complete recipe, you can find it either at Dorie Greenspan's column at Serious Eats or at Britin's blog.

Creamiest Lime Cream Meringue Pie (TWD)

Without Tuesdays With Dorie, my blog would not exist! Back in April 2008, I unexpectedly found TWD from doing a Google search on Dorie Greenspan and her cookbook, Baking: From My Home To Yours. I was only intent on buying the book, but after learning more about TWD, I thought that it would be a fantastic avenue to bake through the recipes.

At that time, I didn't have a blog and the group required one to participate. In fact, I had absolutely no clue what blogging was, so I was in for a quick education. Fast forward 18 months and 70+ TWD recipes, I can't believe that I've been able to keep up my blog and stick with it long enough to select a recipe! One unexpected surprise from this experience is the sense of community that has come with this group and the blogosphere, and I've appreciated getting to know some really terrific, talented bakers and cooks who are passionate about what they do.

One of the great things about this experience was expanding my baking horizons. Prior to joining TWD, if I were asked to select a recipe, I would have (without hesitation) picked a cake or brownie recipe. After completing a wide variety of recipes over the course of this past year, I've learned to really enjoy making things that are out of my comfort zone. For me, pies/tarts and yeasted doughs were definitely in that category.

With my new found love for pies & tart, I couldn't resist picking Creamiest Lime Cream Meringue Pie for this week's TWD.The combination of lime and ginger flavors infused in the luscious, rich cream instantly sold me on this this recipe.
Dorie Greenspan's technique to make this velvety cream is definitely worth taking note. The instructions for the cream starts with a mixture of sugar, eggs, lime, ginger. As the mixture cooks over a bain marie, the liquid mixture thickens and transforms into a curd.

The left photo shows the mixture before heating. The right photo shows the thickened mixture just moments before I took it off the heat.

Now, this is the part where Dorie's recipe sets itself apart from other recipes. The mixture is cooled slightly, then strained into a blender or food processor. With the equipment on, you gradually add butter pieces. Once completed and chilled, you will be rewarded with the most velvety cream imaginable! The flavors of lime and ginger were fantastic, and I actually yearned for more of that zinginess from the ginger (note to self for next time). I slathered some of the leftover cream on a piece of toast and had it for breakfast --- totally decadent!

I prepared four 5 inch tartlet pans with a graham cracker crust. I didn't add any additional sugar to the crust, as I thought that there was enough sweetness in the cream.

For the meringue, I actually heated the egg whites and sugar slightly over a bain marie before whisking. As I was planning to torch the meringue (vs baking in the oven), I wanted to avoid undercooked egg whites.

How did we enjoy this pie? I think Siena expressed it the best:
Lip smacking delicious!!!

Thank you Laurie for all of your dedication and hard work to keep TWD going...I've enjoyed making the 70+ recipes that we've made to date, and look forward to at least that many more!

Please make sure to peruse the TWD blogroll, as I guarantee that you will see many scrumptious pies this week. Thanks everyone for baking along with me!

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Creamiest Lime Cream Meringue Pie
From Baking: From My Home To Yours By Dorie Greenspan (pp 337-339)
Makes 8 servings

Dorie's Notes: The look of this pie is sumptuous, its texture silky and its lime-ginger flavor big, bright and sassy. While I’m happy to have a lemon meringue pie any time of the year, I save this pie for summer because, as fresh as lime and ginger taste on their own, when they’re mixed together, they turn uber-zingy and so cool you’d think they’d been in the deep freeze. It may be an illusion, but one you’ll be happy to play along with on a sweltering day.

Serving: The pie is best served chilled and in generous wedges.

Storing: Meringue-topped pies are at their best the day they are made. Kept longer, the risk of weepy meringue gets higher.

FOR THE FILLING
1 cup sugar
Grated zest of 3 limes
4 large eggs, preferably at room temp
¾ cup fresh lime juice (from about 6 limes)
A 1 inch chunk of fresh ginger, peeled and finely grated
2 teaspoons cornstarch
2 ½ sticks (10 ounces) unsalted butter, cut into tablespoon size pieces, at room temperature

Getting ready: Have an instant-read thermometer, a strainer and a blender (first choice) or food processor at hand.

Bring a few inches of water to a simmer in a saucepan.

Put the sugar and zest into a heatproof bowl that can be set over the pan of simmering water. Off the heat, rub the sugar and zest between your fingertips for a few minutes, until the sugar is moist and the fragrance of lime is strong.

Whisk in the eggs, then whisk in the juice, ginger and cornstarch.

Set the bowl over the pan and start stirring with the whisk as soon as the mixture feels tepid to the touch. Cook the lime cream until it reaches 180 degrees F. As you whisk- you must whisk constantly to keep the eggs from scrambling – you’ll see that the cream will start out light and foamy, then the bubbles will get bigger, and then, as it gets closer to 180 degrees F, it will start to thicken and the whisk will leave tracks. Heads up at this point – the tracks mean the cream is almost ready. Don’t stop whisking or checking the temperature, and have patience – depending on how much heat you’re giving the cream, getting to temp can take as long as 10 minutes.

As soon as it reaches 180 degrees F, remove the cream from the heat and strain the cream into the container of the blender (or food processor); discard the rest.

Let it cool until it reaches 140 degrees F, about 10 minutes.

Turn the blender to high speed (or turn on the processor) and add the butter a few pieces at a time. Scrape down the sides of the container as needed as you incorporate the butter. After all the butter is in, continue to blend the cream for another 3 minutes. If you find the machine is getting really hot, work in 1-minute intervals, giving the machine a little rest in between beats.

Pour the cream into a container, press a piece of plastic wrap against the surface and refrigerate the cream for at least 4 hours, or overnight. (The cream can be packed airtight and frozen for up to 2 months; thaw overnight in the refrigerator.)

FOR THE CRUST (2 options)

Graham Cracker Crust

makes a 9-inch crust

1 3/4 cups graham cracker crumbs
3 tablespoons sugar
Pinch of salt
1/2 stick (4 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted

Butter a 9-inch pie plate.

Stir the crumbs, sugar and salt together in a medium bowl. Pour over the melted butter and stir until all of the dry ingredients are uniformly moist. Turn the ingredients into the pan and use your fingers to pay an even layer of crumbs over the bottom of the pan. Put the pan in the freezer while you preheat the oven. (The crust can be covered and frozen for up to 2 months.)

Center a rack in the over, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and place the pan on a baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes. Set the crust aside to cool on a rack.

Good For Almost Everything Pie Dough

makes one 9-inch crust

1 1/2 cups all·purpose flour
2 tablespoons sugar
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 sticks (10 tablespoons) very cold (frozen is fine) unsalted butter, cut into tablespoon-size pieces
2 1/2 tablespoons very cold (frozen is even better) vegetable shortening, cut into 2 pieces
About 1/4 cup ice water

Put the flour, sugar and salt in a food processor fitted with a metal blade; pulse just to combine the ingredients. Drop in the butter and shortening and pulse only until the butter and shortening are cut into the flour. Don't overdo the mixing—what you're aiming for is to have some pieces the size of fat green peas and others the size of barley. Pulsing the machine on and off, gradually add about 3 tablespoons of water—all a little water and pulse once, add some more water, pulse again and keep going that way. Then use a few long pulses to get the water into the flour. If after a dozen or so pulses, the dough doesn't look evenly moistened or form soft curds, pulse in as much of the remaining water as necessary, or even a few drops more, to get a dough that will stick together when pinched. Big pieces of butter are fine. Scrape the dough out of the work bowl and onto a work surface.

Gather the dough into a ball, flatten the ball into a disk and wrap in plastic. Refrigerate the dough for at least 1 hour before rolling. (If your ingredients were very cold and you worked quickly, though, you might be able to roll the dough immediately: the dough should be as cold as if it had just come out of the fridge.)

To Roll Out the Dough: Have a buttered 9-inch pie plate at hand. You can roll the dough out on a floured surface or between sheets of wax paper or plastic wrap or in a rolling slipcover. (I usually roll this dough out on the floured counter.) If you're working on a counter, turn the dough over frequently and keep the counter floured. If you are rolling between paper, plastic or in a slipcover, make sure to turn the dough over often and to lift the paper, plastic or cover frequently so that it doesn't roll into the dough and form creases. If you've got time, slide the rolled-out dough into the fridge for about 20 minutes to firm up.

To Make the Crust: Fit the dough into the pie plate and, using a pair of scissors, but the excess dough to a 1/4- to 1/2 inch overhang. Fold the dough under itself, so that it hangs over the edge just a tad, and flute or pinch the crust to make a decorative edge. Alternatively, you can finish the crust by pressing it with the tines of a fork.

To Partially or Fully Bake the Crust: Refrigerate the crust while you preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Butter the shiny side of a piece of aluminum foil, fit the foil, buttered side down, tightly against the crust and fill with dried beans or rice or pie weights. Put the pit plate on a baking sheet and bake the crust for 25 minutes. Carefully remove the foil and wights and, if the crust has puffed, press it down gently with the back of a spoon. For a partially baked crust, return the pie plate to the oven and bake for about 8 minutes more, or until the crust is very lightly colored. To fully bake the crust, bake until golden brown, about another 10 minutes. Transfer the pie plate to a rack and cool to room temperature before filling.

FOR THE MERINGUE
4 large egg whites, at room temperature
½ cup sugar

To finish the pie with the meringue: Preheat the broiler.

Whisk the cream to loosen it and spoon it into the pie shell. Place the pie plate on a baking sheet.

Working in a clean dry mixer bowl with the clean whisk attachment, or in a large bowl with a hand mixer, whip the egg whites at medium speed until opaque. With the mixer running , add the sugar in a slow stream and continue to beat until the whites are glossy and form firm peaks.

Spread the meringue over the lime filling, swirling it if you’d like. Make sure the meringue comes all the way to the edges of the crust, because it will shrink when it bakes.

Run the pie under the broiler until the meringue is golden and the tips are dark brown (Or, if you’ve got a blowtorch, use it to brown the meringue.) Remove the pie from the oven and let it cool for about 15 minutes, then refrigerate for at least 3 hours before serving.

Playing Around – Gingered Lime and Mango Meringue Pie
Peel a ripe mango, cut it into small cubes and sprinkle with a little lime juice. Spread about one third of the lime cream into the crust, top with the diced mango and cover with the remaining cream. Chill and finish with meringue as directed. Or omit the meringue and top the pie with long, elegant slices of mango and a gloss of quince or apple jelly: boil about ¼ cup jelly with ½ teaspoon water, then brush the glaze over the pie.

Chai Cake w. Honey-Ginger Cream (TCS)

SCRUMPTIOUS!!! I think that succinctly describes The Cake Slice recipe for this month, Chai Cake w. Honey-Ginger Cream.

I went the baby cake route again, making a triple layer 4 inch cake. I cut the cake recipe in half, which provided enough batter for two 4 inch springform pans and 6 cupcakes.

The cake layers get its spicy note from chai tea (I used the Tazo brand), and augmented with cinnamon and cardamom. As part of the cake-making process, several chai tea bags are steeped in warm milk. With a little honey, I could have taken a straw and drank this tea-infused milk straight from the pot!
I also reduced the frosting recipe by half. My only slight issue with the frosting was its intense sweetness (and I didn't even use the full amount of powdered sugar in the recipe). This could have resulted from my substitution of crystalized ginger for fresh. To balance the sweetness, I added more cream cheese. Instead of an icing to drizzle on the cake layers, I ended up with a more traditional cream cheese frosting. The little golden bits you see in the frosting is the chopped crystalized ginger:
If you enjoy spice cakes (which I definitely do), this will make your tastebuds and tummy very happy.

Based on the six cakes that I've baked from the Sky High book, every recipe has been been an absolute winner! Not only are the cake/frosting combinations inspired, the final cakes are beautiful in presentation. My thanks goes out to Gigi for organizing this fantastic monthly baking group!!!

Although The Cake Slice group is closed to new members, I encourage you to get a copy of this fantastic cookbook and try your hand at these recipes --- I promise you won't regret it!

In the meantime, please visit the TCS blogroll to see the beautiful handiwork of my fellow talented bakers.

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Chai Cake w. Honey Ginger Cream

From Sky High:Irresistible Triple Layer Cakes by Alisa Huntsman and Peter Wynne
Makes an 8-inch triple layer cake; serves 12-16

1 and 1/3 cups of milk
6 chai tea bags, without added sweetner, such as Tazo
4 whole eggs
2 egg yolks
2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
2 and 3/4 cups of cake flour
2 cups of sugar
4 and 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder
3/4 teaspoons of ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon of ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon of salt
8 ounces of unsalted butter at room temp.

Preheat the oven to 350 Degrees F. Grease the bottom and sides of the pans and line with parchment paper. Grease the paper as well.

In a small saucepan bring the milk to a simmer over low med-low heat. Add the tea bags, careful not to let the paper tag fall into the milk. Remove from heat and allow the tea to steep for 5 minutes. Remove the teabags and squeeze out the milk. Let the chai milk cool completely.

In a medium bowl mix the eggs, egg yolks, vanilla, and 1/3 cup of the chai milk. Whisk together.

Combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, cardamom, and salt in the bowl of a mixer. Beat on low for 30 seconds. Add the butter and the remaining chai milk, on med-low speed.

Raise the speed to medium and beat until light and fluffy. Add the egg mixture in three additions scraping the between additions. Divide the batter evenly among the pans.

Bake the cakes for 26-28 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted in the middle comes out clean. Allow the cakes to cool in the pans for 10 minutes.Remove cakes from pans and peel off parchment paper. Cool completely.

To assemble the cake place one layer flat side down a serving plate and top with 2/3 cup of icing. Spread to the edge and repeat with second layer. Place third layer on top and spread the remaining ginger cream on top allowing it to drizzle down the sides of the cake like icicles.

Honey-Ginger Cream

2 and 1/2 cups of confectioners sugar {decreased to 1 1/2 cups}
6 ounces of cream cheese at room temp. {increased to 9 oz}

6 tablespoons of unsalted butter at room temp.
1/2 cup of honey (any kind as long as liquid)
1/2 teaspoon of fresh grated ginger {substituted w. 1 1/2 tbsp finely minced crystalized ginger}

Place all the ingredients in a food processor. Pulse to blend together, then scrape the sides of the bowl and pulse until smooth.

Fresh Ginger & Chocolate Gingerbread (TWD)

It's Tuesday, and it's time for another delicious installment of Tuesday's With Dorie. Heather of Sherry Trifle selected Fresh Ginger & Chocolate Gingerbread. How do you describe this cake? I think Dorie Greenspan's description says it all --- "Packed with fresh, candied and ground ginger, spices, molasses and a little chocolate, it is moist, mildly spicy and just a teensy bit hot from the ginger. It's a hearty, high square with a wonderfully solid look, and it's topped with a swath of bittersweet icing."

I didn't stray far from the original recipe, and here are my notes and adjustments:

- fresh ginger: Instead of chopping, I used a microplane grater (IMHO, a fantastic $12 investment for the kitchen)

- stem ginger: Didn't want to schlep to the Asian market to find this ingredient; instead, I added 1/4 C chopped crystalized ginger (I LOVE this stuff).

- chocolate: Instead of chopping chocolate, I used bittersweet mini-chips

- baking pan: I used an 8x8 pan, and had enough extra batter to make a dozen mini muffins

- baking time: The mini muffins were out of the oven at the 10 minute mark. The 8x8 pan did take longer than the 40 minutes detailed in the recipe. Mine required 50-55 minutes to bake through.


I love ginger, but I'm not huge fan of gingerbread (go figure), so I'm not the best person to judge this recipe. Personally, I thought there was a bit much going on with the strong flavors of ginger, molasses, spices, and chocolate. I must be in the minority, as my taste testers thoroughly enjoyed this cake with their morning cup of java.

For the recipe, please head to Heather's blog. To see other tasty versions of this cake, check out the TWD blogroll.