Blueberry Cream Cheese Coffee Cake Squares

As promised: more from Christina Putnam and the Meadow Hill Bed and Breakfast in Middle Grove, New York! She writes of my then 11-year old son Joe's adventures picking wild blueberries from up in "the horseshoe," an area of undeveloped land with an unpaved road that circled around at the top of our neighborhood. The "horseshoe" is now occupied by newer homes and paved roads, but once upon a time it was a place of exploration and adventure for the children of our little neighborhood called Fox Hollow Estates. Christina has a great photo of Joe that I'll add to this post later (after my next visit to the B&B). Christina writes:

"Summer is my favorite season of the year. Partly because of strawberries and blueberries. They seem to make just about everything better.

A favorite line from the 70's movie Yellow Submarine had the Beatles commenting to the Big Blue Meanies, "I didn't know you were Blueish".

It is great to be Blueish. There is an image clear in my mind of the Adirondack Baker's son, Joe Eddy, smiling hugely, with his faced bruised with what looks like a deadly purple pox. He had, in fact, gone wild blueberry picking in the yet-to-be developed woodsy area of our country neighborhood. I don't think many blueberries made it home, but the berry picker was sure pleased with himself. Fortunately, I had my camera to catch his joy!

Today I made Blueberry Cream Cheese Coffee Cake Squares. This is one of those great recipes that freezes so well. You can thaw it a little and cut however many sguares you wish to serve and put the rest right back in the freezer in a good zip lock bag. This is an important feature because if you thawed it and served just part of it, you you be cutting a little piece and eating it all day long. I KNOW this to be true.

The cake is very light and tender and very moist. I use square aluminum cake pans and break this recipe into two parts. Cover with plastic wrap when cool and place in a good ziploc freezer bag until you wish to thaw and serve."

Here we go: Blueberry Cream Cheese Coffee Cake Squares

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 1/4 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon of dried grated lemon peel
2 cups of all purpose flour
3 teaspoons of baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup of milk
1/4 cup water
2 cups of washed fresh blueberries that have been tossed with 1/4 cup of flour ( I do this in a ziploc bag)
1 8 ounce package of cream cheese that has been diced in cubes about 1/4 to 1/2 inch in diameter
TOPPING:
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon of grated lemon peel
2 tablespoons of cold butter

In a large mixing bowl cream the butter and sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the lemon peel. Combine the 2 cups flour, baking powder and salt. Add flour to the creamed butter and sugar mixture alternately with the milk and water. When nicely combined, fold in the cream cheese cubes and then the floured blueberries. Pour into two greased square baking pans. Topping: Using a pastry blender or a fork blend the sugar, flour, lemon peel and cold butter until crumbly and streusel like. Spoon on top of the cake batter. Bake the cakes for 35 to 40 minutes at 375 degrees. Cool completely, cover top with plastic wrap and place in a ziploc bag for freezing.

Christina Putnam
Meadow Hill B&B

Tomorrow's post: Do you remember Chocolate Wafer Icebox Cake? Come back and read about it tomorrow!

Photo credit: http://media.rd.com/rd/images/rdc/books/eat-to-beat-high-blood-pressure/Blueberry-Swirl-Coffee-Cake-af.jpg

A Poet's Gift: Carolyn Forche's Seafood Risotto

One of the greatest blessings of working where I work is the exposure to brilliant writers. For a few years, I was fortunate to work with noted poet Carolyn Forché. I found her to be a vibrant woman who was effusive in her love of family, friends, students, and colleagues. Because she was commuting between Saratoga Springs and her home in Maryland, I had never become aware of her love of cooking. When I was writing a paper on women and food memories, she shared this lovely recipe for seafood risotto. Carolyn writes a recipe the same way she writes poetry, with a lyrical flow and vibrant imagery. With gratitude to Carolyn for her very generous contribution to my paper and for her friendship, I offer you her recipe for Seafood Risotto:

“In the summer of my twenty-seventh year, I lived in the village of Deya on the island of Mallorca in Spain. I was translating the work of poet Claribel Alegría, who was living in a house called “Can Blau Vell” on a cobbled street opposite the “torrente,” a rushing stream banked with morning glories. In Deya I learned to prepare seafood well for the first time: to clean squid and “gambas,” (shrimp) and to sauté them quickly in a little olive oil, then toss with sea salt, pepper and lemon, while the sea-wind of the Mediterranean washed through my kitchen. I cooked with the blue-shuttered windows open, so that I could hear the goat bells clanking up and down the goat-paths, and could smell the lemons ripening in the orchard below us. Paella, a rice dish prepared variously around the Mediterranean was quite a feast, but took hours to prepare, and so we only made it once or twice. Paella was cooked in a large flat pan that resembled a frying pan with small handles. One was supposed to let the rice be still, so that it would toast on the bottom, and there would be a nice crunch to the rice. I was supposed to be translating and writing poetry, so instead of paella, I improvised. This recipe evolved during those afternoons when I longed for the elaborate paella but had no time. Now this risotto has a place in my heart on its own. It is unusual risotto, in that it begins with a sofrito of onion, tomato, garlic and paprika, much like the base for paella, but it is simpler, and can be assembled in a half hour or so. Any seafood (squid? mussels?) can be imagined for this risotto, but I like the combination of shrimp and bay scallops. You can garnish this with slices of lemon. It’s nice with a salad of mesclun and vinaigrette and a sparkling sauvignon blanc. When I prepare this, the scent of the torrente’s morning glories returns, and I am twenty-seven years old again.”

Ingredients:
3 T. Olive oil
½ c. Yellow onions or shallots, finely diced
1 Whole tomatoes, seeded and diced
1 clove Garlic
1 t. Sweet paprika, or, preferably, Spanish smoked paprika
Course salt and crushed pepper
1/3 c. White wine, dry
1 c. Shrimp broth (boil shrimp shells in 2 cups water and reduce)
5 c. Chicken broth (low sodium, organic if possible)
1 ½ c. Arborio rice
½ lb. Bay scallops
½ lb. Medium or Large (U-24) shrimp, cleaned and de-veined
½ c. Flat leaf parsley, loosely packed, chopped
1 pat Unsalted butter

Sauté the onions in the olive oil until golden (not brown), about ten minutes on medium low. Add crushed garlic and sauté for one minute. Add diced tomatoes and sauté for at least fifteen minutes, until you have what is called a “sofrito,” or base. Mixture should be rich. Add paprika. Add rice and coat with sofrito base. Then, little by little, perhaps a cup at a time, add the broths, stirring almost constantly, allowing the rice to absorb the liquid. With the last cup of broth, add the shrimp and scallops. Cook for five minutes until shrimp are pink. Add the parsley and pat of butter and mix together. Serve. (4 servings)

You can read more about Carolyn Forché and her poetry here: http://www.blueflowerarts.com/carolyn-forch%C3%A9

Next post: More from Meadow Hill B&B! Plan ahead for company - blueberry cream cheese coffee cake squares that you can bake and serve or freeze for another time. It thaws beautifully.

Photo credit: https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikg_jkgHn3iXbRCiRZQRYgqlLgZd8vdtY9a0qQJMdBNfYcqbrL3cacATqhcKf5YmfEiiGW8jkmuJUZw_R9uC8oFQAH29NAeQbjNlGGO66X5KUPMnu3Ch8P3U114uhMzBryFpGRHRNsWf9x/s200/Carolyn+Forch%C3%A9.jpg

Meadow Hill Gingerbread

Christina Putnam, a retired art teacher, and her husband Phil, a contractor, are owners of Meadow Hill Bed and Breakfast in Middle Grove, New York, just outside Saratoga Springs. Their beautiful home is one they built themselves, and a tribute to their many talents. The Putnams are gracious hosts, and offer beautiful rooms and wonderful breakfasts to their very happy guests.

Christina writes:

"This recipe is from Christina Vollmer who was the town librarian in Cazenovia for all of my childhood. I am named after her. She had a sister. The two of them lived in a sweet little white house on Linklaen Street. Her sister was Marrianna. Christina was known as the "food" sister and Marrianna was known as the "flower" sister as she could make anything grow. The Vollmer sisters had a huge cast iron stove in their kitchen which warmed the house, heart, and soul. The brand name embellishing the stove door was HAPPY THOUGHTS. The most wonderful treats came daily out of Happy Thoughts. Popovers which melted in your mouth were a special favorite of mine. This gingerbread is wonderful and brings me happy thoughts of my dear adopted 'aunties.' It uses white sugar to make a pretty and tasty top and was used sparingly as it was rationed during WWII."

Ingredients:

½ c. Sugar
½ c. Butter
1 Egg
1 c. Molasses
2 ½ c. Flour
1 ½ t. Baking soda
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 t. Ground ginger
½ t. Ground cloves
½ t. salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Cream together: sugar, butter, egg, and molasses. Sift together: flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and salt. Add the sifted dry ingredients to the creamed sugar, shortening and molasses mixture and stir. Gradually stir in one cup of hot water. Pour into a greased and floured rectangular cake pan. Sprinkle some additional sugar on top. Bake at 350 degrees until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Your kitchen will smell great! Serve plain, with lemon sauce or with whipped cream.
Delicious!

Here's a link to the Meadow Hill B&B website!:http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.meadowhillbb.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/house_619x150.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.meadowhillbb.com/&usg=__4KQ24k0w13Y0eaGKb_jyKp9ChW0=&h=150&w=619&sz=24&hl=en&start=4&tbnid=l2L5IYHggyttiM:&tbnh=33&tbnw=136&prev=/images%3Fq%3DMeadow%2BHill%2BBed%2Band%2BBreakfast%2B12850%26gbv%3D2%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DG

Photo credit: http://www.meadowhillbb.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/house_619x150.jpg

upcoming posts: A Poet's Risotto and baking for a three-cake weekend!

Marmalade

Some of life's most precious gifts come from the kitchen, in the form of memories and tradition. This story comes from my friend Margo, who writes about the memory of her grandmother's marmalade. Margo shared this with me a few years ago, when I was writing a paper on recipes and family traditions for a course for my masters degree.

Granny's Marmalade

"This morning, as I was rushing to get some breakfast for Kassy and myself before the mad dash out the door to daycare and work, I was reminded of one of my earliest, and longest running memories, of Granny. All I did was toast some bread, but when I looked in the refrigerator, I pulled out a pot of marmalade, the one I was given early in the spring, and needs to last me until next January. I don’t think it’s going to make it that far.

Kassy asked me, 'What are you putting on your toast, is it rhubarb?'

'No, it’s marmalade,' I replied.

'Oh,' said she, 'I don’t like that.'

'Well,' I responded, 'I happen to LOVE marmalade, and when I was a little girl, about your age, it was one of the things I remember best about going to visit Granny.'

I did love when we’d go to visit Granny when she lived in Ohio. Part of the magic was probably in part due to the fact that because it was an eight-hour trip, or more, we only got to go for special occasions. I remember being there for Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter holidays over the years. As Laura and I reached our teen years, and were a little more independent, we flew out for a school vacation or so.

Granny would always wait up for us, even though it was usually the middle of the night by the time we finally arrived. She still does, whenever someone visits her. So we’d walk in through the kitchen, and past the breakfast table, where the marmalade sat on the lazy Susan. Just the sight of it made me want to hurry up and go to sleep, so I could wake up and put it on my toast first thing in the morning.

I remember eating the toast with marmalade at the breakfast table, I believe there was a bench along the back wall, under the window. The sun would stream brightly in the window. Granny never refrigerated the marmalade, which made it particularly sweet. I would use a spoon to try and pick out all the crystallized pieces of jelly, and they would crunch on my toast (which is another story itself, Granny makes the most wonderful bread) and tasted something like rock candy."

Here's a great recipe for marmalade:

SURE JELL Marmalade

4 cups prepared fruit (buy about 4 medium oranges and 2 medium lemons)
2 ½ c. water
1/8 tsp. baking soda
1 box SURE JELL Fruit Pectin
½ tsp. butter or margarine
5 ½ c. sugar, measured into separate bowl

Bring boiling-water canner, half full with water, to simmer. Wash jars and screw bands in hot, soapy water; rinse with warm water. Pour boiling water over flat lids in saucepan off the heat. Let stand in hot water until ready to use. Drain jars well before filling.

Remove colored part of peel from oranges and lemons using vegetable peeler. Cut into this slivers. Mix the peels, water, and baking soda in large saucepan. Bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low; cover and simmer 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the fruit and juice. Cover and simmer an additional 10 minutes.

Stir pectin into prepared fruit in saucepot. Add butter to reduce foaming. Bring mixture to full roiling boil (a boil that doesn’t stop bubbling when stirred) on high heat, stirring constantly. Stir in sugar. Return to full rolling boil and boil exactly 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Skim off any foam with metal spoon.

Ladle immediately into prepared jars, filling to within 1/8 inch of tops. Wipe jar rims and threads. Cover with two-piece lids. Screw bands tightly. Place jars on elevated rack in canner. Lower rack into canner. (Water must cover jars by 1 to 2 inches; add boiling water if necessary.) Cover; bring water to gentle boil. Process 10 minutes. Remove jars and place upright on towel to cool completely. After jars cool, check seals by pressing middles of lids with finger. (If lids spring back, lids are not sealed and refrigeration is necessary.)

SURE JELL marmalade recipe available at: http://fitdv.myrecipefriends.com/recipe/7852.html?PHPSESSID=e07d6ce31ad3cbc72e4db5363359e847

Photo credit: http://eatscotland.visitscotland.com/Repository/userfiles/orangemarmalade.jpg

A few words about Michael Jackson

After it was all over, I watched parts of Michael Jackson’s memorial service at the Staples Center in L.A.

I was feeling kind of numb about the service—not particularly sad, yet not apathetic—for a number of reasons, until I saw his daughter speak so bravely about her beloved father, and that’s when I mustered some emotion for his family. Regardless of whatever else is being said, three children have lost their loving father, and that is the tragedy we’re witnessing. I believe that we’re a fickle bunch, we humans, who fall out of love with stars when their reputations are blemished. I’m as fickle as the rest. Like many of his fans, I’d like to move on, but I’m just not able to forget the testimony. I do realize he was found “not guilty” but the testimony from children during his trial was so compelling, I can’t help but believe there was some validity to it. Michael Jackson lived a life full of controversy with serious allegations, charges, a trial, and expensive financial settlements. His odd friendships with young boys and older women indicate to me that he was a lost soul, and that he didn’t know, outside of the entertainment world and his immediate family, where he fit in. He was a handsome and healthy young man, and his compulsion to change his appearance indicated a deep-seeded unhappiness with his own reality. How sad that he couldn’t find the same joy in his being that all his fans realized. The saddest part of this whole story, for me, is the loss of genius and unfulfilled legacy that might have been realized not only had he not died, but had he not been living a life of virtual exile for the past decade. The tapes of his final rehearsals were exciting and full of promise. I am curious to see if his children have inherited his talents. I hope so, but I also hope the world is “a better place” for them.

Michael Jackson’s family, friends, and fans loved him despite the controversies. To me, he was an entertainer, a brilliant one, no doubt, who was mired in personal difficulties and always trying to make up for all that he never realized in childhood. My children were born in the 70s and 80s and grew up on his music. I was born five years before MJ and also grew up, in a way, on his music as well as the music of The Beatles, the Beach Boys, Chicago, Simon and Garfunkle, and many others. My uncle was the associate producer of the Ed Sullivan Show, and I remember the excitement when The Jackson Five performed. Michael Jackson’s music is woven throughout the memories of my teenage and early adult years.

The spectacle of his memorial service is appropriate given his significant contribution to the music industry. Musically, he is on equal footing with Frank Sinatra, Elvis, and The Beatles. From early childhood, it was clear that he was more than gifted. His voice was a perfect instrument and his dance skills were unparalleled. Even Fred Astair never moved the way Michael Jackson could. It seems hypocritical to me, though, to canonize a man who was certainly flawed, and who might have preferred to be thought of as a regular guy than an icon. He never could be a regular guy, not after all the fame, money, and isolation. I think he wanted a better life, and to be a better man. His song “Man in the Mirror” might have been his cry for personal redemption: “I’m talking ‘bout the man in the mirror. I’m asking him to change his ways.”

No matter the reality of his life, it’s clear that he was truly loved and I wish him, and his family, the peace and healing in death that he was not able to experience in his living years.

For Dessert or Breakfast: Claufutis!

At lunch today my friend Sue shared some beautiful cherries from her little brown bag, and it reminded me of a dessert I made a long time ago: claufutis.

A claufutis is a French bread-type pudding, baked in the oven and featuring seasonal fruits. It can be served for dessert or for breakfast. I first made claufutis when my children were in high school and we hosted a French foreign-exchange student, Paul, one of a group of twenty or so who visited the Saratoga Springs area for a few weeks that summer. There was a pot-luck dinner reception in the high school cafeteria, and I thought it’d be nice for the students to have a taste of home.

It wasn’t the most French-American of experiences for Paul or for my kids. Paul was really an Irish national whose parents lived primarily in Canada but had been working in Lyon, France for a few years. Nonetheless, in the exchange-student lottery, Paul was assigned to us – an Irish-descended family of a single mother with teenagers. It worked out well and we enjoyed getting to know Paul and all his friends. I must say it was interesting listening to Paul speak French with an Irish brogue!

Paul was an interesting character. Slim with glasses and a Harry Potter-type physicality, he was mesmerized by my American daughters and their friends. He loved Wendy’s for fast food (the Wendy’s in Canada were far superior to the one on Congress St. in Saratoga Springs, we were told). I packed his lunch every day and he was completely repulsed by the tuna salad sandwiches I’d prepared. He had never heard of putting mayonnaise on fish and once he said that, it sounded odd to me, too! From then on, I gave him lunch money.

Our families had a lot of fun with our student guests, taking trips to Boston (all the historical hot spots, Quincy Market, the Boston Aquarium) and also to New York for all the requisite points of interests: museums, a Broadway show, a ferry ride across the Hudson River, and a memorable visit to the United Nations. It was a wonderful summer of cultural exchange for our kids and for the visiting students, and the most memorable times, I think, happened when they were just being kids, hanging out, swimming, and enjoying backyard meals together.

The Food Network’s Emeril Lagasse has a highly-rated recipe for claufutis. You’ll find my adaptation below, and Emeril’s original by following this link: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/emeril-lagasse/cherry-clafoutis-recipe/index.html :

CLAUFUTIS

• 4 eggs
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 vanilla bean, split in half (or one teaspoon real vanilla extract – my substitution)
• ½ tsp. almond extract (my addition – goes nicely with cherries)
• 1 tablespoon brandy (if desired – not necessary)
• 1 cup flour
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 1 pound stoned cherries

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an oval ovenproof dish about 13 inches long. In a mixing bowl, whisk the eggs and 1/2 cup of the sugar. Scrape the vanilla bean and add the pulp (or extracts) to the egg mixture. Stir in the brandy (if using) and flour. Whisk in the milk to form a smooth batter. In a mixing bowl, toss the cherries with the remaining sugar. Place the cherries in the ovenproof dish. Pour the batter over the cherries and place in the oven. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes or until the cake is sponge like. Remove from the oven and cool for 5 minutes before serving. Serve the claufutis warm. Garnish with powdered sugar for breakfast. Serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, or a dollop of whipped cream, for dessert.

A claufutis is a great way to get the most from the abundance of summer fruits showing up at farm stands over the next few weeks. You can switch out fruits/spices/flavorings to take advantage of whatever fruit is available, but cherries are classic.


Photo Image: http://www.food-info.net/images/clafoutis.jpg

Five-Star Peaches with Balsamic Cherries

Are you looking for a fast and fabulous summer dessert? Here's one that has earned five stars!

As I've stated in previous posts, I'm a HUGE Ellie Krieger fan. Her book, The Food You Crave, is my all-time favorite cookbook. This recipe gets a five-star rating from reviewers on the Food Network website. Like all the recipes Ellie Krieger publishes, it's delicious and incredibly healthy. To read the recipe and reviews on-line (and to check out other fabulous healthy recipes) go directly to the source: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ellie-krieger/peaches-with-balsamic-cherries-recipe/index.html

Ellie Krieger's Peaches with Balsamic Cherries

1/2 pound cherries, halved and pitted
2 tablespoons sugar, plus more to taste
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 pound peaches, sliced

Directions

In a small saucepan, stir together the cherries, sugar and balsamic vinegar, and place over a medium heat. Bring to a boil and continue to cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

In a medium bowl toss the warm cherries and syrup with the sliced peaches, add more sugar to taste and serve.

Tomorrow's blog: More cherries! I'm posting a recipe for the French classic dessert ~ Claufutis! Be sure to check back!

Photo credit: http://www.1st-art-gallery.com/thumbnail/121241/1/A-Still-Life-With-Peaches,-Plums-And-Cherries.jpg