Summer Lessons (Part 1)

Some things I have learned this summer:

1. Never ever ever ever run through nettles…that story is for another day, but for now, just take my word for it.
2. The geniuses behind Disney-Pixar know exactly how to make me cry (Have you seen Toy Story 3? Or Up?? Or Wall-E!? Go see them and you will know what I mean).
3. The Midwest is missing out on some seriously amazing desserts.

Now allow me to elaborate on Lesson 3:

Okay first there were whoopie pies and my shocking discovery that almost none of my Midwestern buddies knew what the heck a whoopie pie was.

And then came along these black and white cookies.

First of all, I have always referred to these delicious treasures as half moons, but according to further research (thanks again Wikipedia!) that is just a regional, New England thing. But that is not the point I want to make. See, I always assumed that these yummy little things were all over the country. Apparently they are not. Once again, none of my Midwestern buddies grew up with them! Well it is time for an introduction. Midwest, this is black & white cookie, black & white cookie, this is the Midwest.

Now please enjoy the beauty that is the black and white (half moon!) cookie: soft, cakey vanilla cookies with a vanilla glaze on one half and chocolate glaze on the other. I see them as the delicious, cookie version of a chocolate-vanilla twist soft serve ice cream cone, and come on, who doesn’t looooove that? It’s a double, twisted yum.

-EmW

Black & White Cookies (aka Half Moons)

(Adapted from JoyTheBaker)

For the cookies:

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

2/3 cup well-shaken buttermilk*

1 tsp vanilla extract

2/3 cup unsalted butter, softened

1 cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs

For the vanilla glaze:

2 cups powdered sugar

1 Tb light corn syrup

½ tsp vanilla extract

2 Tb hot water

For the chocolate glaze:

4 oz. semi-sweet chocolate, roughly chopped

3 Tb unsalted butter

1 Tb light corn syrup

1. Make the cookies: Preheat oven to 350°F. Whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt in a bowl. Stir together buttermilk and vanilla in a cup.

2. Beat together butter and sugar in an electric mixer until pale and fluffy. Add eggs, beating until well combined. Mix in flour mixture and buttermilk/vanilla mixture alternately in batches at low speed, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Be sure to scrape down the bowl occasionally. Mix until smooth.

3. Spoon tablespoons of batter onto parchment lined baking sheet (be aware that these cookies spread quite a bit). Bake in middle of oven until tops are puffed and pale golden, and cookies spring back when touched, about 12 minutes. Transfer cookies to a wire rack and allow to cool completely.

4. Make the vanilla glaze: in a bowl whisk together the powdered sugar, vanilla, corn syrup and hot water, until smooth. If the glaze seems too thick, add a bit more water (but just a little bit! nobody wants a too thin glaze). The glaze needs to be thick enough to stay on the cookies.

5. Flip all the cookies over so they are bottom side up. Spread vanilla glaze on one half of the cookies. A slated spatula is very helpful at this step but not necessary by any means and a knife works just fine.

6. While the vanilla glaze sets, make the chocolate glaze: place the butter and chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl. Heat butter and chocolate in the microwave for about 1 minute and stir until all the chocolate is melted. Add the corn syrup, stirring again until nice and smooth. Spread other half of cookies with chocolate glaze. Allow glazes to set (if you are impatient just pop them in the fridge) and then feast on the beautiful chocolate-vanilla-yummminess you have just created.

*As I mentioned with the whoopie pies, there is no need to buy buttermilk if you don’t want to. Just add one tablespoon white vinegar per one cup milk, allow to sit for 10 minutes, stir it and voila, buttermilk!

Now for a little introduction...

We started this blog a few weeks ago and have been enjoying a smashing time sharing our pies and breads and cookies with you but this is starting to feel just a little improper. Here we are going on and on about very intimate things like pie preferences and baking styles when we were never properly introduced!

So we’re both named Emily. There’s EmW who hails from Boston and EmB who’s from New York City. We’re roommates and friends who share a love of baking and live together in a very special house at our college in a small Midwestern town. Why is it such a special house, you may ask? This house has had open doors to the community for over a century and is a gathering place for students and townspeople alike to share cookies, games of cribbage, and good company. The kitchen is open and stocked with ingredients for those who want to bake up some chocolate chip cookies at any and all times of the day. As student residents we live, work, and breathe this house. We’re responsible for maintaining a guest room and keeping the house and garden in good condition so that the entire community can make use of them. Perhaps our favorite job, however, is scheming up and hosting weekly Sunday Brunch and Wednesday night events. As such, we essentially are paid to run a small bakery/B&B. Our days are sprinkled with flour, absurd quantities of butter, and flocks of hungry college students seeking the comfort of warm cookies and homemade ice cream.
Phewf! Don't you feel better now that we've had that cleared up? Good, now how about something tasty?

-Em&Em

chocolate fairy dust: a meringue's best friend

Meringues are pretty. Have you ever seen one? They’re shiny and glossy and so light you’d think they could float. Sometimes they’re angelically pure and white, but sometimes they’re flecked with little bits of mysterious heaven. For dark chocolate fans like myself those bits are the fairy dust that materializes when I take a sharp knife to a bar of quality dark chocolate. I'm really not sure there's anything more satisfying than chopping up good chocolate on a wooden counter. Sigh.
I strongly recommend that make these. You should probably do that right now, actually. They are just as delicious as they are purrrdy and they’re doing you a serious favor by using up all of those extra egg whites you know you have floating around. If you don’t already have extra egg whites, you’ll soon have some extra egg yolks. Use them to make challah or banana cream pie. Invite your friends over. Your buddies might even like you just a tiny bit more after you feed them meringues and bread and pie. Maybe.

In case you need any more reason to make these, the recipe is incredibly simple.

Dark Chocolate Flecked Meringues
(Loosely adapted from The Baker’s Dozen Cookbook)

3 large egg whites
1 cup sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 ounces good dark chocolate, chopped very finely

Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.

Pour egg whites into a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment and whip on low speed until foamy. Add the salt, increase the speed to medium-high, and whip just until soft peaks form. With the machine running, slowly add the sugar. Sit back and watch as your simple egg whites thicken up and become a gorgeous mountain of silky clouds. The whites will start begin to hold shape. Once the peaks are stiff and glossy, turn the mixer off and, using a rubber spatula, fold in the vanilla and the finely chopped chocolate.

Pour it all carefully into a Ziploc bag and cut a small hole in the bag’s corner. Squeeze the meringues into fluffy discs about 1 ½ inches wide and spaced 1 inch apart on your baking sheet. Place them in the oven and find something good and distracting to do for the next 45 minutes or until your meringues are firm but not browned and peal easily off the parchment paper. Cool completely on the baking sheets.

Wasn’t that magical? Thought so.

-EmB

Suga suga how you get so fly

So here is my sad confession: I tend to be a baking perfectionist. It really can be great when I am doing something that requires super detail and focus, but sometimes...it can be annoying and just get in the darn way. Over and over I tell myself to stop (!!!) worrying about making every little thing perfect. But sometimes I just won't listen and when that perfectionistic mindset takes over, well...it can really suck the fun out of things.

But wait! There is a silver lining to this stormy baking cloud! And it all has to do with Noor, the adorable girl that I babysit for during the week. Based on our mutual love of cinnamon, baking, and Matilda, little Noor is truly a girl after my own heart. But you know what else is great about her? She is a crazy little baker who forces me to loosen up and break out my baking wild side (yes, it exists in me somewhere).

Example A: these sugar cookies. First, Noor dug through the cabinets and found every type of sprinkle we had in the house. And then we went crazy on these cookies, and made sure that each cookie was unique and full of color (but still delicious!). So here’s a shout out my favorite six year old for being my newest baking inspiration...the creative baking bug has bitten and who knows what will happen next (stay tuned!)

Sugar Cookies

(Adapted from Baked)

1 ¾ cups flours

¼ tsp salt

¼ tsp baking powder

¾ cup unsalted butter, softened

2 Tbs vegetable shortening

2/3 cup sugar

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla extract

Colorful sprinkles and/or cinnamon sugar.

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, salt, and baking powder and set aside.

2. In an electric mixer beat the butter, shortening, and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add egg and vanilla and beat until just combined.

3. Add the flour mixture and mix until combined.

4. Wrap dough and refrigerate for at least 4 hours.*

5. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.

6. Dust a work surface with a sprinkling of flour. Unwrap chilled dough and put it directly on the floured work surface. Roll the dough out ¼ inch thick. Make sure to check to see if dough is sticking to work surface, and if it is, sprinkle it with flour and flip the floured side over and continue to roll out.

7. Use your favorite cookie cutters to cut out shapes in the dough and transfer the cookies to the prepared baking sheets.

8. Prior to baking, sprinkle cookies with colorful sprinkles. If you want a nice cinnamon sugar taste, sprinkle some cinnamon sugar on top as well (it’s pretty yummy!).

9. Bake cookies for 12 minutes, until set but not browned. Allow to cool on sheet for 5 minutes and then transfer cookies to a rack t cool completely.

*Noor and I were very impatient and simply split the dough in half, flattened it into two thick pancakes, then wrapped it in plastic wrap and stuck it in the freezer for 30 minutes. It probably wasn’t the ideal way to do it, but if you want your sugar cookies ASAP then this works pretty well too.

1

Whole Wheat Challah Bread

We have a little tradition around these parts. Every Friday night I bake up some whole wheat challah bread (a traditionally Jewish braided bread made with an egg base) and EmW cooks up something delicious and fancy for a special meal. We like this tradition a whole lot. It brings structure to our weeks, it brings a little class to start the weekends off right. This is another long-winded, multi-step recipe but I am confident you can do it.

Roll up your sleeves, clear your schedule, and get ready to impress yourself. Along the way you’ll learn some sweet secret lingo like “The Soaker” and “The Biga” and, oh my, “The Final Dough!” This knowledge will likely intimidate all of your friends. You’ll be feeling all affectionate toward your beautiful braided bread babies in a flash. If you’re like me, you might even make your buddy snap an embarrassing number of pictures of you holding your loaves. People might call you crazy for cradling challah loaves like newborns but don’t worry, I understand, this bread is something to be proud of.
-EmB

Whole Wheat Challah Bread
(adapted from Heidi Swanson at 101 Cookbooks...her directions are thorough and very easy to follow)

PART ONE: THE SOAKER (Day 1)

1 ¾ cups whole wheat flour, preferably pastry flour
½ teaspoon salt
¾ cup water

1. Mix all the soaker ingredients together in a bowl for about 1 minute, until all of the flour is hydrated and the ingredients form a ball of dough.

2. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and leave at room temperature for 12 to 24 hours. (If it will be more than 24 hours, place the soaker in the refrigerator; it will be good for up to 3 days. Remove it 2 hours before mixing the final dough to take off the chill.)


PART TWO: THE BIGA (Day 2)

1 ¾ cups unbleached bread flour
¼ teaspoon instant yeast
7 tablespoons filtered or spring water, at room temperature
1 large egg, slightly beaten
4 egg yolks

1. Mix all of the biga ingredients together in a bowl to form a ball of dough. Using wet hands, knead the dough in the bowl for 2 minutes to be sure all of the ingredients are evenly distributed and the flour is fully hydrated. The dough should feel very tacky. Let the dough rest for 5 minutes, then knead it again with wet hands for 1 minute. The dough will become smoother but still be tacky.

2. Transfer the dough to a clean bowl, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 8 hours a day and up to 3 days.

3. About 2 hours before mixing the final dough, remove the biga from the refrigerator to take off the chill. It will have risen slightly but need not have risen significantly in order to use it in the final dough.

PART THREE: THE FINAL DOUGH (Day 2)

Use all of the soaker
Use all of the biga
7 tablespoons whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 ¼ teaspoons instant yeast

2 ½ tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons vegetable oil

- extra whole wheat flour for adjustments
- 1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water plus a pinch of salt for egg wash
- poppy seeds or sesame seeds for topping (optional)

1. Using a metal scraper, chop the soaker and the biga into 12 smaller pieces each (or as close to 12 as you can get, don’t fret it, this just makes the mixing process a little easier)

2. If mixing by hand, combine the soaker and biga pieces in a bowl with the 7 tablespoons flour and the salt, yeast, honey, and vegetable oil. Stir vigorously with a mixing spoon or knead with wet hands for about 2 minutes, until all of the ingredients are evenly integrated and distributed into the dough. The dough should be soft and slightly sticky; if not, add more flour or water as needed. If using a stand mixer, put the pre-dough pieces in the bowl along with the 7 tablespoons of flour and the salt, yeast, honey, and vegetable oil. Mix on slow speed with the paddle attachment (preferable) or the dough hook for 1 minute to bring the ingredients together into a ball. Switch to the dough hook if need be and mix on medium-low speed, occasionally scraping down the bowl, for 2 to 3 minutes, until the pre-dough becomes cohesive and assimilated into each other. Add more flour or water as needed until the dough is soft and slightly sticky.

3. Dust a work surface with flour, then roll the dough in the flour to coat. Knead the dough by hand for 3 to 4 minutes, incorporating only as much extra flour as needed, until the fought feels soft and tacky, but not sticky. Form the dough into a ball and let it rest on the work surface for 5 minutes while you prepare a clean, lightly oiled bowl.

4. Resume kneading the dough for 1 minute to strengthen the gluten and make any final flour or water adjustments. The dough should have strength and pass the windowpane test, yet still feel soft, supple, and very tacky. Form the dough into a ball and place it in the prepared bowl, rolling to coat with oil. Cover loosely with a dishcloth or plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature for approximately 45 to 60 minutes, until it is about 1 ½ times its original size.

5. Gently transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface (try not to rip or tear the dough). I suggest you make two large loaves but if you are a confident braider and want to try several smaller loaves or one massive one, go right ahead. Using the metal scraper, slice the dough cleanly (do not tear) into three equal pieces. Now using your hands, carefully roll each piece out to a rope of about 20 inches and then cut each rope in half. Cover the dough ropes loosely with a dishcloth and let rest for about 5 minutes. Three-piece braiding: Lay three equal strands side by side. Start by overlapping one of the outside strands over the middle strand. Take the opposite outside strand and lay it over the new middle strand. Continue this pattern until you run out of dough. Pinch the end closed. Rotate the loaf 180 degrees and repeat the pattern. Braid both loaves.

6. Place the braided loaves on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper or a silicon mat. Brush the egg wash on the loaves and cover loosely with plastic wrap. Let the dough rise at room temperature for 30 minutes.

7. Brush the dough with egg wash a second time, then top with poppy seeds or sesame seeds. Leave the dough uncovered to continue rising for 15 more minutes. Preheat the oven to 400F.

8. Place the challah on the middle shelf, reduce the heat to 325F and bake for 20 minutes. Rotate the loaf 180 degrees and bake for another 20 minutes. Check the bread. It is done when the bread is a rich brown all over around and sounds hollow when thumped on the bottom. If it needs more time, rotate again and continue baking for another 10 minutes. Check frequently because over baked bread will be a bit dry and off in texture.

9. Transfer the bread to a cooling rack and let it cool for at least 1 hour before serving. (Unless you like it warm…I like to eat mine as soon as it’s cool enough to grab at the insides without burning my impatient fingers).

Strawberry Tart

Remember that time I was obsessed with banana cream pie? That time so very long ago when I jabbered on and on about my failed adventures with custard and bore you all to death with the world’s longest post? Well, that time is gone. Venting session officially over. Thanks for the closure.Now it’s time for the most simple and stunning pie I know. Strawberries are perfection at this time of year…especially when you pick them from a farm field while wearing overalls and a bandanna around your hair as the sun beats down and your fingers start to hurt from all those thorn bushes and you just can’t stop thinking about how darn picturesque it all is. Welcome to the heartland ladies and gents, it sure is looking pretty! In fact, I'm pretty sure this tart is just about the prettiest girl in town.

-EmB
Strawberry Tart
(adapted from Dorie Greenspan)

1 9-inch tart crust (use the same recipe as for banana cream pie)
1 quart ripe, fragrant strawberries
Good quality strawberry jam
Sugar for tossing with strawberries (optional, depending on sweetness of strawberries)
Splash of crème de cassis (also optional, I skipped this step)

Wash and halve strawberries if they are overly large, simply wash them if they are small and freshly picked like these were. Toss strawberries with sugar and crème de cassis if using. Spread a generous layer of jam over the bottom of the cooled tart crust. Arrange strawberries over jam in a circular fashion, working from the outside in. Place extra strawberries strategically to improve the pretty-factor of this already adorable tart.

Makin' whoopie (pies)

So here’s the scene:
First: One hot, cramped, humid kitchen (apparently not good for angel food cake, as EmB will soon tell you all about)

Second: EmB and I are hosting our first special Wednesday event. Will it be a bust? Will EmB and I have spent all day baking for nothing? Will we be done in time? Oh the stress, the stress!

Third: We have EmB suffering through banana cream pie. As EmB mentioned, custard making…not so easy. It seems simple, but nope, it’s sneaky and hard to make. Not to mention, I was zero help. My advice regarding custard is apparently very bad advice. Seriously though, Dorie Greenspan’s directions for custard making: NOT clear. Dorie, we love you and the drool inducing photos of desserts in your cookbooks, but really, you need to help us out a little bit more.

Fourth: We have whoopie pies. According to Wikipedia, a whoopie pie could also be a macaron. FALSE. A whoopie pie is a whoopie pie and it ain’t nothin’ but a whoopie pie. I am really super into making and eating them, and much to my horror I have come to realize that much of the world does not know what a whoopie pie is. Apparently, these most delicious of cookies are a New England phenom, but my goooooooooodness they should not be.

Never seen one? Okay, imagine this: a thick layer of beautiful, fluffy, vanilla, marshmallowy frosting nestled between two perfect, round, cakey, chocolately cookies which are then sprinkled with powdered sugar to amp up the adorableness of these cute little cookies (and by little I mean huge, because these cookies are large and in charge). They are soft little pillows of amazing and I would sleep on a bed of them if I could. And if you still can’t picture it, just think of an Oreo but about a hundred times more decadent, delicious, and mouth watering.

Are you drooling yet? Because I am.

Anyway, want to know how many whoopie pies I made? About a million. Yup, that many. I channeled my inner Keebler Elf and busted out batch after batch of these babies. And now you should too.

-EmW

Whoopie Pies
(Adapted from Martha Stewart)

For the cookies:
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tablespoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups sugar
2 large eggs
2 cups buttermilk (don't want to buy buttermilk? make it yourself: add one tablespoon white vinegar per one cup milk, allow to sit for 10 minutes, stir it and voila, buttermilk!)
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

For the frosting:
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar
1 jar (7 1/2 ounces) marshmallow Fluff
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract


1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Sift together flour, salt, cocoa powder, baking soda, and baking powder. Set aside. With a mixer, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, buttermilk, and vanilla. Beat until well combined. Slowly add dry ingredients. Mix until combined.
2. Scoop rounded tablespoons of dough on parchment lined cookie sheets. Bake for 12 minutes. Move cookies to cooling rack. Repeat with remaining batter until all cookies are baked.
3. Make the frosting: with an electric mixer, cream together butter and confectioners’ sugar until pale and fluffy. Add Fluff and vanilla and continue mixing until well combined
4. Spread frosting onto flat side of one cookie and sandwich together with another.