Honey Blueberry Pound Cake

I have no idea what possessed me to purchase blueberries in the middle of winter. Perhaps because 2 for $5 appeared to sound like a deal (even though when blueberries are in season they are 2 for $1.50). Anyway, these out of season blueberries were sitting in my fridge for about a week before I decided last night to do something with them. I was torn between muffins and pound cake. Due to the lack of muffin papers and my distinct fondness for pound cake, I opted for honey blueberry pound cake. The recipe is loosely based on the Honey Vanilla Pound Cake from Ina Gartens’ Back To Basics cookbook.

Ingredients:

2 Sticks Unsalted butter (Room temperature)

1 Cup Sugar

4 Extra large eggs

3 ½ tbs honey

2 ½ tsp Vanilla extract

2 Cups sifted cake flour, plus 1 tbs to dust blueberries.

1 tsp kosher salt

½ tsp baking soda

2/3 cup fresh blueberries

What you need to do:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees (f) . Prepare loaf pan by greasing bottom with butter and lining bottom with parchment.

Using the paddle attachment on your mixer, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy- about 4 minutes.

While your butter and sugar are mixing, put eggs, honey, and vanilla in separate bowl. Do not mix

Turn mixer to low speed and add eggs one at a time to bitter/sugar mixture. Scrape sides of bowl between eggs.

Sift together flour, salt, and baking soda and gradually add to wet ingredients until just combined.

Scrape sides of bowl to incorporate any remaining flour.

In small bowl, gently toss blueberries with tablespoon of flour. Fold blueberries into batter. Be careful not to over mix or smash any of the berries (unless you want a purple pound cake).

Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for about 60 minutes or until toothpick inserted into middle comes out clean.

Cool for 15 minutes before removing from pan.

Late Night Comfort Banana Bread

So it’s been awhile since I’ve posted anything new mostly since I’ve been super busy with school, work, and moving. But I’m all settled now and have one glorious week off from EVERYTHING. It’s amazing. Anyway, I decided that I was in serious need of comfort and banana bread is one of the few things that provides significant amounts. So here is possibly the best banana breads I’ve ever made.

Late Night Comfort Banana Bread

2 Cups of Flour

1 Tsp baking powder

2 Tsp baking soda

1 Tsp salt

½ Tsp Cinnamon

1 stick unsalted butter, softened

¼ Cup vegetable oil

1 Cup sugar

2 Eggs

1 Tsp vanilla

1 Cup buttermilk

2 ½ super ripe bananas (eat the other half), mashed

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease two loaf pans and set aside

Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon in medium bowl. Stir with whisk to incorporate.

In separate (large) bowl mix together butter, oil, and sugar. Add eggs one at a time. Add vanilla and buttermilk until just combined.

Gradually add flour mixture to buttermilk mixture. Stir with wooden spoon until just incorporated. Do not overmix.

Add mashed bananas and stir.

Pour into loaf pans and bake until a toothpick in the center comes out clean. 45 minutes or so.

Rustic Tomato Bruschetta

Sometimes dinner just needs to be something light to accompany a fabulous bottle of wine. This bruschetta is perfect for a breezy summer evening with friends and family. This recipe is basically just an outline. Add anything you would like! Capers would be a fantastic addition, as would chopped bell pepper or a little mozzarella sprinkled over the top. A good bread is crucial as a base for your bruschetta. The foodiecall kitchen used an amazing French baguette from the Black Bird Baking Company in Lakewood, Ohio. Check them out if you are in the area.  

What you need:

1 French Baguette

4 or 5 Tomatoes, any color or variety.

¼ of a large red onion (about 1/3 cup chopped)

1 clove of garlic, minced plus 1 clove to rub on bread

¼ cup basil, chopped

6 tbs olive oil, plus more for baguette

2 tbs balsamic vinegar

1 ½ tsp kosher salt

½ tsp pepper

Chop tomatoes into cubes. These can be whatever size you want them to be. Chop red onion and add to tomatoes. Add garlic, salt and pepper.

Add olive oil and balsamic vinegar to tomatoes, cover bowl with plastic wrap. This can be refrigerated for up to 3 hours or served immediately.

Meanwhile, slice baguette into ½ to ¾ inch rounds and place on foil lined baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and a little salt. Toast in 350 degree oven for about 4 minutes or until slightly crisp.

Rub the toasted rounds with a clove of garlic, sliced in half. Top baguette rounds with tomato topping and chopped basil.

Serve immediately.

Cheddar Beer Bread

I once had a magnet that said something to the effect of “I love cooking with wine. Sometimes I even add it to the food”. I feel like everything tastes better with a splash of red wine. In lieu of my normal wine, I had a hankering for a beer yesterday and set my sights on Cheddar Beer bread. The process is enhanced by the consumption of the remaining beer.

There are an awful lot of beers out there that you can use in this bread. Being a Cleveland girl, it was almost a given that I would use something from Great Lakes Brewing Company. My favorite is the Dortmunder Gold.

Ingredients:

3 Cups all purpose flour

1 Tbs baking powder

1 tsp salt

2 tbs sugar

¾ tsp dried thyme

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 ¼ cups grated cheddar cheese

12oz Beer (1 bottle).

Mix all ingredients together, mixing in beer last. Batter should be the consistency of bisquick.

Spoon into a well greased bread pan and bake at 350 degrees (f) for about 50 minutes or until a toothpick in the center comes out clean.

Ideally, you should let it cool for at least 25 minutes before you slice it. But I think everybody knows that it fairly unlikely you will.