Spiced Orange Tart

Oranges are really cheap at my grocery store right now. Now, I do like oranges, but I have some sort of mental block against just picking them up and eating them as a snack.

I'm not sure why... maybe it's because when I was little I chewed my fingernails and so I could never really peel oranges very well and they were a lot of work to eat for little me.

Maybe it is because one time when I was around 6 I ate an orange by slowly and messily dissecting it little juice-filled packet by packet.... on top of one of my favorite books... thereby accidentally banishing that book to sticky, orange-covered oblivion. Poor book. That must have traumatized me or something.

ANYWAY, for whatever reason, oranges always sound really good at the store, and they are cheap, so I buy them... and then they sit in my fridge for several months until they are sufficiently green and fuzzy to be sent to the compost pile. But not this time! This time I decided to take control of the destiny of the oranges in my fridge and make something of them. I adapted this recipe a bit for the custard insides: http://www.crumbblog.com/2012/03/pretty-in-pink-blood-orange-tart.html, and I adapted this recipe for the spice shortbread crust stuff: http://smittenkitchen.com/blog/2008/11/the-great-unshrinkable-sweet-tart-shell/

First off, the tart shell. See, the shell has to sit in the fridge and chill for a little while before you bake it, so it is a good thing to start off with.

Cinnamon and nutmeg in liberal helpings take this tart crust from pretty darn good to a spicy, wonderful thing that makes your kitchen smell like heaven.

Flour, icing sugar, butter, spices, and an egg combine together into crumbly goodness. The trick to this tart crust is first to cut in the butter until it is very coarse, then to add the egg and stir in the egg until the crust begins to clump together like the last picture above shows.

When it begins clumping like that, dump it out of the bowl onto your countertop and gently fold it over and over until it sticks together into a rough crust.
This will take a while, and you will be tempted to mash it together and knead, but you must resist the temptation because that will take away all the lovely flakes of butter in the crust. Gently press the crust into a square, then fold it in half (sort of roughly since it is all crumbs), press it together again, fold again, etc, until it is done.

Then take this rough crust, wrap it in saran wrap, and place it in the fridge for a while so that the moisture can work all the way through it and make it easier to work with.

Roll it out on plenty of flour, and put it into a tart or pie pan, then press it with your fingers until you like the shape.

Freeze this shell now, for about 20 minutes or until it is sort of firm. This will help it keep its shape while baking.

Meanwhile, lets begin to talk about the insides of this tart. Orange juice, lemon juice, spices, and eggs combine to make a lovely custard. I didn't have a lemon, so I used a lime instead. It worked.

Juice oranges until you are tired of juicing oranges, then juice a few more...

Aren't egg shells pretty?

You are going to cook the mixture until it turns into a custard. This is not hard, you just have to heat it up slowly and stir it constantly or it will curdle. I am a very impatient, forgetful person so mine usually curdles. I then just pretend that is how it was supposed to be, and no-one is the wiser. It doesn't affect the taste, just the looks... and if whoever you are feeding it to hasn't made custard before, perhaps you too can convince them that it is supposed to be a bit lumpy.

While your custard cools, you can pull your tart shell out of the freezer, poke it all over with a fork so that it doesn't bubble, and bake it.

Once it is baked, pour your custard into it.

Now, pop it back in the oven to bake the custard. I like to sprinkle some cinnamon and nutmeg over the top of it before baking it, because it is pretty, hides my lumpy custard, and tastes good.

And then you eat!

Spiced Orange Tart Recipe

Crust ingredients:
1 and 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup icing sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 stick plus 1 Tbs cold butter
lots of cinnamon and nutmeg... like, probably 2 Tbs of each. At least.
1 large egg. Or two or three eggs the size of the eggs I use, which are laid by little farm chickens in my mother-in-law's barn.

Mix together flour, sugar, salt, and spices. Cut butter into cubes, then cut it into the flour mixture until it is in large crumbs. Beat the egg, then mix it in. Keep stirring until the mixture begins to clump, then turn out on counter and gently knead until it clings together. Wrap in saran wrap and place in fridge for 10 to 20 minutes, or up to a day.

When ready, roll out crust and press into pan, then freeze for about 20 minutes or until slightly firm. Poke all over with fork, cover with aluminum foil, then bake at 400 degrees F for 20-25 minutes. Remove foil and bake for another 10 minutes to brown crust.

Custard ingredients:
2 tsp orange zest
3/4 cup fresh orange juice
2Tbs lemon or lime juice
3/4 cup sugar
3 whole eggs
1 egg yolk
1/4 cup butter, cut into cubes
1 Tbsp each of cinnamon and nutmeg

Whisk all together in medium saucepan and heat slowly while stirring constantly. Heat until mixture thickens enough to coat back of spoon... a very runny custard.

Pour custard into crust and bake at 350 degrees F for 25- 30 minutes until custard is cooked. This means that it will be a bit bubbled at the edges but the middle will still wobble some.

Chill in the fridge until ready to eat.

Enjoy!

Fudgey Goodness

I'm not normally a big fan of fudge.
It's usually just too sweet for me.
It seems like it is just pure, unadulterated sweetness with not much flavor, that gets stuck in my teeth and makes them hurt.
Sometimes I can stand a little bit if eaten alongside a large cup of black coffee...
but then I have a sugar rush AND a caffeine high, alongside my normally excitable personality, and well... that is just a combination that most of my friends want to avoid.
You should probably trust my friends on this one.
Right, friends?
BUT, this fudge worked its way right past my natural fudge-liking defenses, directly into that little place in my heart where sweet things reside.
You know... the sweet-things spot?
The place that pulls me back to the kitchen over and over and uses up copious amounts of sugar, flour, and butter.
The place that I've never heard my friends or family complain about as long as I share.
Yeah, that spot. 
This fudge is now there.

It is indeed very sweet, but it also has a hint of saltiness, and a hint of sour cream. It's good stuff. Really good stuff. Besides, with these ingredients, how can you possibly go wrong?

And because I love you, I'm going to tell you how to make this fudge without even using a candy thermometer!
Also because I'm too lazy to use a candy thermometer...
But that is totally beside the point, and not what we are discussing right now.
We are discussing fudge.
Stay on topic, please.

For the candy base, mix the sugar, margarine, and sour cream in a saucepan. Heat this to 234 degrees. OR, to "soft ball stage." What this means is, you let it boil for a very long time, stirring constantly. Check the mixture by taking a small spoonful on a metal spoon, and dunking it into a bowl of cold water. If it immediately swirls off of the spoon into the water, it is not done. If it sticks to the spoon completely, it's getting close. It is done when you can pull the candy off of the spoon in a little soft ball after dunking it in cold water. Hence, the name "soft ball stage."

See? Soft ball. Now turn off the heat.

 

Add the white chocolate.

And the marshmallow cream. Melt this yumminess in completely.

Then add the nuts.

And the dates. Mix them in well, then pour this yummy goop into your buttered pan, and let it cool.

No really, let it cool. 

Before you try to eat it. 

It's really hot. 

Burns your mouth. 

And fingers.

When it hardens into fudge, cut into cubes and eat it. With a big cup of black coffee. 

White Fudge

2 c sugar

3/4 c sour cream

1/2 c margarine

12 oz white chocolate (almond bark)

7 oz marshmallow cream

3/4 c chopped nuts

3/4 c chopped fruit (I used dates)

Mix sugar, sour cream, and margarine in saucepan and heat to 234 degrees, or soft ball stage.

Turn off heat and add white chocolate and marshmallow cream. Melt completely, then fold in nuts and fruit. Pour into buttered 9x9 pan and cool completely. Cut into pieces and serve. 

Bread Pudding

Hey guess what?
It's almost Christmas.
Hey, don't look at me like that. I'm just saying.
And offering the proximity of Christmas as a sort of explanation of my choice of recipes for today. Because everyone knows that bread pudding is a Christmassy sort of food.

So, have mercy on that loaf of stale bread and redeem its existence by making this nommy bread pudding. And vanilla sauce. Please don't forget the vanilla sauce.

Two loaves of bread, chopped up into cubes.
Drizzle melted butter over the bread, and toss together. 
In another bowl, mix milk, eggs, sugar, spices, and vanilla.

Add the milk mixture to the bread, along with raisins. Toss together until all the bread cubes are wet, then let sit for 10 minutes to soak.

Put in greased pan, bake at 350 degrees for about an hour, or until when you press on the top, it feels firm.

Bread Pudding

Ingredients
2 loaves bread
6 lg. eggs
7 c. whole milk
1 1/2 c sugar
2 t. vanilla
1/3 c melted butter
1 c raisins
3Tb cinnamon
2Tb nutmeg

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9x13 dish, or a pie pan, or a bread loaf pan (whatever you like).
Cube bread, drizzle with butter. Toss together.
In another bowl, mix eggs, milk, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
Add milk mix and raisins to bread. Toss together, let sit for 10 minutes.
Pour into buttered pad. Bake at 350 degrees for about an hour if in a loaf pan, or about 45 minutes in a shallow pan.

Vanilla Sauce for Bread Pudding

1/2 c sugar
1 1/2 Tb cornstarch
1c water
2Tb butter
2 tsp vanilla

Mix sugar and cornstarch in small saucepan. Add water, bring to a boil. Stir constantly, allow to simmer until it begins to thicken. Add butter, stir until melted. Add vanilla. Simmer until correct thickness.

Peach Pie

They were there, sitting at walmart, in all their peachy glory. They looked lovely. They felt soft and juicy. I could just imagine biting into their goodness and eating a peach with juice dribbling down my chin, periodically sprinkling the sweet, juicy fruit with salt. ...

Ok, so I'm weird and eat my fruit with salt. Take it up with my mom. But don't get distracted by the salt, pay attention, stay with me. I'm telling a story.

Anyway, so there I was and there they were and I gave into temptation. I bought four big, plump, juicy, bright peaches. I brought home my bounty.
I eagerly opened the bag and pulled out a peach.
I pulled my salt sprinkler over beside me.
I was nearly drooling, so ready was I for Peachness.
I opened my mouth and took a big, giant bite....
and....
nothing.
Disappointing blandness.
Yucky graininess.
Devastating averageness.
Definitely NOT what I was craving.

I was disappointed.
Disenchanted.
Disconcerted.
Disheartened.
Disgruntled.
Disillusioned.
Dissatisfied.
Not. Happy.

So, I decided to rectify this grave error in the taste of the peaches. I decided to redeem them and make them into a pie. Now, by this point in my blog journey, oh wonderful readers of mine, you should know me well enough to know that I often do not carefully measure my ingredients.
Or use a lot of fancy ingredients.
Or carefully use all the correct equipment.
In fact, usually, my cooking consist of mixing what looks good in the amounts that seem right, and mostly with my fingers. Because mixing with fingers is awesome, lets just admit it.

So, true to form, I did not really measure anything for this peach pie. But I did take pictures! So here you go.... and I'm just sure you can make your own little package of peachy goodness wrapped in buttery crust wrappings. I believe in you.

 

 

Make sure to cut your peaches really thin, so that plenty of juice comes out and mixes with the sugar and spices. 

Maybe about a cup and a half of sugar, depending on how many peaches you have? Enough sugar that every piece of peach has a little glaze on it when you mix it up. Cinnamon and nutmeg are the spices, quite a bit of each. Don't be shy. Add lots of spices. It's good, I promise.

 

I have found my new favorite way to crust pies. It avoids the mess and hassle of a top crust, and I think it looks better than when I try to pinch and prettify a top crust. I always end up with tears and dimples and hollow spots and burnt edges when I try to do a regular pie crust. 

So, this way, you just roll out an extra large bottom crust and put it in the pan with the edges draping over. Then put in the filling, and take those edges and pull them up over the top, wrapping your little pie package up all nice and cute!

 

 

Bake at 400 degrees F, for about 40 minutes. 

 

So, funny story. As I served up my peach pie, Morgan happened to be talking to his dad on the phone. It was 6:30, by which time Morgan's dad is usually home from work, at their house about 40 minutes away. Morgan mentioned what we were eating, and that there was more, and it was too bad his dad wasn't here to eat any, and his dad thought that was too bad as well. After Morgan hung up, I remarked that his dad should have come by on his way home from work. As the last word left my mouth, there was a tapping on the kitchen window behind me. I looked up to see Morgan's dad looking hungrily in the kitchen window! He had stayed late at work and had been on his way home when Morgan called, and had turned around and come by for a piece of the pie. 

He seemed satisfied with the results. 

I must say, this was indeed a good peach pie. I was happy that I got my peach goodness after all!

Pie Crust

Can we talk about pie crust for a minute? Just a moment. Please don't scream, or hyperventilate, or run away. 

It has come to my attention that pie crust is something of a fear among the semi-cooking population of women. Perhaps not quite as badly feared as spiders, but possibly fairly close. 

Listen to me. 

It can smell fear. 

You can't show it that you are afraid. 

You have to show the pie crust who is boss. It's just a little blob of flour and butter. It can't hurt you.

Promise.

You can make a pie crust. You can make a lovely pie crust. You can make a flaky, buttery, light, salty, crispy, delightful pie crust. 

You can make a pie crust that you will want to bake and eat all by itself. 

Not that I may or may not have done that....

Ok, are you with me? Lets make a pie crust, ok? Now, true to my general cooking form, we aren't going to use a whole bunch of fancy ingredients. Those may work for some people, but I am not smart enough to remember them all, so I just stick with the pie crust my grandmother taught me how to make (Hi Mamma!). It's easy, it's really good, and it is totally unhealthy, which all good things, of course, are. 

Take flour. Got the flour? Ok, now take salt. Salt the flour.
Just a dash of salt.
You know.
Some salt.

Now take butter. Add half as much butter as flour. Tip: The butter should be really really cold. Pretty much frozen. I actually use frozen margarine. That way, the butter won't fall apart but will stay in flaky chunks in your crust.

Yes, that means that for every cup of flour you have half a cup of butter.

Cut the butter into the flour until you have little chunks. About pea-sized. Big peas. Now add some very, very cold water. I put pieces of ice in the water I'm going to use. You want this water barely above freezing, because you don't want your frozen little bits of butter to melt.

About half as much water as butter, but play it by ear. You want only enough water so that your dough barely sticks together. It will kind of look like the picture below. Mix it together, tossing it with your fingers. Do not knead it. Do not squish it. Just mix it tossy-like.

 

Now, with lots of flour on the counter, roll out the dough. Make sure you have a lot of flour on the counter and on the rolling pin and on your apron and all around. If your crust sticks to the counter, then you have a sticky swiss-cheese looking crust. And I'm not a big fan of swiss cheese pie crusts. 

What works for me to get the crust into the pan, is to fold the crust in fourths, move it, and unfold it. It works. Really, it does!

Ok. Now go make a pie. 

With this yummy pie crust. 

Ok?

A Cure for Hot Weather

Seedless limes were on sale at Buy-For-Less for 15 for a dollar! I bought some.
Ok, I bought lots.
My head was dancing with visions of cold, tart treats.
So I brought them home and Morgan and I started juicing... and juicing.... and juicing.... and we did not get through all the limes I bought, some of them are still sitting on my kitchen table. But we did get through enough to make yummy cold treat things!

I don't like ice cream.
I'm sorry, I know that is probably bordering on blasphemy.
But I just don't.
I don't really know why... I used to blame it on my cold-sensitive teeth, but I love sorbet and frozen yoghurt and frappaccinos, so it obviously can't be that I just don't like cold things.
I even really like homemade ice cream. And I like smoothies, and some of Dairy Queen's stuff.
It's just regular old ice cream, I just don't like it that much. Its... I don't know... too heavy? Too creamy? Too sweet? I just don't know. Too ice-creamy.
I'm sorry.
I'll go hide in a hole now so I don't get hit.

But I love sorbet! So I made some sorbet. For me. Because I like it. And because I've convinced myself that it must be healthier than ice cream. Surely. Besides, in Bethany, OK this time of year in a house without air conditioning, you really need something cold. Really.

Lime Sorbet
1 c water
1 c lime juice
1 c sugar
1 tbsp lime zest

Combine in pan, simmer over medium heat until sugar is fully dissolved.
Freeze.
You can just pour it in a bowl and set it in the freezer, and freeze it that way. I must warn you, however, that when you do this the sour tends to float to the top and the sweet will sink to the bottom somehow, so that you end up with a wow-thats-super-sour-stuff-now-my-jaw-really-hurts-a-lot first few bowls, and then oh-my-goodness-this-is-incredibly-sweet last few bowls. So if you do it like that, you may want to visit it now and again during the freezing process and stir it up.

You could also freeze it in an ice cream maker, if you have one of those.
Also, as we learned in my brother's 4th grade science class, you can freeze it by putting it in a little ziploc bag inside a bigger ziploc bag, then filling the bigger ziploc bag with ice and salt and shaking it for a while. You may, however, want to make sure your ziploc bags are well sealed before coming into your mom's office with all her paper work strewn about and demonstrating to her your science project. It might get messy otherwise. Your mom might not fully appreciate your science project. Just a guess. You know... from experience.