Recipe Test Drive: Delish's Apple Tart

My cooking experiments have been influenced by Almost Makes Perfect before. This time, she baked an apple tart from Delish that looked too pretty to be homemade. Normally, I'm not drawn to complicated or cheffy-looking dishes, but she claimed it was both "easy" and "fun" to make. The ingredient list wasn't intimidating, and we just so happened to have a bag of McIntoshes in the fridge, so I decided to give the recipe a whirl. Two hours later, I had made... something...



Allow me to introduce you to my Apple Monster:

 

Hahahahaha. It certainly isn't winning any beauty pageants.

I hadn't baked a carbon copy of the original pastry. (Clearly!) However, shockingly, it wasn't a complete disaster either!

Missteps: My apples were sliced too thin. The crust came out a lot more ~rustic~ than intended. I left out the apricot glaze because, well, I couldn't be bothered to go out and buy some. Oh, and who knows if that's even the proper dish for baking pies?

Bright sides: The tart wasn't terribly difficult to pull together, and the final product definitely had that signature coziness of apple pie. It tasted so good! Sweet, spicy, buttery, gooey. Bonus: The kitchen smelled incredible.

I'd absolutely make this again -- mostly to work on my presentation lol. Next time, I'll remember to add a big fat scoop of vanilla ice cream on the side ;)

Image credit (top): Delish

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The Best Banana Bread Recipe I Found All Year

In light of the pandemic's recent one-year anniversary (omfg), I am circling back to everyone's favorite pastime from the early days of the end-of-days: baking banana bread. 

Over the many, many months locked at home, I whipped up countless loaves and muffins to varying degree of success. When looking for my next project, my google searches ranged from "fast easy banana bread no eggs" because I didn't have patience or eggs in the fridge, to "banana bread spices nuts rum" when I was feeling *ambitious*, and tons of other queries in between.

To date, one recipe stands out as the very very very best: Ricardo's Ultra Moist Banana Bread. The ingredients are a drop unusual (lime juice and coconut milk?), the prep is quite messy (three bowls!), but the end result is insaaane. Soft, chewy, interesting depth of flavor. Honestly, it tasted like CAKE. We ate the whole thing in under twenty-four hours.

So, did you bake any damn banana bread this year? What recipe(s) do you really love?

Side note: In case you're wondering what to do with the leftover coconut milk, I used mine to make chia pudding.

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Made-In-Montreal Panettone (And What To Do With The Leftovers)

Montreal is home to a big Italian community -- which might explain why, come December, there is no shortage of panetonne in markets and groceries stores. While it's totally acceptable to stan those mass-produced loaves, we're lucky to also have a bevy of special, artisanal options made right here in the city.

Here are some local standouts. A word to the wise: Order yours ahead of time to ensure you're equipped for Christmas :)

 

Left to right:

Arte & Farina (1256 Ontario St. E) FYI, A&F's panettone is also available at Epicerie Conserva.

Automne Boulangerie (6500 Christophe-Colomb) This is a new-to-me bakery and I've heard really good things!

 

Elena (5090 Notre-Dame W) Elena's token baked goods are great. (I longingly remember pistachio amaretti cookies from last summer.) I suspect their latest festive offering won't disappoint.

Hof Kelsten (4524 St. Laurent) I consider theirs the OG trendy artisanal panettone. Hof Kelsten is famous for their takes on traditional recipes. (Hello, chocolate babka!) Plus, the colorful packaging is something out of a Wes Anderson movie. 

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In my experience, there is always, ALWAYS leftover panettone hanging around after the holidays. It's inevitable. Assuming you can't bring yourself to eat another (now drying) slice of sweet bread, how do you salvage the rest of it? Bread pudding, or french toast, or dipped in your coffee like a biscotti... Basically just revive the rest at breakfast time :)

Image credit: Sous Chef
Image credit (panettone): These images are linked back to their sources

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My Favorite Cooking Blogs

Listen, I'm not naturally gifted in the kitchen. Far from it. So, I rely on a handful of trusted cooking blogs to guide me through almost any dish. Time after time, these culinary whizzes prevent disaster and, even more impressively, help me masquerade as a bonafide cook. Thought I'd pass their names along, in case anyone is looking to expand their recipe repertoire :)

AMBITIOUS KITCHEN'S SKILLET ENCHILADA

Ambitious Kitchen's fare leans clean, nourishing, and often works around dietary restrictions. I usually turn to Monique's blog for her vegetarian and vegan meal ideas. (I swear -- they're so tasty, you won't miss meat.) Sometimes, she uses ingredients that are slightly inconvenient to track down (like coconut flour or nutritional yeast), but there are also plenty of dishes that can be whipped up with cupboard staples. Honestly, her recipes are very easy to follow and ALWAYS turn out really, really well!

My favorite recipes: Skillet Enchilada, Avo Blueberry Quinoa Salad, and Crunchy Cashew Thai Salad.

SMITTEN KITCHEN'S PASTA E CECI

Smitten Kitchen is my resource for "mom food" (which I mean in the very best and most complimentary way possible). There's an undeniable sense of cozy homeyness to Deb's recipes. Her dishes are unpretentious and extremely satisfying. Plus, the catalogue of cakes (and other assorted desserts) is bonkers -- super handy for special occasions or holidays.

My favorite recipes: Slow-Roasted Sweet Potatoes (duh), Marbled Banana Bread, Dijon-Braised Brussels Sprouts (only made this twice but we still talk about it!), Pasta e Ceci.

BASICALLY'S SPICY STIR FRY WITH CELERY AND PEANUTS

Basically is Bon Appetit's fun off-shoot that caters to an intro-level crowd. A lot of their recipes are fundamentally basic, with a decadent twist. Even though the dishes aren't particularly difficult to execute, this isn't the blog for easy, last-minute meal prep. (Think: Tricky ingredients, lengthy cooking time, etc.) However, when you have the time and foresight, Basically will absolutely help you pull together something awesome to eat.

My favorite recipes: Spicy Stir Fry (insanely tasty without chicken), Sour Cream and Onion Biscuits (Josh made them in April -- so dangerously good that we never tried them again lol).

Do you follow any cooking blogs? Which ones do you like best?

Image credit (top): Cooking Light
Image credit (dishes): These photos come from their respective blogs :)

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Recipe Test Drive: Ricardo's Oatmeal Cookies

Look, there's no other way to say it. These are the BEST oatmeal cookies I've ever baked.

My latest baking project started the way most do: There weren't any cookies in the house and I was jonesing for one. (Actually, more like five.) After a quick google and an ingredient-based process of elimination, a winner emerged from the interminable list of options. Ricardo Larrivée is obviously a huge name in Quebec, but this was my first time making one of his recipes.

Some tweaks:

-- Used whole wheat flour instead of all-purpose.

-- Added a generous amount of mini chocolate chips to the batter.

The recipe was easy to follow, everything came together quickly, and the end result was smooshy, not-too-sweet, and doughy like a regular non-oatmeal cookie. I was BLOWN AWAY. Two days later, every crumb was gone. 

These oatmeal cookies have since been added to my stash of trusted recipes. Let me know if you give them a shot :)

What are your favorite things to bake?

Image credit: Beaming Baker
Recipe credit: Ricardo Cuisine (also linked in the body of this post)

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Recipe Test Drive: Peanut Butter & Jelly Sandwich Cookies

I was recently frozen at the pantry door, searching for snack inspiration, when peanut butter thumbprint cookies came to mind. Sweet and simple. If you've read other Recipe Test Drive posts, then you know my M.O. for baking is 100% lazy convenience. This recipe from Kraft seemed easy and almost all the ingredients were already in my kitchen.

Tweaks:

- Halved the recipe.

- Used applesauce instead of an egg.

- There's something the recipe should highlight in ginormous red letters: The batter requires AN HOUR of chill time in the refrigerator. That's a long wait -- especially when you are a naturally impatient person who should have read the recipe more carefully from the get-go. ANYWAY. By that point, I was already wrist-deep in sticky cookie batter and getting very, very hungry. So, I just put the bowl of dough in the freezer for five minutes and hoped for the best.

End result:

I was craving puffy pillow-like cookies with a well in the middle for holding jam...

But inadvertently made thin squishy discs...

Oops.

Clearly, my cookies totally flattened out as they baked. Probably because the dough was too mushy and warm going into the oven -- it couldn't hold it's shape.

Silver lining: They tasted great! The PB flavor was pretty mellow, the texture was super soft and chewy.

Turns out, my disfigured desserts were actually perfect for making sandwich cookies. I took two, put a small glob of cherry jelly on the flat side of each, then gently sandwiched them together until the filling made its way to the edge. They might still benefit from being chilled (to firm up the jam), but I couldn't tell you for sure because I'm a monster and ate mine immediately. They were GOOD.

Bonus: The batter was amazing. When you replace the egg with applesauce, you can eat it risk-free. I think?

Next time, I might smear a little peanut butter (or almond butter!) in the middle of the sandwich, alongside the jelly. Another tasty touch could be to sprinkle crushed peanuts on the cookies before they start to bake.

What are some of your cooking-related happy accidents? :)

Image credit (top): Food & Wine

Image credit (thumbprint cookies): Little Bitty Bakes

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Recipe Test Drive: Blueberry Buckle

Do you ever buy aspirational groceries? Then eventually realize all your (long forgotten) kale is just wilting away in the fridge? And that buying those greens did NOT change your eating habits one iota?

I do, all the damn time, and last week was no different. Faced with the impending doom of an untouched pint of blueberries, I started looking for ways to transform the fruit into... well...

Into pastry.

Considering my options, I liked the idea of baking a "buckle" because it fell somewhere between what I really wanted (full blown pie) and what I was actually motivated to make (next to nothing). The internet is full of blueberry buckle recipes -- I chose this one because it seemed straightforward and I already had all the ingredients on-hand. 

Intentional substitutions:

Whole wheat flour instead of all-purpose

Oat milk instead of regular

Lemon juice instead of zest

Accidental changes:

I screwed up the streusel by using melted the butter instead of softened/room temp. Mine turned out wet and pasty, the recipe said it should be crumbly.

TAKE A LOOK AT THIS BEAUTY!

The result:

Basically, I made a perfect coffee cake! Thanks to that mess-up with the crumble topping, my blueberry buckle maintained a ton of moisture which, in turn, actually helped keep the cake soft and chewy. Happy accident :)

I would try it again with white flour, traditional milk, and add vanilla extract. Maybe even double the blueberries (or mix in other berries).

SORRY, NOT THE BEST PHOTO, BUT I HAD TO GET THAT CROSS-SECTION SHOT.

Let me know if you give this dessert a try!

Do you have a go-to recipe for when your fruit is about to pass its prime?

Image credit (top): Wife Mama Foodie

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Back-Up Profession: Doggy Bakery

Early into lockdown, I was baking a lot. (Who wasn't?) It got me on my feet, filling up a ton of that newfound free time. And with all the focus and precision involved, baking also gave me a measure of control in what was an otherwise turbulent and unpredictable time.

At some point, I thought it would be fun to shift gears and bake something for the pup instead.

(My increasingly tight jeans welcomed the change.)

I bought this set of cookie cutters and got to work on the easiest, seemingly healthy recipe I could find.

Reggie isn't the toughest food critic. He loves store-bought treats but will just as happily settle for discarded pizza crusts (among other, nastier things the sidewalk has to offer). He eats everything we feed him, and whatever else he can snatch off the floor before we notice.

That being said... He seemed to really liked his homemade cookies!

Regretfully, I don't have an after shot of Reggie with the dog treats. He normally won't even waste time chewing his food, so waiting to take a photo was out of the question.

A few call-outs to consider:

The recipe yielded A TON of cookies, and they came out rather large for a Reggie-sized dog, even using the smallest cutter.

The cookies also don't keep for very long since they're freshly baked without preservatives.

So... You might end up with way too many (like I did). Next time, if I'm making a batch just for Reg, I'll downsize the recipe to avoid any waste.

Otherwise, the doggy bakery was a big success! It was nice to make something homemade just for the little pup. And the treats turned out really freaken cute-looking too :)

As Reggie always says: First we snack, then we snooze.

Image credit (top): Play Bark Run

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Local List: My Favorite Bakeries (Plateau/Little Italy)

If you know me even a little, then you know that carbs are my thing.

Growing up Italian, I was raised on pasta, pizza, sandwiches, pastries, you name it. (Meat and veggies were also on the table but I was hardly interested.) It was only when Josh and I started dating, and he described pasta as "a bowl of bread," that it ever dawned on me that cavatelli could be anything but a dietary staple. And while the thought clearly stayed with me, it never curbed my appetite. I've eaten literal bread bowls (after finishing the soup they once contained) and can easily polish off a complimentary bread basket solo. Pasta with tomato sauce is practically health food by comparison.

I especially love baked goods.

It's been a minute since I was last inside a bakery. I genuinely miss them. So, I put together a list of favorite spots in the neighborhood and the best items on their menus. These bakeries should all be open in some capacity, just working with restrictions. Call ahead, then treat yourself to something delicious. I hear supporting local businesses offsets calories ;)

BOULANGERIE LOUISE (6835 ST LAURENT BLVD)

Louise

Obsessed with their dollar-a-square green olive focaccia (what else can you buy for an actual loony?) and the cheddar bacon loaf. The focaccia has a biscuity, pull apart quality that I LOVE, and cornmeal gives it interesting texture and crunch. As for the loaf, everything you need to know is in its name. Get them to slice it so you can make sandwiches (or eat the whole thing slice-by-slice as you walk up St. Laurent on the way home).

BOULANGERIE GUILLAUME (5134 ST LAURENT BLVD)

Guillaume

I am so, so lucky to live around the corner from this place. They upgraded to an enormous space a few years ago and it's normally packed on weekends. Their bread is incredible, they have so much to choose from (when there's anything left on the shelves). I've only ever had friendly interactions with the staff. I get the feeling everyone is happy to work there, it comes across in their helpfulness and the bakery's overall vibe.

Guillaume is also my bakery of choice when you're in charge of bringing bread to dinner at your parents' house. My family refers to it as "the fancy bakery" lol.

But let's talk bread. I'm partial to the tricked up, less healthy offerings (big surprise) and the list of favorites is long. Starting from my absolute number one: potato-cheddar pain fesses (translation: butt bread), black olive fougasse, small fig and cheese baguette, sweet carrot square, english muffins (for homemade egg mcmuffins), beet buns, apple caramel viennois... Screw it, just try one of everything.

PATISSERIE AU KOUIGN-AMANN (316 MONT ROYAL EAST)

Kouign Amann

Best croissants in the city. Ask anyone.

If you think plain croissants are boring and won't be convinced to order one, then (a) you're making a big mistake, and (b) there are plenty of other great options to choose from. Their almond croissants are insane and literally any quiche is a winner.

There's one thing you MUST try when you get the chance. The bakery is named after a show-stopping pastry -- frankly, the hero of this entire blog post -- the kouign-amann. My best description: It's like an extra buttery croissant, but large and round and kind of dense (like a cake), basically soaked in honey/syrup. If you're able to eat it warm, your brain might momentarily short-circuit, it's that good.

PASTICCERIA ALATI-CASERTA (277 DANTE)

Alati

Duh, their cannoli (ricotta, not custard) are great. As are the sfogliatelle. But those pastries require some commitment -- they're pretty big, hard to share, and super messy to eat while you're walking around. Instead*, I like getting a bag of amaretti cookies in assorted flavors. Lemon and pistachio are my favorite, Josh likes the popular hazelnut-y "buoni ma brutti."

(*There's no instead. I get cannoli, too.)

As a bonus, if you're into chocolate chip-studded ricotta and almond paste, the cassata (or single-serving cassatina) is a really special Sicilian specialty and the ones from Alati are fanastic.

BOULANGERIE CHESKIE (359 BERNARD WEST)

Cheskie's

I'm crazy about black-and-white cookies. Cheskie's makes them deliciously soft and spongey in the middle, and the icing never gets sticky or melty in your hands. The big size is best, but if you're in a jam (meaning: they're sold out) then the small ones are totally acceptable.

I now present the single most important Montreal pastry-related tip I have to offer:

Show up around 9ish on Sunday morning and the mini chocolate babka are still warm from the oven.  Thank me later.

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Image credit (Louise x2): Boulangerie Louise
Image credit (Guillaume): Yellow Pages
Image credit (Kouin Amann): Bon Appetit
Image credit (Alati): Restaurant Guru
Image credit (Cheskie's): Flash Bracket

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Recipe Test Drive: Ina Garten's Peanut Butter & Jelly Bars

Let's start with what we know: I wish Ina Garten was my friend. The woman is a DELIGHT.

Now that that's been cleared up...

A word of warning: DON'T MAKE THESE unless you're prepared to eat the entire tray within 24 hours. The squares are that good.

In fact, to call them squares doesn't do them justice. You're basically layering peanut butter cookie dough with jelly. It's like a cookie-cobbler hybrid and I'm here for it.

These are the handful of substitutions I made:

- Halved the recipe

- Used cran-apple jelly (and probably not enough, I used up all we had left in the jar)

- Forgot to half the roasted peanuts lol

The result:

Not the most compelling photograph. (Note the paper towel lol.) Who has time to take pictures of their food when it tastes so damn good?

Anyway, the recipe was easy to follow, the ingredient list was pretty basic (you probably them all in your cupboard already), the end result was sweet and gooey and comforting and everything you want from a baked treat, really.

Try them and enjoy them. Thanks Ina!

Image credit (top): Barefoot Contessa

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