Almond Apricot Bars

There's always a little sweet in our house. This one is buttery, not too sweet, with a jammy centre that tastes of summer. It can be glazed with some icing sugar and milk, but I prefer it plain. That crumbly topping - my favorite.


I found a recipe several years ago on the Land o' Lakes site, called Almond Strawberry Bars. I've adapted it considerably and am pleased with the results.


1 1/4 cups flour (All-purpose flour is fine, but I like a combination, about 1/2 cup whole wheat flour and 3/4 cup white, all-purpose flour)
1/2 cup butter, at room temperature
1/4 cup brown sugar, not too firmly packed


3/4 cup apricot jam (or any flavor of jam - thus, the name is flexible)


2 Tablespoons butter (in addition to the 1/2 cup)
2 Tablespoons brown sugar (in addition to the 1/4 cup)
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1/2 cup sliced almonds


Heat oven to 350 degrees. 


In mixer or food processor, combine the flour, and first amount of butter and brown sugar. Pulse until crumbly, but will cling together when pressed. 


Remove 2/3 cup of the mixture and press the remainder into the bottom of a 9 inch square glass pan. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until the edges are lightly browned.


While hot, spread the jam over top. 


Combine the reserved crust mixture with the additional butter and brown sugar, the almond extract and the sliced almonds. Sprinkle over top of jam.


Return to oven and continue baking for 20 to 25 minutes or until the edges are lightly browned. Cool completely, then cut into small squares to serve.


I realized while typing this that I neglected to add the almonds to the crumb mixture. So they don't show in the picture. Sigh. Everything's better with almonds.

Crunchy Granola

My husband's go-to breakfast is a bowl of granola topped with a few blackberries. We pick them in late summer and freeze bags of them for winter. Sometimes he thaws them out a little in the microwave, most often he eats them frozen. They thaw quickly when milk is poured on them.


Granola is something I've always made. I've gone through several recipes, this is the latest rendition. It's simple, has minimal ingredients, but the add-ins are limited only by your taste.


Crunchy Granola


9 cups whole oats (I use wild oats when I can find them) (rolled oats work as well - they just don't have the same "chew" factor)
2/3 to 3/4 cup honey or maple syrup
2/3 cup melted butter, or a combination of butter/margarine and canola oil (I use a combination - using about half butter gives a wonderful taste and contributes to the crunch factor)
1 cup sliced almonds
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon


Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.


Stir together the oats, nuts and cinnamon in a large, ungreased baking pan. I use a 10 x 15 Pyrex baking dish. A rimmed baking sheet would work as well.


Melt the butter, add the honey and oil, and heat until liquid. Pour over the oats and stir to combine thoroughly.


Bake at 350 degrees 40 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. When cool, add in extras, if desired.


Serve with milk or yogurt, or applesauce. Top with berries


Add-ins:
coconut, dried cranberries, raisins, dates, apricots, sunflower or pumpkin seeds

Crousillants (Cheese Crackers)

As guests arrive for dinner, I like to serve a few nibbles to begin an evening of conviviality. A dish of olives and a plate of these crisp cheese crackers is easy and appeals to almost anyone. 


This recipe is taken from the Williams Sonoma Paris book, given to me by Tim who brought it home from San Francisco business trip. The dough can be made ahead and frozen, then baked early in the day. They are addictive little things - consider yourself forewarned.


2 cups shredded Comté or Gruyère cheese
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
6 Tablespoons butter
1 cup all-purpose flour
pinch of cayenne pepper
2-3 Tablespoons chopped fresh chives*
coarse sea salt


In a food processor, combine the Comté, Parmesan, butter, flour and cayenne. Process until combined and crumbly, 40-60 seconds.


Transfer the mixture to a cool surface and pat into a log about 2 inches in diameter. You don't have to be particularly gentle with this dough. Wrap it in plastic wrap and chill for at least one hour. Or freeze for longer storage.


Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Unwrap dough and slice into rounds about 1/4 inch thick. Arrange on parchment paper lined baking sheets, about 1 inch apart. Sprinkle with the chives, then about 1 teaspoon sea salt. 


Bake the crackers until they are a light, golden brown, 10 -15 minutes, taking care to not let them get too dark. If the edges brown too much the crackers will taste bitter. 


Remove from the oven and serve to your delighted guests.

*Should you find yourself without fresh chives, a little dried or fresh thyme is a good substitute. 

Eggplant Mushroom Stacks

Eggplant is one vegetable I never tasted until well into adulthood. But since discovering it I appreciate its versatility. And fortunately my family has adventurous taste buds and will try just about anything. 


These are easy to put together, add character to a plate, and have a mellow, warm taste that fit today's snowy weather. I think the parsley, or another fresh herb, is indispensable to the dish, adding a fresh element to the mellow flavors. My husband might disagree a little, but he doesn't complain.


Eggplant Mushroom Stacks


1 medium eggplant, washed, ends trimmed, and cut into 1/2-3/4 inch slices
olive oil
salt and pepper
1-1/2 cups thickly sliced mushrooms
2 Tablespoons butter
2 green onions, sliced
2 Tablespoons white wine or chicken broth
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 Tablespoons chopped parsley


Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Brush olive oil on both sides of the eggplant slices. Place them on a rimmed baking sheet in a single layer. Sprinkle the tops with salt and pepper. Bake eggplant for 10 - 15 minutes on one side, then flip over and continue baking another 10 - 15 minutes until very tender. 


While the eggplant bakes, melt the butter and 2 Tablespoons olive oil in a skillet. Heat to medium high and add the mushrooms. Let them cook without stirring for 1-2 minutes so that they brown a bit. Add the green onions, stir and continue sautéing until the mushrooms have released their liquid. 


Push the mushrooms to one side of the pan and add the white wine or chicken broth and mustard. Whisk vigorously, combining the wine and mustard, scraping up any bits from the bottom of the skillet. Then stir the mushrooms into the liquid and cook over high heat until most of the liquid is evaporated.


When the eggplant is baked, pile the mushrooms onto each slice. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and return to the oven for about 5 minutes. Place on a serving platter and toss parsley over.

Thyme Pork Chops with Mustard Sauce

After Christmas feasting followed by New Year's feasting, yesterday felt like a good day to have something homey for dinner. These pork chops were tender and moist and tasted so good with the bok choy. Thyme is my favorite winter herb. I think it has a warm earthy flavor that suits rainy, windy weather.


This is a fast recipe - easily done in less than 30 minutes. I served it alongside roasted sweet potato wedges and garlicky green beans with tomatoes. Lots of vegetables - just what I love.


I cooked this recipe in one pan, keeping the greens hot until the chops were done. Two frying pans could also be used, but then you have two pans to wash. 


Thyme Pork Chops with Mustard Sauce


3 thick boneless pork chops
dried thyme, salt and pepper
2-3 Tablespoons olive oil
1/2 medium onion, slivered
3 baby bok choy, sliced
1/4 cup white wine
1/2 cup chicken stock
1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard (peppercorn would be delicious)
2 Tablespoons cream (optional)


Heat 1 Tablespoon olive oil in skillet. Add slivered onions and sauté until tender crisp. Add the sliced bok choy and continue sautéing until onions are tender and bok choy is tender crisp - between 5 and 10 minutes. Remove the vegetables to a serving platter and keep warm.


Add 1-2 Tablespoons olive oil to skillet. Heat to medium. Sprinkle both sides of pork chops with dried thyme, salt and pepper. Place in skillet, cook until done, turning once, about 10 minutes. Place chops on top of onions and bok choy. Keep warm.


Deglaze the skillet with white wine, stirring up all the caramelized bits from the bottom of the pan. Whisk in the mustard and add the chicken broth. Reduce the liquid by about one half. Whisk in cream, if desired. Pour sauce over chops.

Bûche de Noël

I found this recipe many years ago - in the early 1990s I believe, in a Good Housekeeping magazine. It's become a tradition around here - usually for Christmas Eve. This year, since we'll be celebrating with our family on Boxing Day, the 26th of December, I'll serve it then.

It freezes very well and is not at all difficult to make. The icing is a cooked one, made with flour, sugar and butter, and not overly sweet - a good thing around this time of year.

Bûche de Noël

1/3 cup flour

1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

3/4 teaspoon ground ginger

5 eggs, separated

1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

1/2 cup sugar

2 Tablespoons butter, melted

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease a 15 1/2 x 10 1/2 inch jelly roll pan. Line it with waxed paper and lightly grease the paper. Dust with a little extra cocoa powder.

Combine the flour, cocoa powder and spices. Sift together. 

Beat the egg whites and cream of tartar until stiff peaks form. Set aside.

In large mixing bowl, beat the egg yolks with the 1/2 cup sugar until thick and lemon coloured. Fold the whites into the yolks. Fold in the flour mixture, and lastly, the melted butter. Spread in prepared jelly roll pan. 

Bake 10 minutes. Turn out onto a tea towel that has been dusted with icing sugar. Peel off the waxed paper. Roll the hot cake up with the tea towel. Cool.

Prepare the Brandied Butter Cream. 

Brandied Butter Cream

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup flour

1 cup milk

1 square semisweet chocolate

1 square unsweetened chocolate

1 cup butter

2 Tablespoons brandy

1 teaspoon vanilla

Stir together the sugar and flour. Whisk in the milk. Cook over low heat until thickened and bubbly, whisking constantly. (I do this in the microwave to prevent burning.) Cool completely. Melt the chocolate and set aside.

In large mixing bowl beat the butter until fluffy. Gradually beat in the flour mixture. Add the brandy and vanilla. Beat until light and fluffy. Spoon 1/2 of the mixture into a separate bowl. Use it to fill the cake roll. To the other 1/2 of icing, add the melted chocolate. Use it to ice the cake roll. 

To fill and ice: Unroll the cooled cake. Spread the white icing over the cake surface. Reroll. Cut off one end of the cake roll at an angle and place it against the remaining roll to resemble a tree branch. Cover the cake roll with the chocolate icing, leaving the ends uncovered. To create the bark effect, draw a fork through the icing.

Decorate with holly. Slice to serve. It can be frozen, then well wrapped until needed. 

Buche De Noel

Toasted Almond Chip Balls

My husband is one of the fortunate ones who hasn't gained a pound in over 30 years. And I do feed him well. But he has cookies everyday, so I bake year round. At Christmas I bring out special recipes, like this one. It's called Toasted Almond Chip Balls, but we call it Mary's grandmother's cookies because a friend of ours gave it to us and said it was from her grandmother. Whatever the name, they are delicious. And easy. And they keep well in the freezer.

They have a shortbread-ish texture and melt in your mouth. Toasting the almonds brings out their flavor. Two or three of these are delectable with a cup of tea. 

Toasted Almond Chip Balls

2 cups flour

1 cup chocolate chips, chopped (or use mini chocolate chips)

1 cup chopped toasted almonds (toast for 8-10 minutes at 350 - then cool)

1 cup butter, room temperature

1/4 cup white sugar

2 Tablespoons brown sugar

1 Tablespoon vanilla extract

2 teaspoons almond extract

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and knead well. Use two hands. It's lovely and therapeutic, and would work well with children, too.

Form into 1 inch balls. Place on parchment lined baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes or until lightly golden. Roll immediately in sifted icing sugar, then place on a rack (or brown paper) to cool.