desserts Archives - Alison Chino

Chocolate Salami

Alison — Fri, 23 Oct 2015 15:00:00 +0000

So I’ve been attending this international gathering of women this fall and one week we all brought food from our countries to share.

Of course Italy totally wins at All Things Food.

A gal from Italy brought a cookie that is meant to appear like salami but is actually chocolate.

I knew immediately that I would have to try and make it for my kids.

And it turns out that it is super easy and that there are recipes all over the internet for it. You can add coffee or some kind of liquor to the mix to give the sliced treats more depth of flavor and you can also change up the kinds of chocolate, but so far just plain dark chocolate plus cocoa powder is my favorite.

Basically you crush up some digestive biscuits (or animal crackers in the USA), melt some chocolate, add some very fresh organic eggs, sugar and butter and form that mess into a log that you refrigerate, slice and serve. Easy peasy.

Also, you could totally tie the ends of your chocolate logs with ribbons and give them as gifts. Because CUTE!

Go on and give it a try.

Chocolate Salami

Ingredients:

200 grams or 7 ounces dark chocolate

2 tablespoons cocoa powder

3/4 cup or 150 grams sugar

1 stick/4 ounces or 113 grams butter, at room temperature

2 eggs

250 grams Rich digestive biscuits, smashed into crumbs (9 ounces)

Directions:

Stir sugar and softened butter together. Melt chocolate and add to sugar and butter. Mix thoroughly and add cocoa powder. Whip the eggs in a small bowl with a fork. Stir into the chocolate dough until thoroughly mixed in. Fold in biscuit pieces and dump onto parchment paper. Form into three logs and then refrigerate for 30 minutes or until firm. Slice and serve.

Enjoy!

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Blackberry Cobbler

Alison — Wed, 30 Sep 2015 12:00:00 +0000

Blackberries are growing everywhere in Aberdeen right now, and it’s slowing my walks way down that I have trouble walking past blackberry bushes without stopping. I’ve snagged all my sweaters on these dangling vines, and tights are out of the question entirely.

Some days I carry a bucket and fill it up so I can have blackberries in my Greek yogurt, and sometimes I abandon the walk altogether in favor of gathering enough berries for a cobbler.

Because YUM!

This recipe calls for around six cups of blackberries, but basically if I have enough berries to fill the bottom of this dish, I just go for it.

You throw a few ingredients on top of the berries and then add the streusel topping.

Bake it up and serve it with ice cream or just whipped cream is pretty lovely as well.

Enjoy!

Blackberry Cobbler

Ingredients:

6 cups blackberries

1/2 cup sugar

3 tablespoons flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

Streusel Ingredients:

3/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar

3/4 cup butter, melted

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup broken walnut pieces (optional)

Directions:

Place blackberries in a 9×13 baking dish.

Sprinkle flour, sugar and salt on fruit. Stir in gently.

Prepare streusel: Stir together first brown sugar and melted butter. Add flour and walnuts (if using). Stir until blended. Let sit for a minute until firm enough to crumble into small pieces. Crumble over fruit.

Bake at 375° (or Gas Mark 4 or 175 degrees C) for 30 to 35 minutes or until bubbly and golden brown.

PS Here’s a little video of a blackberry picking + cobbler making day in Scotland!

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Camino Recipe: Tarta de Santiago

Alison — Sat, 22 Aug 2015 15:00:00 +0000

In every bakery window in Santiago you can spot a Tarta de Santiago, a light almond cake that has the cross of St James dusted on top with icing sugar. You can buy boxes of these cakes to take home to your family and friends (I did!) but they tasted better right on the street in Santiago de Compostela.

While I’ve been re-living my memories of the days on The Way, I wanted to taste this cake again, so I searched through some recipes and combined several to come up with this one.

If you ever have a friend who is walking the Camino, you should make this cake to welcome them home from their journey! What a fun surprise that would be.

Or make it for your own celebration of coming home from a pilgrimage!

Or just make it because it’s yummy.

Also, the filling can be made on its own without the crust in order to turn this recipe into a gluten free treat!

Recipe below. Enjoy!

PS. If you’re curious to learn more about the food on the Camino de Santiago, come back on Monday. I’ll be sharing all about it!

Tarta de Santiago

Ingredients for Tart Shell

1 1/2 cups flour

1/3 cup sugar

1 stick (4 oz) of cold unsalted butter (cut into pieces)

1 egg

1-2 teaspoons water

a tart pan with a removable bottom

Ingredients for Tart Filling

5 eggs

1 1/2 cups sugar

3 cups finely ground almonds

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

zest of 1 lemon

powdered sugar (for dusting)

Directions:

Make the tart shell.

Pulse flour, sugar and butter in the food processor until the mixture is in crumbs. Mix egg and water together and add to crumbs with food processor running until dough comes together.

Dump out on a floured service and roll out to fit tart pan. Place dough into tart pan and refrigerate for 20 minutes. Line with parchment, fill with pie weights (or beans) and bake at 400 degrees F for 20 minutes. Remove parchment and pie weights and bake for 5 more minutes.

Set tart shell aside to cool and turn oven down to 350 degrees F.

Mix filling.

Mix eggs and sugar for 5 minutes with a whisk until mixture is light and frothy. Fold in ground almonds, zest and almond extract.

Carefully spoon filling into tart shell and spread evenly.

Bake in the oven for 40-45 minutes or until the mixture has set in the middle and is light brown.

Cool 15 minutes before lifting tart from the pan. Dust with powdered sugar and serve.

In order to leave the imprint of the Santiago Cross on the tart, print and cut out the cross from a template. (Here’s one) Then place it on the cake when dusting with powdered sugar.

This cake seems to actually improve with age, so you can make it the day before you want to serve it. Brilliant!

Our journey along The Camino de Santiago was made possible by Macs Adventure, who found us the most wonderful places to sleep and made our giant suitcases magically appear in our rooms each night.

If you enjoyed this post, you might like to read more about the Camino de Santiago. Or consider subscribing to receive stories in your inbox.

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Valentine Treats

Alison — Wed, 12 Feb 2014 12:09:02 +0000

This photo is from last year on Valentine’s Day.

Which feels like a lifetime ago.

It was before we knew we were moving.

Before we left our life in Arkansas.

Before Tiny Oven. And slightly mildewed jeans + towels.

Friends, let me just admit that this is the year I turn into the person who buys their children treats at the store instead of filling the house with the smell of vanilla and peppermint frosting.

But if you have a KitchenAid mixer, a real oven and a heart-shaped cookie cutter, then I strongly suggest you make these glazed heart-shaped cookies or maybe Martha Stewart’s Vanilla Bean Cupcakes.

Heart Shaped Cookies for Your Valentine

This recipe makes 20-24 big cookies, depending on the size of your cookie cutter.

4 cups flour1/2 teaspoon salt1 teaspoon baking powder1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature

2 cups sugar

2 large eggs

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Directions:

In a large bowl, sift together flour, salt, and baking powder. Set aside.

Use an electric mixer to cream butter and sugar until fluffy. Beat in eggs.

Add flour mixture, and mix on low speed until thoroughly combined. Stir in vanilla. Wrap dough in plastic; chill for about 30 minutes.

Heat oven to 325°. On a floured surface, roll dough to 1/8 inch thick. Cut into heart shaped cookies. Transfer to ungreased baking sheets; refrigerate until firm, 15 minutes. Bake until edges just start to brown, 8 to 10 minutes. Cool on wire racks; decorate as desired.

Sugar Cookie Glaze

1 pound powdered sugar

4 tablespoons milk

2 tablespoons corn syrup

1 teaspoon vanilla

food coloring (here’s what I used)

Mix all ingredients together in the bowl of a stand or hand mixer. Use immediately, as it begins to harden quickly. Spread with an offset spatula.

Makes enough to ice about 24 large cookies.

When the cookie glaze hardens, you can actually wrap these cookies up in cellophane bags and give them as gifts.

Enjoy!

And whether you are eating store bought treats or homemade ones, or no treats at all, I wish you a Happy Valentine’s Day!

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Blackberry Pie

Alison — Mon, 18 Nov 2013 14:00:00 +0000

I am trying to manufacture a little Thanksgiving spirit over here in Scotland, even without canned pumpkin or grocery store freezer cases full of turkeys. However, I will not be attempting to make an entire feast that usually I make alongside my extended family. Instead, I have reached the conclusion that all I really need to feel warm and fuzzy in November is my mother’s blackberry pie. Well, and my Grandmother’s rolls.

Last year I spent practically the entire month of November at my parents house, trying to stay as close to my grandmother as possible during her final days on this earth. Many of those hours were spent in my mama’s kitchen, a space that was actually designed and built by my Grandmother many years ago.

I remember that when we made the blackberry pies for Thanksgiving, my grandmother asked for her piece early. Actually, in her confusion, she thought it already was Thanksgiving. My mother is a stickler for not cutting into the pies before it is time, so we made Grandmother a small hand pie that we cut into four pieces and shared on Thanksgiving eve.

For me, the memory of laughing in the kitchen the night before Thanksgiving and making that pie with my mom and sister-in-law while my Grandmother looked on and put in her two cents from her chair, is enough Thanksgiving to last me for three years in Scotland, and maybe longer.

I’ll be making a little hand pie in memory of my Grandmother, without whom I would rather not celebrate Thanksgiving anyway, and I’ll be filling the pie crust with shortening instead of my usual butter crust, in honor of my mother, who bless her heart, would never have it any other way.

Blackberry Pie

6 cups blackberries

¾ cup to 1 cup sugar, depending on how sweet the blackberries are

Zest and juice of 1 lemon

¼ cup flour

Mix filling ingredients together. Let sit while you roll out the crust. (recipe below)

Roll out half of the dough. Place in a 9 inch pie plate. Pour filling into crust.

Roll out other half and either top the crust, or slice first and make a lattice crust.

Bake at 400 degrees for 1 hour, until golden brown.

Pie Crust

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

2/3 cup shortening

6 – 7 tablespoons ice cold water

Mix flour, salt and sugar in a large bowl. Cut in the shortening using a pastry blender or two knives until the mixture is pea sized. Slowly add ice water and mix with a fork. Add just enough to pull the whole mixture together. You do not want it really wet, but if it is not holding together, keep adding more ice water a spoonful at a time.

Divide dough in half and roll out for a top and bottom pie crust.

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Blackberry Crumble

Alison — Thu, 31 Jan 2013 16:00:00 +0000

After a long hike last Saturday we were ready for a warm treat. We made this yummy Blackberry Crumble and ate it in the afternoon before dinner.

Then we finished it for breakfast the next morning.

I love how easy it is throw together a fruit crumble. It is faster (and healthier) than a pie or cobbler, because you can make the whole thing right in a cast iron skillet or a casserole dish.

Then you chop a few nuts, throw a few things together with a fork in a small bowl and dump it all on top of the berries. Easy peasy!

I doubled this recipe and used an 18-inch skillet, because there were a lot of us. Plus we like to have a lot left for the next day.

Blackberry Crumble

Ingredients:

3 cups frozen blackberries

1/4 cup brown sugar

2 teaspoons whole wheat flour

Topping Ingredients:

1/2 cup melted butter

1/2 cup thick oats

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1/4 cup brown sugar sugar

1/2 cup chopped nuts

Place blackberries n the bottom of an 8 inch cast iron skillet. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons of flour and 1/4 cup brown sugar on top of berries.

Mix melted butter, oats, 1/2 cup flour, 1/4 cup brown sugar and nuts with a fork. Pour in clumps on top of berries.

Bake at 400 degrees for 25-30 minutes.

Serve warm with vanilla ice cream. SOOOO good.

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Molasses Spice Cookies

Alison — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 17:00:00 +0000

Dorie Greenspan has been my hero ever since I had one bite of a World Peace Cookie, possibly the best chocolate cookie in the world.

I am also a big fan of her carrot cake.

So, when my winter cravings turned to molasses and ginger, I looked through the pages of her giant Baking book until I found a recipe with that combination. (Pouring through this book is a lovely, yet dangerous way to spend a Saturday afternoon.)

These molasses spice cookies, though a little fussy in the preparation, did not disappoint. I resented having to mash out each cookie with a glass, but next time I will take a little more time and mash them even thinner.

I so love the delicate, spicy crunch of a molasses ginger cookie.

Also, when I was shopping with my sister at a restaurant store, I could not resist buying the most ridiculously large jug of molasses. (SUCH a good deal!) So I will be making these many more times.

I’m sure you’ve already guessed that these are also divine with coffee or tea.

Sugar-Topped Molasses Spice Cookies

from Baking: From My Home to Yours, by Dorie Greenspan

Ingredients

2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground allspice

pinch (small or not so small) of cracked or coarsely ground black pepper (I used 1/4 tsp)

1 1/2 sticks (12 tablespoons) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 cup (packed) light brown sugar

1/2 cup molasses (not blackstrap)

1 large egg

about 1/2 cup sugar, for rolling

Directions:

In a small bowl, combine flour, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon, allspice and pepper.

In a stand mixer, beat the butter on medium speed until smooth and creamy. Add the brown sugar and molasses and beat for 2 minutes or so to blend, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add the egg and beat for 1 minute more. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the dry ingredients, mixing until the flour and spices disappear. If some flour remains in the bottom of the bowl, to avoid overbeating the dough, mix in the last of the dry ingredients by hand with a rubber spatula. You’ll have a smooth, very soft dough.

Divide the dough in half and wrap each piece in plastic wrap. Freeze for 30 minutes, or refrigerate for at least 1 hour. (The dough can be kept refrigerated for up to 4 days.)

Getting Ready to Bake:

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment or silicone mats.

Put the sugar in a small bowl. Working with one packet of dough at a time, divide it into 12 pieces, and roll each piece into a smooth ball between your palms. One by one, roll the balls around in the bowl of sugar , then place them on one of the baking sheets. Dip the bottom of a glass into the sugar and use it to press down on the cookies until they are between 1/4 and 1/2 inch thick.

Bake the cookies one sheet at a time for 12 to 14 minutes, or until the tops feel set to the touch. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and, if the cookies have spread and are touching, use the edge of a metal spatula to separate them while they are still hot. Transfer the cookies to a rack to cool to room temperature. Repeat with the second batch of dough.

Storage:

The cookies will keep for at least 1 week in the cookie jar. Wrapped airtight, they can be frozen for up to 2 months.

Enjoy!

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Deep Dish Apple Pie

Alison — Fri, 16 Nov 2012 18:20:07 +0000

Pie is probably the most necessary part of Thanksgiving to me.

Mother used to make 3 apple pies, 2 blackberry pies and 1 pumpkin pie for the big crowd at our Castle Bluff Thanksgiving gathering.

We would leave straight from school and the van would be all packed with pies and food. One year I remember they were picking us up from school to leave and one of us stepped in an apple pie as we were climbing in the car. I can’t remember who it was, but I promise you that my sister can.

After my Mother stopped crying, Daddy picked up the pie plate and started eating it. Then we passed it around the van. By the time we arrived at Castle Bluff the dish was licked clean and we were all laughing about it.

Ina Garten’s version of deep dish apple pie with the apples piled mile high + Martha Stewart’s pie crust is my favorite recipe for apple pie.

It’s so, so yummy. I cut the apples in big chunks so that they still have a little crunch to them.

Deep Dish Apple Pie

from The Barefoot Contessa

4 pounds Granny Smith apples, peeled, quartered, and cored

1 lemon, zested

1 orange, zested

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 tablespoon freshly squeezed orange juice

1/2 cup sugar, plus 1 teaspoon to sprinkle on top

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon kosher salt

3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/8 teaspoon ground allspice

Pate Brisee, recipe follows

1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water, for egg wash

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Cut each apple quarter in thirds crosswise and combine in a bowl with the zests, juices, 1/2 cup sugar, flour, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice.

Roll out half the pie dough and drape it over a 9- or 10-inch pie pan to extend about 1/2-inch over the rim. Don’t stretch the dough; if it’s too small, just put it back on the board and re-roll it.

Fill the pie with the apple mixture. Brush the edge of the bottom pie crust with the egg wash so the top crust will adhere. Top with the second crust and trim the edges to about 1-inch over the rim. Tuck the edge of the top crust under the edge of the bottom crust and crimp the 2 together with your fingers or a fork. Brush the entire top crust with the egg wash, sprinkle with 1 teaspoon sugar, and cut 4 or 5 slits.

Place the pie on a sheet pan and bake for 1 hour, or until the crust is browned and the juices begin to bubble out. Serve warm.

Pate Brisee

from Martha Stewart

Makes 1 double-crust or 2 single-crust 9- to 10-inch pies

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon sugar

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, chilled and cut into small pieces

1/4 to 1/2 cup ice water

In the bowl of a food processor, combine flour, salt, and sugar. Add butter, and process until the mixture resembles coarse meal, 8 to 10 seconds.

With machine running, add ice water in a slow, steady stream through feed tube. Pulse until dough holds together without being wet or sticky; be careful not to process more than 30 seconds. To test, squeeze a small amount together: If it is crumbly, add more ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time.

Divide dough into two equal balls. Flatten each ball into a disc and wrap in plastic. Transfer to the refrigerator and chill at least 1 hour. Dough may be stored, frozen, up to 1 month.

Roll each piece on a well-floured board into a circle, rolling from the center to the edge, turning and flouring the dough to make sure it doesn’t stick to the board. Fold the dough in half, place in a pie pan, and unfold to fit the pan. Repeat with the top crust.

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Halloween Spider Web Pretzel Snacks

Alison — Sat, 27 Oct 2012 15:00:00 +0000

We made the cutest spider webs out of pretzels for an activity at Literacy Camp this past summer that would be a great Halloween craft and snack.

This activity ties in perfectly with children’s book Anansi the Spider, the African folk tale about six spiders with different gifts for helping others.

We also did a super easy craft with balloons and pipe cleaners on this same day. You just twist a black balloon to make a head and then use four pipe cleaners to make eight legs. I think we used white paint for the eyes and mouth, but a white paint pen would be even better.

For the spider web, you need pretzels, almond bark (melted in the microwave according to the instructions), raisins, and nutella or frosting for the spider legs.

I gave each child some wax paper and a small ziplock bag of the melted almond bark. Then I put the pretzels, raisins and a small plate of nutella with toothpicks (for drawing spider legs) in the middle of the table.

While the almond bark hardened, we did the other spider craft at a different table, and then we all came back to our spider webs for snack time. The whole web pops easily off of the wax paper. So cutie!

What kind of fun things are you making for Halloween?

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Pumpkin Bread

Alison — Fri, 19 Oct 2012 15:00:00 +0000

Fall is in the air and I am loving all things pumpkin!

I have an affinity for pumpkin recipes that call for an entire can of pumpkin. They appeal to my practical side. I don’t love to save a part of a can of pumpkin puree for some undetermined use, one that usually requires that I open another can and then save part of that one, a never ending line of opening and not fully using cans of pumpkin until I throw out 1/4 cup of pumpkin puree in January.

This recipe makes three loaves so you can share some pumpkin bread with your friends. I have a neighbor that wraps up breakfast breads and brings them to us occasionally and they are always a welcome treat!

Also this recipe lends itself to substitutions. You can use all oil or all butter if you’re low on one. You can use water or milk in place of yogurt. If you’re low on one spice, add more of another or just leave it out. The pumpkin bread will get gobbled up no matter how you make it.

Happy Weekend and Happy Fall!

Pumpkin Bread

Ingredients:

1 can pumpkin puree (15 ounces or 425 grams)

4 eggs

1 stick or 1/2 cup butter, melted (115 grams)

1/2 cup oil (110 grams, 125ml)

2/3 cup plain yogurt (120 grams) (can substitute milk or water)

2 cups sugar (400 grams)

1 teaspoon vanilla

3 cups flour (500 grams) (I use a mix of wheat and white flours)

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1 heaping teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice (can substitute 1/4 teaspoon of cloves, 1/4 teaspoon of nutmeg and 1/4 teaspoon ginger)

Directions:

Combine pumpkin, melted butter, oil, yogurt eggs, sugar and vanilla. Mix well. In a separate bowl, mix flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice. Stir dry ingredients into pumpkin mixture until blended.

Pour into three buttered loaf pans.

Bake for 35-45 minutes at 350 degrees F (170 degrees C or Gas Mark 4) or until toothpick or fork inserted comes out clean.

Slice and enjoy!

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