Shindig Rundown

Yesterday I had a small gathering at my place as a kind of going-away party, with the ulterior motive of using up as many of my leftover baking ingredients as possible before I move - all part of OPC (Operation Pantry Clear-out). It was lovely to just bake and bake for a couple of days. I realize I've been missing that in my life. However, the weather here was so hot, and continues to be, so it was a tad uncomfy to be in my kitchen for the amount of time I was. But it's OK.

Here is a shot of my spread:


So, on the white platter, top left, we have these rum & chocolate chip blondies, only without pecans because I'd already used them all up. Also on that plate are sour cherry & chocolate chip brownies. That recipe is basically my usual blondie recipe, only I replaced 1/2 cup of the flour with 1/2 cup of sifted cocoa powder. They are amazing!

In the pottery bowl next to that platter (the pottery was made by my super-talented potter friend, S) are these cookies. They were great.

Bottom row, left, we have a rhubarb tart. I made the pâte brisée recipe from Earth to Table, which you can see here. Incidentally, that's the same pumpkin pie recipe I used for the pumpkin pie you see in the bottom row, right, in the photo. It's sooooooooo gooooooood! I love that pumpkin pie recipe! It was a big hit at the shindig yesterday. For the rhubarb tart, I used frozen rhubarb, that, as it thawed, shrunk into probably just less than 4 cups of rhubarb; very annoying. But it was perfect for a tart, and I decided to do a lattice top. The rhubarb tart was a hit, too. The filling also contained 1/2 cup sugar, 1/2 tsp ginger, 1 tsp cinnamon, and about 1 tbsp of cornstarch.

Finally, between the two fruit pies/tarts, we have a basic banana bread. Very basic. I got this recipe from my friend Anita, who made this regularly when we were in university together. It's been my go-to recipe ever since because it's super simple and super moist.

Anita's Banana Bread

2 ripe bananas, mashed
2 eggs
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 cup brown sugar
1 1/4 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
dash of salt
1/2 cup walnut pieces, optional

Beat the eggs with a whisk and add butter, brown sugar, and bananas until well-combined. Sift in the flour, soda, and salt until the batter comes together. Add nuts, if using. Pour into a greased or lined loaf pan and bake at 350F for about an hour.

Everyone went home with a baking doggy bag. I'm leaving soon after all - I didn't want to keep any of it.

Up next, my trip to the Maritimes, Wolfville, Nova Scotia and Charlottetown, PEI, to visit family, I just know there is going to be absolutely TONS to food blog about! I can't wait!

Chocolate Chip Pecan Blondies...With Booze!

The Good Cookie is a book I bought a few years ago and have not used enough. It's not that it doesn't have good recipes in it - it does - but I seem to always go back to my tried & true recipes and I seem to overlook it. But, in an attempt to reassess what cookbooks belong on my dedicated bookshelf and which ones I can do without - because I'm moving - I revisited the book to look for inspiration. And I found this recipe, which turned out to be just killer. The rum is essential, let me tell you! In fact, I doubled the amount to make these extra boozy! Yeah, I'm keeping this book. I gave the blondies, again, to family members because, again, what is a single gal trying to watch her waistline going to do with a big pan of blondies?

Chocolate Chip Pecan Blondies, adapted from The Good Cookie, page 119, by Tish Boyle

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup butter
2 cups firmly packed brown sugar
3 large eggs, at room temperature
2 tsp vanilla
1/4 cup amber rum
1 1/2 cups chopped pecans
1 cup chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350F and line a 9x13" baking dish with parchment paper, or grease & flour it very well.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients.

3. In a mixer, beat butter & brown sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Beat in vanilla and rum. At low speed, mix in the dry ingredients until just combined. Fold in the pecans & chocolate chips.

4. Scrape batter into prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake for 35 - 40 minutes, or until just golden brown and the centre is set. A toothpick should come out clean but not dry. DO NOT OVERBAKE THESE!

5. Cool completely, portion, and serve!

Christmas Blondies

I got this recipe a few years ago from one of my very early readers, Granny Anny of Warm Butter Review, whose presence on the net I really miss. (Note to Granny Anny - you're missed out here in the blogosphere and I hope all is OK!) This is a totally foolproof, amazing blondie recipe that is adaptable in various ways. It also doubles and quadruples well, as I found when I used it professionally when I got my first job out of culinary school.

The original recipe calls for 1 cup of pecans, chopped and toasted and 6oz white chocolate chips. If you want to make a more brownie-like square, you can substitute 1/2 cup flour for 1/2 cup cocoa powder, sifted.

Blondies

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup butter, melted and cooled
1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
2 tsp vanilla
1 1/4 cups Christmas-coloured Smarties or M&Ms

1. Preheat oven to 350F and either line a 9x13" pan with parchment or grease & flour it.
2. Combine the dry ingredients in a small bowl.
3. In a larger bowl, combine the eggs, vanilla, sugar, and butter.
4. Add the dry ingredients and fold until combined.
5. Add the candy and spread into the pan.
6. Bake 20 -25 minutes or until light golden. DO NOT OVERBAKE. UNDERBAKING IS BETTER FOR A FUDGIER BLONDIE!

Cut into squares and serve. Or, freeze them in an airtight container until you need to whip them out for a Christmas function.