Blueberry muffins I

I have in my mind the perfect blueberry muffin, but I've never been able to create it.  (My second and third attempts can be found here and here.)  I looked at 3 muffin recipes I have, two of which I've made with moderate success; the third was nearly identical to one of the others.  I had notes on my impressions, and suggestions for changes.  So I've cobbled together my own recipe here, cutting it in half to yield 6 average-sized muffins.

Here's what I used:

3/4 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup sugar
1 extra large egg
1 cup fresh blueberries, divided
1 tablespoon heavy cream
3 tablespoons orange flower water

Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt, then mix in the oats.  In a mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.  Add the egg and beat until light.  Starting with the dry ingredients, add half at a time, alternating with the liquids and stir until just mixed.  Fold in the blueberries.  Drop into 6 greased muffin tins and bake at 375F for 20-25 minutes, or until tester comes out clean.  Cool on a rack about 10 minutes, until firm enough to be removed.

I wish I'd had some fresh basil to try out with the blueberries, but in the absence of that I decided to try adding something floral.   My orange flower water tasted really watery, so I wanted to use as much as I could, but didn't want to omit all the dairy entirely, so I used a little heavy cream (for the fat and flavor).  In the end, I still don't think I could taste it.

I omitted vanilla because in one of the earlier versions I didn't like it.  Perhaps there was too much (1 teaspoon).  But these needed something.  I'd tried cardamom before and not sure it was "it".  Didn't think I wanted cinnamon.  Definitely not ginger...  I don't know.  I tried out dipping the tops in melted butter and then cinnamon sugar for one and cardamom sugar for another; both were tasty, but then why wouldn't they be?  I'm looking for THE complimentary spice or herb or flavor.  The search continues.  (Hence the "I" in the title.)

Conclusion:  While this wasn't "the" recipe, they were good.  Nice texture.  Could use a wee bit more salt (and if dipping tops in butter, that could be enough) and perhaps even just a little more sugar, depending on the berries.  I also wish I'd thought to add some dried blueberries, which are sweetened and might have been sufficient.  Contrary to logic, 1 cup of berries really is too much.  I want cake and berry--- not berry and some crumbs.  (And these were unusually large berries.)  I think I will add a little vanilla in the future, but still undecided on what else.

Tahinli çörek (Turkish sesame pastries)

I read somewhere that mahlab is good for only something like 6 months. I've had mine for quite some time, but I keep it in the freezer, hoping that will extend its viability. It had a bitter flavor, but one might expect that since it's made from the pit of a type of cherry. I wish I'd tasted it when it was fresh. I wasn't sure it was a pleasant flavor.

These are pretty rich, so I cut the recipe in half and made them the smaller size (3 instead of 2.) I have to admit that one and a half of the pastries was just about the right amount for breakfast to satisfy the taste buds and the tummy, but for health's sake one should probably stick with a single, smaller bun.

Since these are unique, I stuck pretty closely to the original recipe, mostly just adjusting the salt quantity.  Here's what I used to make half the original quantity:

For the dough:
1/2 heaping teaspoon dry yeast
1/6 cup warm water
1/4 teaspoon sugar
2 tablespoons milk
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
1 tablespoon oil
1 heaping tablespoon sugar
1 egg, scrambled and divided
1 -1¼ cup all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon mahlep (mahlab)

For the filling:
5 tablespoons tahini (sesame paste)
1/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon melted, salted butter
1 teaspoon orange flower water
salt to taste (if necessary)
2 teaspoons finely chopped shelled pistachios per pastry (optional)

2 tablespoons orange flower water for coating pastry
raw sesame seeds
sugar (granulated or demarera)

Proof yeast with warm water and sugar. Set aside approximately 10 minutes, until well frothy.  In a mixing bowl, add the milk, butter, oil, and sugar and mix well. While still warm (not hot!), add  half the scrambled egg and the yeast mixture and mix well with a whisk. Sift together 1 cup of flour, salt, and mahlep. Add this to the egg mixture and stir with a wooden spoon until you get a slightly sticky dough. Knead the dough, adding the extra ¼ cup flour if needed. Once you have a nice dough, place it back in a greased bowl, cover, and place in a warm area for approximately 2 hours (until doubled).

Punch down the dough and knead for a minute; divide into 2 or 3 equal pieces. Let the balls rest about 25 to 30 minutes. After 15 minutes, mix together the tahini, sugar, melted butter, and orange flower water.  Mix well, then check to see if you want to add salt. The mixture will be granular. (And for me there seemed to be some sort of chemical reaction which made it become fairly thick and almost gummy.  Weird.)

Once proofed, roll each ball into a disk about 1/8-inch thick. (If making 2, it should measure about 11 or 12 inches; 3 should measure at least 7 inches.  They should be as thin as you can get them while still being manageable.) Divide the tahini mixture evenly for each pastry, approximately 3 tablespoons each. Spread this out very thinly almost to the edges. If you like, sprinkle 2 - 3 tsp of finely chopped pistachios on each one. Roll each round into a tight cigar shape; pinch each end closed. Slowly and gently roll each pastry back and forth with your hands to extend it, starting at the middle. Don't worry if small tears occur. The final strand will be almost as long as from the tip of your fingers to your elbow. Twist the long strand of dough gently over and over again (but don't over twist or you will snap it.) Coil the twisted pastry loosely from the center working outwards and tuck the end underneath. Place the coils on prepared baking sheets (either lightly greased or lined with parchment) several inches apart, leaving room for final rolling.  Preheat oven to 350 F.  Cover pastries with a tea towel and let proof for 30 minutes. (While proofing, the centers might pop up -- that will be fixed with the rolling. There might also be small amounts of oil weeping from the pastry.)

When the rolls are nearly done, beat the remaining egg half in a small dish; arrange in separate bowls the orange flower water, sesame seeds, and some sugar. Flatten each pastry with a rolling pin gently to half its size. Prick it all over with a fork to arrest its rising in the oven. Using a pastry brush, wash the pastries with orange flower water all over, then the egg wash. Sprinkle each pastry generously with sesame seeds and finally with sugar. (It will make a nice crust when baked). Bake pastries for 30 minutes (for the large) or about 20-25 minutes (for the small), or until golden brown.  Watch for over browning the bottoms.

 

These were more time-consuming than I had anticipated, perhaps mostly because I had to keep checking the directions.  (I've simplified the process here.)  I tried to call up the web page, but it kept diverting to another screen (although I could call it up on the iPhone.  Apparently this redirect is due to a faulty widget, but the original blogger is no longer maintaining his blog, so this won't be remedied.) It helped to check the photographs in the original blog post.

They were probably plenty done at 25 minutes (perhaps could have done less), but since it mentions a brown crust I left them a little longer, but then they were over done. (The bottoms were dark.) And the twists didn’t show up on the outside.

Conclusion:   These were tasty, with an unusual flavor (perhaps the mahlab), fairly crisp on the outside but tender on the inside.  The filling wasn't very noticeable, but I'm sure lent moistness and flavor, though subtle.  They were good despite being a little tough (from extra baking); they just don’t look terribly appetizing.  (They'd look better if they weren't over baked.)  The orange flower water wasn’t very discernible. Perhaps could have done with a tiny bit more salt, but were okay as they were. (I didn’t add any additional salt to the filling.)  I probably would not make this recipe again, but I'd like to try the one at M bakes.

Recipe:  Tahinli via Is That My Buréka?

Cardamom-Semolina Shortbread Cookies

I so wanted to like these.  Shortbread is my favorite cookie, and cardamom my favorite spice.  But alas, it wasn't to be.  I didn't think it was possible to have too much butter in a cookie, but these have it.  Not only was the dough (call it more of a batter) extremely soft and sticky, the cookies themselves tasted downright cheesy.  You can't even taste the cardamom or orange-flower water due to the overpowering butter taste. It lingers on the fingers long after the cookie is gone.

Speaking of orange-flower water, I take great exception to anyone who suggests orange extract or orange liqueur as a suitable substitute.  Obviously these people are just making stuff up.  Sure, you could substitute those other items, but you might as well be substituting cinnamon, or anise extract, or black pepper for that matter.  Orange extract has a concentrated orange oil flavor; orange liqueur has a sweet, less-concentrated orange oil flavor.  Orange-flower water tastes NOTHING like orange oil!!  The best substitution to retain the flavor profile would be another flower water or flower extract.  Another clue that this author didn't know what he was putting together was the quantity.  I suspected that a measly 1/2 teaspoon wasn't going to have an effect.  I even doubled it, and it is still undetectable.  (I hate it when people just make stuff up.)

So the butter quantity was off, the flavoring quantities were off....  What went right?  Well, I liked the addition of semolina flour.  It gave a grainy, sandy texture and helped (along with all that butter) to create a very delicate cookie that melts in your mouth.  However, I recommend finding a happy medium and reducing the butter to about 1½ cups.  (If you choose to use salted butter, as I did, that will also help to balance the salt quantity.  A cup of salted butter has too much salt for this recipe, so stick with unsalted if you use the full amount.)  These cookies also lend themselves nicely to the use of cookie stamps, so if you have a pretty one, use it!

I should mention that I also greatly reduced the sugar, just for personal preference.  After making these delicious Brazilian guava cookies that used only a tablespoon of sugar per cup of flour, I will seriously rethink sugar quantities from now on.

Here's what I used:

1½ cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup semolina flour (pasta flour)
1¼ teaspoons ground cardamom, divided
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons sugar
2 large egg yolks
1/2 teaspoon orange-flower water, orange extract, or orange liqueur (such as Cointreau)

Whisk all-purpose flour, semolina flour, and 1 teaspoon cardamom in a large bowl; set aside. Using an electric mixer, beat butter, salt, and 3/4 cup 2 tablespoons sugar in a large bowl until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Add egg yolks and orange flower water and beat to blend. With mixer on low, add dry ingredients and mix just to blend.  (It will be sticky.)  Place dough on a large sheet of parchment paper. Using paper as an aid, roll up dough into a 1 1/2-inch diameter log. Wrap in plastic and chill until firm, about 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 350°. Mix remaining 1/4 cup sugar and 1/4 tsp. cardamom in a small bowl. Slice dough into 1/4-inch-thick rounds. (If using a stamp, cut slightly thicker so that the cookies are about 1/4" thick after pressing.)  Dip 1 side of each round in cardamom sugar and arrange, sugar side up, on 2 large baking sheets. Bake until golden brown and firm, 20-25 minutes.  (The thinner cookies I made baked for only 13 minutes.)  Carefully transfer cookies to a wire rack; let cool.



Conclusion:  There are lots of delicious shortbread cookie recipes out there, and lots of delicious cardamom recipes as well. I recommended a pass on this one.


Recipe:  Cardamom-Semolina Shortbread Cookies via Bon Appétit





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February ABC challenge: Fruit and Nut Breakfast Loaf with Moroccan flavors

I started out this month's challenge fully intending to follow the recipe exactly as written, except for maybe making it with some whole wheat flour.  And then this idea for Middle Eastern flavors came out of nowhere.  I swapped the walnuts for almonds, pistachios and pignolis, added apricots and prunes to the fruit mix, and added the exotic flavors of saffron, cardamom, cinnamon, and orange blossoms.

The use of whole wheat flour caused some consistency issues; I knew that getting the right consistency was key.  Since whole wheat flour benefits from a long autolyze, I made the starter with no white flour, but the 1/2 cup of water barely incorporated the flour and I was left with a thick clay.

The starter after 12 hours...

I added enough water to bring it to something that resembled the photo in the recipe blog, but it still probably wasn't as wet as it should have been.  By morning there was only the faintest trace of a single bubble (although that could have been because my house is cold.)  It looked better by late morning, but even after nearly 12 hours it still hadn't bubbled as directed.

... and after 16 hours

After about 16 hours, the starter looked good and I was ready to make the bread.  My adjustments are noted:

Starter
1 cup all-purpose whole wheat flour
1/2 cup cool water (+ 3-4 tablespoons), to form a loose paste
1/16 teaspoon instant yeast

Mix the starter ingredients in a small (about 1-quart) bowl, and let rest overnight at room temperature.

Dough
*3/4 teaspoon saffron threads, ground to a powder
*2/3 cup skim milk, scalded (changed from water)
2 1/4 teaspoons instant yeast (increased from 2)
1 1/2-1 3/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour (decreased from 2 3/4)
*3/4 cup whole wheat flour
*1/4 cup high-gluten flour
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, softened
1 large egg
3 tablespoons sugar (increased from 2)
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
*1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
all of the starter
up to 1/4 cup water

Mix-ins
*1 cup toasted almonds, pistachios (both very coarsely chopped) and pignolis
*1 cup chopped dates, apricots, and prunes (increased from 3/4, dates only)
1/2 cup golden raisins (reduced from 3/4)

Topping
3 tablespoons sugar (increased from 2)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
*1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2-3 teaspoons orange blossom water (increased from 1 of plain water)

Soak the saffron powder in the hot milk for at least an hour.

When you're ready to make the dough, reheat the milk to very warm, add about a teaspoon of sugar, and sprinkle over the yeast.  Mix well and allow to proof until light and bubbly.

Very soft, but with lots of body.

Meanwhile, add the rest of the dough ingredients to the bowl of a food processor, holding out 3/4 cup of the white flour and the water.  Add the proofed yeast mixture and process at a low speed just until incorporated.  Add the remaining flour 1/4 cup at a time, and the water about 1 tablespoon at a time, until you have achieved a fairly slack dough, closer to a heavy batter actually.  Allow to rest about 20-30 minutes to allow the flour to fully hydrate, then check the consistency again and adjust as necessary.  (I left out the last 1/4 cup of flour.)

It held definition, but not a shape.

I generally followed the original recipe for the rest of the directions, with minor changes...

Place the dough in a bowl, and let it rise about 1 hour. It may not double in bulk; that’s OK.  (Mine more than doubled!)

Maybe it didn't need extra yeast after all.

Gently deflate the dough, and knead the nuts and fruit into it. Don't bother with wet or oiled hands -- this is a sticky, tar-baby exercise no matter how you do it.  (I recommend keeping one hand clean at all times; I guarantee that as soon as you get into it, something will start to itch.)  I kneaded with one hand and kept a silicone spatula in the other (the dough wasn't sticking to the silicone), working the dough off the sides of the bowl with the spatula.  Make sure you get up the plain dough off the bottom of the bowl and work it in.

It nearly filled the pan even before rising.

When fully mixed, dump the dough into a 9-inch springform pan (not shown here) and spread out with the spatula, letting the sides be slightly taller than the middle. (There was no way I could have shaped this mass into a ball.)  Cover the pan with a proof cover or lightly greased plastic wrap, and allow the loaf to rise for about 30 minutes, or until it's raised about 1".

After 30 minutes, it was about 1/2" above the pan.

Gently push down any surface fruit and cover them with dough so they don't burn. Combine the sugar, cinnamon, and orange blossom water, and drizzle this mixture over the top of the risen loaf. Bake it in a preheated 350°F oven for 35-40 minutes, or until it’s golden brown. Remove it from the oven, and after 5 minutes, carefully turn it out of the pan. Allow it to cool on a rack.







Before serving, sprinkle lightly with orange blossom water.  (The fragrace is heady.)  Serve with softened, unsalted butter.

Conclusion:  I  don't know why the originator chose to call this a coffeecake.  That gave expectations that were not met.  That's unfortunate, because the results are actually quite good and, though messy, it's an easy recipe.  There is plenty of room for lots of variation, too.  I haven't quite figured out how best to incorporate the flavors I want -- the orange blossom flavor was lost in the glaze, which is why I suggest sprinkling the bread before serving.  I would definitely sweeten the dough a little more for this particular variation, because both the whole wheat and the saffron bring a little bitterness. I'll be tweaking this if I ever get around to making it again, or I might just move on to a whole different combination.  Time will tell!

Original recipe:  Tuscan Coffeecake via King Arthur Flour