Do You Like Piña Colada Empanadas?

AKA Pineapple Empanadas, Take 2

So, I did a little playing and came up with my own twist on pineapple empanaditas.

As far as I'm concerned, you can't go wrong with coconut.  And if you've got pineapple and coconut, why not add a little rum?

Piña Colada Empanadas (adapted from Eating Well)

filling

1 1/2 c chopped fresh pineapple*

1/3 c pineapple preserves

1/4 c shredded coconut

pinch of cinnamon

dough

3/4 c flour

1/4 c whole wheat flour

1/2 c shredded coconut

1/4 c sugar

1 1/2 t baking powder

1/2 t salt

2 T cream cheese

2 T vegetable oil

4 T milk

glaze

1/2 c powdered sugar

1 T rum

water

* See below for oh-so important note.

In a small saucepan over medium heat, stir together pineapple and preserves. Stir frequently and cook mixture until thickened, about 12 to 15 minutes. Remove from heat.  Add coconut and cinnamon and mix thoroughly.  

In a large bowl, combine flours, coconut, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Add cream cheese and oil and get ready to play with your food. With your fingers, combine the ingredients until they're crumbly. One tablespoon at a time, add the milk and stir until the dough comes together. Knead the dough a few times in the bowl and a few more times on a lightly floured surface. Divide the dough in two, shape into discs and wrap in plastic. Chill in the refrigerator at least 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 

Working with one half of the dough at a time, roll out the dough to 1/8-inch thickness. Cut the dough using a 3-inch round cookie cutter (you should get 12 pieces from each portion of dough). Put 1 teaspoon of the filling in the center of each circle (or whatever shape you choose). Fold the dough in half and press the edges together with a fork. Move to the prepared baking sheet.

Bake 12 to 15 minutes, until golden brown. Cool empanadas on wire racks.

For the glaze, stir together powdered sugar and rum. If the glaze is a little too thick, add water (or more rum) for desired consistency.  Drizzle on the empanadas and enjoy. 

 *Did you happen to notice the pineapple filling bubbling away?  The original recipe calls for using a fork to mash the cooked pineapple into smaller pieces.  Lesson learned - mashing steaming hot, juicy pineapple with a fork is not the smartest thing I've done.  Cool the pineapple before mashing or chop it into tiny pieces before cooking.  Your hand with thank you.

Pineapple Empanadas - Part 1

Well, I'm not exactly setting my kitchen on fire these days.  Hmm, bad turn of phrase.  Let's try this again.
 

This was a thoroughly unproductive weekend.  Last weekend I saw a great concert (thanks again, Mary Beth, for a fun time!) and tried a new recipe to bring to the pre-concert picnic -- pineapple empanadas.  They were cute and tasty and relatively healthy, too.  Check out the recipe from Eating Well here.

In my head, I've played around with the recipe to make it my own.  Now I just need to get the rest of me working with my brain (not always an easy task).  In the meantime, we'll call this Part 1. 

rolling and cutting the dough

adding just a wee bit of pineapple filling

all ready to bake

 Look for Part 2 coming soon!

Orange Creamsicle Cupcakes

 

Okay, so jumping back into life as usual has been a bit hit or miss.  Guess the point is just to keep on trying.  In that spirit, I'm really, really going to try to get (and keep) myself back into Sugared Sam mode.

Figured I'd start with something nice and simple.

These cute little liners inspired me and I found the perfect doctored cake mix recipe on Bird on a Cake.  

Dump, mix, fill, bake.  I can handle that.

I added the zest of an orange to vanilla buttercream and dyed half of the frosting orange.  Then I filled one frosting bag with white and one with orange and put both bags inside another to create a swirled pattern.

For an extra touch (and because I'm terribly clever), I cut the tips off toothpicks and inserted them in orange Mike and Ike candies to create little creamsicle toppers.

 

Voila!

Dark Chocolate Sugar Cookies

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

 


Today I whipped up a batch of dark chocolate sugar cookies.  I found the recipe on one of my favorite blogs, Sweetapolita.  Rosie's creations are always delicious and beautiful.  You can find the recipe here.

 

Following the instructions on Sweetapolita, I rolled out the dough between two sheets of parchment paper.  To keep the paper from slipping, I placed a Silpat liner underneath.  The quarter-inch wooden dowels helped me roll the dough to the perfect thickness.

Cutting the cookies.

 

I outlined the cooled cookies with royal icing.

Yum.

Daring Bakers' Challenge - Gevulde Speculaas

It’s official.  I’m a terrible blogger.

Since the sudden loss of my dad I’ve felt adrift.  Just forcing myself through each day seems to take all of my (limited) energy and (reduced) brain power.  But let’s face it, just existing is no way to go through life.

If you’ll bear with me, I’m making an effort to rejoin the world.  I used to love playing in the kitchen.  I used to love doing lots of other creative things.  The plan is to keep forcing myself to do those things until one day it’s no longer such an effort.  

I’m very late in posting this, but here’s the January Daring Bakers’ Challenge, a spiced Dutch pastry filled with almond paste, gevulde speculaas.  They seemed to be a hit at work – and they make your kitchen smell fantastic while they’re baking.  Check out the recipe here.

the speculaas spice mixture

 

 

fresh from the oven

Anniversary Cake

Hi!  Just a quick post tonight.

This weekend I made an anniversary cake - not just any anniversary cake - a 70th anniversary cake.  (Did I just write anniversary cake three times in one sentence?  You'll have to forgive me.  I always get a little loopy after a big job.)

Anyway, 70 years.  How great is that?  I wanted to take a minute to share that with you.

I LOVE taking a blank slate - or cake

 - and making something to help celebrate a special event.

Daring Bakers’ Challenge September 2012 – Dessert Empanadas

Patri of the blog, Asi Son Los Cosas, was our September 2012 Daring Bakers’ hostess and she decided to tempt us with one of her family’s favorite recipes for empanadas! We were given two dough recipes to choose from and encouraged to fill our empanadas as creatively as we wished!

 

Can you believe we’ve come to the end of September already?  I could swear it was June just last week. 

At the beginning of the month I was excited to see the upcoming challenge was an empanada.  I enjoy playing with yeast.  You take this small envelope of teeny, tiny pellets, add some flour and warm liquid, and before you know it, that wonderful smell fills your kitchen. 

My first attempt wasn’t all I hoped it would be.  The dough was perfect, but the filling didn’t quite work.  Also, the beautiful dough leaves I painted with tinted egg wash looked great before I put them in the oven.  When they came out, however. . .well, I’ll show you in another post.  I have bread pudding plans in the works.

Determined not to be defeated by a dessert, I got back into the kitchen the next day with a tweaked filling recipe and – voila!  You can’t go wrong with cinnamon and pecans.

Dessert Empanadas (dough adapted from Daring Bakers’ Challenge)

Filling

8 oz cream cheese, 

    room temperature

1/3 c sugar

2 t cinnamon

2 egg yolks

1 t vanilla

½ c chopped pecans

Cream together cream cheese and sugar until fluffy.  Beat in cinnamon, egg yolks, and vanilla and combine thoroughly.  Stir in pecans and chill mixture until ready to use.

Dough

5 1/3 c bread flour

1 T cinnamon

2 T sugar
1 packet (1 T) dry yeast
2 c lukewarm water (about 85°F)
2 t salt

approx.  4 T oil
1 egg, for egg wash

cinnamon sugar, if desired for decoration

In a large bowl, combine flour, cinnamon, sugar, and yeast.  Dissolve salt in water and slowly add to flour mixture as you stir together the dough.  I prefer to mix the dough with my hands.  It’s easy to “feel” when the dough is ready, plus it’s fun to play with your food.  Add enough water to incorporate all the flour into the dough.

Knead the dough for 10 minutes (this is great for stress release) or use dough hooks in your stand mixer and knead on low for 6 minutes.  Oil a large bowl and place the dough in it.  Cover with a towel and place in a warm, draft-free spot.  Let rise for 40 to 50 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350° F.  Roll out half the dough on a well-floured surface. I found it helps to stretch out the dough by hand first and then use a rolling pin.  Transfer the dough to a floured or parchment paper-lined baking pan or sheet.

Spread filling on the dough, leaving a ½-inch margin from the edges.  Roll out the other half of the dough and place on top of the filling.  Use your fingers to pinch together the top and bottom halves of the dough. 

Cut a hole in the top layer of the empanada to allow hot air to escape while baking.  Use any leftover dough to decorate the empanada and prick the top layer with a fork.

In a small bowl, beat together the egg and 1 T water.  Brush egg wash on the empanada and if desired, sprinkle with cinnamon sugar mixture.  If you are making one large empanada, bake for about 45 minutes.  I baked the small empanadas for about 15 minutes.  Make sure the top and bottom layers of bread are done. 

Enjoy.

Peach Pies with Peanut Butter Crust

Okay, confession time.  I made an online connection and it’s getting serious. The works days seem to drag on forever as I wait impatiently until I can come home, walk the dog (because there’s no way she’ll tolerate a postponement), then finally settle in for some much needed time with my new love. 

Who is this beau? Readers, meet Design*Sponge. 

Every week day, Design*Sponge makes me smile, whether we’re admiring a beautifully decorated home, discovering a talented designer, or learning about a new DIY project.  And while I treasure all of our time together, Fridays are my favorite.  That’s recipe day.

The peach pie recipe last month particularly caught my eye. The recipe comes from Cheryl and Griffith Day, owners of Back in the Day Bakery in Savannah, Georgia, where they know a thing or two about peaches.  Their version contains cardamom, which is unique and quite tasty.  Be sure to try it.  I decided to make another batch using my own spin.

A favorite summer breakfast of my family is peanut butter and peaches on toast.  Before you turn up your nose, give it a try. There’s the crunch of the toast, the slightly salty and melted peanut butter, and best of all, the sweet, juicy perfection of peach.

You can use any kind of bread.  And while I choose to spread my toast with chunky peanut butter, feel free to pick your favorite.  I refuse to compromise on the peaches, though.  They must be fresh – don’t even think about using canned.  Place sliced pieces of peach on the toast and enjoy. 

Peach Pies with Peanut Butter Crust (adapted from Design*Sponge)

Filling

2 c (about 5 peaches)

   peeled, chopped peaches

1 t lemon juice

1 t cinnamon

¼ t salt

½ c brown sugar

2 T butter

1 t cornstarch

Crust

2 c flour

3 T sugar

¼ t salt

½ lb cold butter, cubed

3 T cold peanut butter

1 egg yolk

3 T ice water

1 t cream

1 egg

¼ c chopped peanuts,

   if desired

For filling

Peel and dice peaches.  Stir in lemon juice.

In a medium, heavy saucepan, combine peaches, cinnamon, salt, brown sugar, and butter.  Continue stirring and cook over medium heat until sugar dissolves, about 5 minutes.  In a small bowl, combine cornstarch and 1 t water.  Add to peaches and cook (don’t stop stirring) about 10 minutes more, until mixture is thickened and glossy.  Remove from heat and let filling cool.

For crust

Stir together flour, sugar, and salt in a large bowl.

Using a pastry cutter, cut in cold butter and peanut butter until mixture resembles small peas (I’m talking about size, not color).

Combine egg yolk and 3 T ice water and stir into mixture with a fork, just until dough comes together and can be patted together with your hands.  If necessary, add water, a teaspoon at a time.  (Be careful not to add too much.  You don’t want the dough to be sticky.)

Flour a work surface and hands and form the dough into two disks.  Wrap each disk in plastic wrap and chill for 1 hour to 3 days.

For pie

Preheat oven to 375° F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough to about ¼-inch thick and cut into eight 5-inch circles.  Place 2 T peach filling on one side of each circle, leaving about ½ inch from the edges.

Stir together cream and egg in a small bowl.  Brush edges of the circles with the egg wash and fold over the dough.  Crimp edges with a fork to seal in the filling and cut small slits on the top of each pie.

Place pies on the baking sheets and brush tops with egg wash.  If desired, sprinkle with chopped peanuts.  Bake 10 to 12 minutes, until golden brown.

If you can wait for the pies to cool completely, I’ll be impressed.